VTech® Expands Award-Winning Infant and Preschool Lines

NEW YORK, Feb. 15, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today VTech^® announces the expansion of its celebrated Infant and Preschool lines, offering exciting new products designed to encourage growth and enrich children's play experiences. To help children at each age and stage meet developmental milestones, VTech's Expert Panel provides critical insight into the development of its learning products. These experts specialize not only in the critical subject areas that are important for instilling a lifetime love of learning such as reading, language arts, math and science, but the broader spectrum of childhood development. Additionally, VTech has continued the growth of its online Milestones resource, specifically created to help parents select toys based on the individual needs of children from birth to nine years old. New additions to the extensive, growing collection of more than 80 Infant and Preschool items will be introduced at the 2016 North American International Toy Fair®.

"The continued growth of the Infant and Preschool lines demonstrates why VTech remains an industry leader in children's learning products," said William To, President of VTech Electronics North America. "We are committed to building upon our mission to create innovative educational products that enrich children's development at every age and stage."

New educator-approved Infant products include the Care for Me Learning Carrier™, an interactive travel pet carrier that promotes pretend play and nurturing; Ring & Learn Cash Register™, an interactive cash register with shopping basket and food to encourage little ones with role-play fun; and Gallop & Rock Learning Pony™, an exciting 2-in-1 toy that transforms from a rocking horse to a ride-on to enhance motor skill development. New additions to the Preschool line include Zoo Jamz Piano™, an adorable zebra piano with microphone that plays songs, melodies and instrument sounds; and Mix & Move Bizzy™, an interactive, educational robot with interchangeable accessories like arms, legs, hats and more.

Since each child grows at a different pace mentally, emotionally and physically, and has different needs as they move through through various life stages, insight from VTech's Expert Panel of education and development experts allows the company to provide parents with guidelines and recommendations to help them make informed choices. VTech's Milestones resource is compiled of an expansive recommendation of toys that are appropriate for a child's particular age and stage. These toys accompany them as they continue to grow and reach new developmental milestones. The expert-endorsed recommendations were developed in collaboration with Dr. Lise Eliot, early brain development expert and member of VTech's Expert Panel.

"Engaging children in play at an early age is incredibly beneficial to their physical and mental development, but it's important that they're getting the right kinds of interaction," said Dr. Eliot. "Parents play a key role in influencing their child's development, and VTech's Milestones are a great resource to help parents select the right toys to supplement their child's learning and development."

VTech has worked closely with Dr. Eliot for six years to ensure that all Infant and Preschool products deliver against at least one, if not all, of the following categories that are essential for the development of young children: language and cognitive development, social and emotional development, and physical and motor development.

The new Infant and Preschool products will be available later this year. Highlights include:

Care for Me Learning Carrier™: Care for Me Learning Carrier™ is an interactive pet carrier that lets little ones take their plush pet anywhere! Put the plush puppy inside or take her out of the carrier and hear playful phrases when opening and closing the door. The activity panel on the side of the carrier is packed with learning fun. Press the light-up buttons to learn about colors, shapes, pet care and more. Sliding the letter beads introduce letters and play music. Sliding the window and spinning the roller add to the fun and encourage motor skills. The carrier also includes four pet care accessories so toddlers can groom, feed and play with the cuddly puppy. Ages 9-36 months.

Ring & Learn Cash Register™: Little shoppers will love filling their basket with healthy play food and pretending to buy it with this interactive toy cash register. Weigh the food, ring up the order and use the credit card to pay for the groceries. Each interaction is rewarded with a variety of playful phrases, fun sounds, songs and music. Press the light-up number buttons to introduce numbers, colors, food and play healthy-eating phrases. For more role-play fun, press the "open" button to pop open the cash register drawer. Ages 12-36 months.

Gallop & Rock Learning Pony™: Hop in the saddle and go for a ride on the Gallop & Rock Learning Pony. This interactive 2-in-1 pony grows with a child and quickly transforms from a rocking horse to a ride-on toy. Brightly colored buttons introduce colors, action words and play realistic pony sounds for imaginative play. The pony also features a motion sensor that detects children's movement and responds with cheerful music and pony sounds to encourage them to rock and ride! Ages 12-36 months.

Zoo Jamz Piano™: Now little ones can be rock stars as they sing, play and rock out with the Zoo Jamz Piano. This 4-in-1 instrument lets children choose what they want to play (piano, violin, xylophone or saxophone) with more than 20 songs and melodies. The zebra piano has light-up keys so little ones can follow along or learn to play a song at three different levels to match their skill level. It has a whammy bar and scratch disc that enhance fine motor skills and add cool sounds. Plus, it has a microphone so kids can amplify their voice and sing along. No matter what mode they choose there's tons of fun packed into this musical toy. Ages 1½ – 4 years.

Mix & Move Bizzy™: Now children can get creative as they build their own robot with Mix & Move Bizzy. With 10 different accessories there are so many ways to encourage the role-play experience by creating a different robot every time they play. This playful bot teaches cause and effect as children connect the 10 accessories to trigger fun responses. It also includes 10 fun and unique melodies that children can personalize by switching around the accessories to add in their own special sound effects. Bizzy will guide children through various activities, allowing for creative, independent play. Bizzy also loves to dance around to the music on his interchangeable legs or wheels. With Bizzy around, the fun never stops! Ages 2 – 5 years.

For more information, visit www.vtechkids.com.

About VTech®
VTech® is a world leader in age-appropriate and developmental stage-based electronic learning products for children. As a pioneer in the learning toy category, VTech develops high-quality, innovative educational products that enrich children's development and make learning fun. With a rich, almost 35 year history, VTech has not only established itself as a learning authority but also consistently remains at the forefront of innovation with multiple award-winning products. The company also has a broad range of award-winning infant and preschool products available in 24 different languages worldwide, with more than 100 new products introduced every year. VTech was awarded a prestigious 2015 Toy of The Year (TOTY) Award for its Go! Go! Smart Animals® Zoo Explorers Playset™. In order to further strengthen VTech's position as a learning authority, the company's Expert Panel, with esteemed experts in reading, language arts, science, math, and child development, consult on new product introductions.

VTech Electronics North America, LLC is based in Arlington Heights, Illinois. VTech Electronics Limited is headquartered in Hong Kong with distribution globally.

For more information on VTech's additional product lines, visit www.VTechKids.com, www.facebook.com/VTechtoys on Facebook or follow @VTechToys on Twitter.

SOURCE VTech

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http://www.VTechKids.com