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NY Toy Fair 2009 - Day 1 Cool Tech Find

On opening day of the 2009 Toy Fair event in New York City, I began my search for new toy products that include unique application of technology for the benefit of enhancing play. While I only covered a small fraction of the show's floor (7 hours of isle wandering), I came across a few products that caught my eye. One being a digital facelift to the classic Rubik's cube, promoted by a company called .

Let me start off by saying that I am not a Rubik's cube fan. I never could figure out those darn things. But I thought a couple of tech features applied to this toy were really groundbreaking.

First, users interact with this non-twisting cube by touching the different surfaces with [033bc19607000692aaa18c546d64f726.js?ver=1713519591] a finger. It immediately comes across as an iPhone touch interface. Slide a finger along a row of lighted tiles made the cube "rotate. "

Next, the cube has a built in accelerometer used to determine the active display face. Once the accelerometer has figured out which way is up 033bc19607000692aaa18c546d64f726.js?ver=1713519591, 033bc19607000692aaa18c546d64f726.js?ver=1713519591 it only allows the upward face to be changed through touch. This way a users holding the cube with both hands from the side will not alter the puzzle's surfaces in unexpected ways.

There's a button to give you a hint if needed. Also included is multiple levels of undo so you can roll the surfaces back to a point where you think you may have made a mistake. When the TouchCube is rested in its docking bay to be recharged, the cube puts on a unique visual display. Think of this as your new digital lava lamp.

The Rubik's TouchCube is available for purchase in the Fall and is being offered for a suggested retail price of $149. 99. Check out video below to see the product in action.