Toy Fair 2001

ELECTRIC RAZOR Ask most kids who builds the best scooter, and right or wrong, they'll probably say "Razor." We're not eager to jump on the Razor bandwagon, but we have to say that its latest model is pretty sharp. A lightweight, battery-powered electric scooter, the Razor E ($330) makes its debut in April. With a top speed of 10 m.p.h. and a battery life of one hour, it's no match for a bike, but it's easy to drive and can outrun a cab at rush hour. And when you get home, just pull the battery off and take it in to recharge.

LEAP AHEAD Dick and Jane may have taught millions of us how to read, but we never heard them talk. Imagination Desk, from LeapFrog's Fall 2001 line of educational toys, is a touch-sensitive coloring book that chatters away, guiding kids through reading and writing lessons. The company's game plan is to offer free printable pages (with sound effects) on the Web so Mom and Dad won't start to panic as their little reader nears the letter Z.

ATTENTION GETTER Hey, parents! We've finally found a video-game system designed to lengthen--not shorten--your child's attention span. Developer East3 redesigned some NASA biofeedback technology to build the Attention Trainer, a helmet that monitors brain activity through the scalp. The data are relayed wirelessly to a PC and used in special games developed by Hasbro Interactive in which vehicles move faster or targets grow larger when players focus their attention. At about $1,000, it's not quite ready for the PlayStation crowd.