The Toy Insider Announces HOT 20 TOYS for 2011 Holiday Season

Elmo and Harry Potter Toys Headline the List of Top Picks in Sixth Annual Holiday Toy Guide

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Sep 26, 2011, 05:30 ET

NEW YORK, Sept. 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Toy Insider (www.thetoyinsider.com), an annual holiday toy guide, announced today its HOT 20 TOYS for the 2011 holiday season, including Scene It? Harry Potter: The Complete Cinematic Journey, Let's Rock Elmo, Redakai Championship Tin and LeapPad. The HOT 20 is the kick-off section of the Toy Insider, which will run in full in the November 17, 2011 issue of Woman's Day magazine, on newsstands November 1, 2011.

Now in its sixth year, the Toy Insider features expert toy and gift recommendations at all price points, making it easy for all gift givers to find the perfect holiday gift for every kid on their lists. All of the toys in the guide have been selected by a panel of toy trend experts, led by industry veterans Jonathan Samet, Publisher of The Toy Book, and Laurie Schacht, TOY INSIDER MOM and Contributing Toy Editor to Woman's Day. Laurie is also the leading spokesperson to consumers on toys and gifts, making regular appearances on the TODAY SHOW, ABC NEWS, GOOD DAY NEW YORK and many others. The panel also includes Jackie Breyer, Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book, the leading trade publication in the toy industry, and Reyne Rice, a leading toy trend expert. The Toy Insider team spent the past year reviewing and evaluating all of the latest toys to identify the most compelling and hottest new products to help gift givers get an early start on their holiday shopping.

This year's edition is the biggest one ever, filled with 110 toy recommendations from more than 80 different manufacturers. The Toy Insider is an excellent resource and user-friendly guide for gift giving. It includes gift ideas for all ages and both genders, broken out by age group (0-2 years old, 3-5 years old, 6-8 years old and 9+ years old). Each section features an in-depth description of the developmental needs and interests for that specific age group to assist any holiday shopper in finding the perfect gift. A unique toy skill key, located on the HOT 20 page, provides a list of icons that are matched to each toy, offering even greater convenience with age-appropriate gift giving.

"We could not be more thrilled to announce our HOT 20, as this year's the Toy Insider is our biggest issue ever," said Jonathan Samet, Co-Publisher of the Toy Insider. "We completely understand the pressures that come with holiday shopping and finding the perfect gift, so we spent countless hours trying to provide our readers with what we feel is the best in class for 2011."

This year's HOT 20 toys are:

0-2 YEARS
Elefun Busy Ball Popper - Playskool
Let's Rock Elmo - Hasbro
Little People Zoo Talkers Animal Sounds Zoo – Fisher-Price
Pocoyo Swiggletraks - Bandai

3-5 Years
Chuggington Interactive Railway – Learning Curve
Lazer Stunt Chaser – Thinkway Toys
Mini Lalaloopsy Treehouse – MGA Entertainment
LeapPad - LeapFrog
Lite Sprites - WowWee
PlasmaBike - PlaSmart

6-8 Years
Angry Birds Plush – Commonwealth Toy & Novelty Co.
Justin Bieber Rockin' Tour Bus and Concert Stage –The Bridge Direct
Nerf Vortex Proton Blaster - Hasbro
Radica Fijit Friends - Mattel
Redakai Championship Tin – Spin Master
Skylanders Spyro's Adventure - Activision

9+ Years
Alien Conquest: Alien Mothership – Lego Systems
Paper Jamz Pro Series Microphone - WowWee
Scene It? Harry Potter: The Complete Cinematic Journey – Screenlife
uDraw Game Tablet - THQ

Nearly all of the Toy Insider picks are available at Walmart stores nationwide and on Walmart.com, making holiday shopping convenient and affordable for parents and grandparents. For more information on availability, please visit www.thetoyinsider.com.

About the Toy Insider:

The Toy Insider is THE SOURCE for the hottest toys and gifts for the holidays. Now in its sixth year, the Toy Insider is an annual guide featuring toy and gift recommendations broken down by age categories. The 2011 guide is jam-packed with 110 toy recommendations from more than 80 different manufacturers, each of which were carefully selected by a team of experts with years of experience in the toy industry. The Toy Insider is published by Adventure Publishing, publisher of leading industry trades The Toy Book and The Licensing Book.

SOURCE The Toy Insider