VTech® Introduces Expansive Line of More Than 40 New Infant and Preschool Learning Products at Toy Fair 2014

NEW YORK, Feb. 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- VTech® (www.vtechkids.com), a world leader in age-appropriate and developmental stage-based electronic learning products for children, continues to build upon its mission to create innovative educational products that enrich children's development. In 2014, VTech is significantly expanding its award-winning infant and preschool line with more than 40 exciting new products on display at the 2014 American International Toy Fair.

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"VTech's infant and preschool line has always been at the heart of our business," said William To, President of VTech Electronics North America. "Our 2014 line shows that we remain dedicated to developing innovative products that deliver engaging and imaginative play experiences that are perfectly suited for a child's particular age and stage of development."

VTech consults with a panel of experts on the development of its infant and preschool learning products.  These experts specialize not only in the critical subject areas that are important for instilling a lifetime love of learning: reading, language arts, math and science, but the broader spectrum of childhood development.

Since each child grows at a different pace mentally, emotionally and physically, and has different needs as they grow through various life stages, insight from these developmental and education experts allows VTech to provide parents with guidelines and recommendations to help them make informed choices.  VTech delivers an expansive selection of toys that are appropriate for their child's particular age and stage and to accompany them as they continue to grow and reach new developmental milestones.  These recommendations have been compiled into a Milestones guide, which can be found at www.vtechkids.com/milestones.

"VTech's rich, age-appropriate learning content engages children in a broad range of educational subjects, giving them a head start in learning," said Dr. Lise Eliot, esteemed early childhood mental development expert and member of VTech's Panel of Experts.

VTech has worked closely with Dr. Eliot 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.

New introductions to the infant and preschool line include:

Chomp & Count Dino™: Children can learn about colors, numbers and food with the adorable new Chomp & Count Dino. Simply place one of the eight brightly-colored play pieces in the dino's mouth and watch as he eats and recognizes each piece. Play in either food or counting mode and the dino responds with rewarding sounds and phrases all while introducing colors, numbers, shapes and more. Press the question button and kids can answer the dino's questions to show what they've learned. Five shape buttons help kids learn shapes and numbers, while spinning the disc on dino's back will play sing-along songs. The dino can also be pushed or pulled by a string for even more fun melodies. Ages 12-36 months, MSRP: $19.99.

Sit-to-Stand Smart Cruiser™: Cruise into the learning zone on the Sit-to-Stand Smart Cruiser. This 2-in-1 toy grows with children and transforms from a floor play toy with detachable steering wheel activity panel to an exciting ride-on toy. The interactive steering wheel features driving, learning and music modes with more than 80 songs, sounds and phrases that introduce animals, opposites and first words. Turn on the engine, move the gear shifter or press the horn to hear realistic driving sound effects. Children can pretend to drive to six different fun locations with arrow buttons teaching the concept of direction and road safety. Attach the steering wheel to the cruiser and it becomes a fun ride-on toy. The Sit-to-Stand Cruiser also has a fun front activity panel and under seat storage children can fill with small toys for more fun on the go! Ages 6-36 months, MSRP: $39.99.

Stand & Learn Singing Center™: Children can pretend to be musicians and sing along to the music with the Stand & Learn Singing Center. As they sing into the microphone, five colorful lights correspond to children's voices, or they can play with wacky voice-changing and amplifying effects. Rock out with three instrument buttons that play guitar, drum and saxophone sounds. Five animal piano keys introduce kids to instruments, colors and animals. Kids can choose between Learn & Play mode and Sing-Along mode to become learning super stars! Ages 12-36 months, MSRP: $29.99.

Smart Shots Sports Center™: Parents can cheer on their little sports stars with the Smart Shots Sports Center. This electronic sports center features a soccer goal and basketball hoop for a fun 2-in-1 experience. Kick the soccer ball into the net to hear fun sounds or toss the basketball into the hoop and the magic sensor will count up to ten each time a basket is scored. Three buttons introduce shapes, numbers, opposites, sing-along songs and more. Turn the gears or flip the page to hear fun phrases and sounds. The sports center also features a light-up screen that plays a variety of fun animations and shows numbers, shapes and letters to reinforce learning. Score, win and learn with the Smart Shots Sports Center! Ages 12-36 months, MSRP: $39.99.

Lil' Speller Phonics Station™: The Lil' Speller Phonics Station lets children build and learn words with fun sounds, melodies and animations that encourage interactive learning and reinforce words. They can discover letter names and hear their sounds by plugging in the letter blocks one by one, or learn letter order by determining which letter is missing, then plug in the correct letter block to complete the letter order. With the help of the Spelling Bee, kids can learn to spell more than 200 common three-letter words. When they've mastered the basics, they can take the Spelling Bee's challenge. If they spell the words correctly, they advance to a bonus rhyming game. The Lil' Speller Phonics Station includes 26 letter blocks and four extra blocks to spell words like "mom" and "dad." It also features a handle and all of the blocks can be stored inside for easy travel. Ages 3-6 years, MSRP: $24.99.

Record & Learn KidiStudio™: Now children can perform and record like a rock star with the Record & Learn KidiStudio. Kids can explore a variety of musical instruments, adjust the tempo and sing-along to the music while recording a musical masterpiece to share with family and friends. The light-up keyboard lets them follow the lights and learn to play their favorite melodies. Kids can choose an instrument and use the keyboard to play that instrument's different sounds, or press the cymbal or tap along on the drum to add a beat to the song. They can even pretend to be a DJ with the scratch disc sound effect and speed up or slow down the tempo to match their style. Sing along to 20 melodies in Rock, Hip Hop, Jazz and Techno styles with a real voice-changing microphone. Ages 3-6 years, MSRP: $39.99.

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 award-winning products such as the InnoTab^® 3S Wi-Fi Learning Tablet, one of the first children's learning-based tablets with Wi-Fi, MobiGo^®, V.Reader^® and V.Smile^®. The Learning Lodge™, VTech's comprehensive app store, features a robust library of more than 650 educational and entertaining games, e-Books, music and videos with engaging age-appropriate content across the widest variety of curricula, with content expanding to offer even more titles. 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. In order to further strengthen VTech's position as a learning authority, the company's Panel of Experts, with esteemed experts in reading, language arts, science, math, and child development, consult on new product introductions and Learning Lodge content.

VTech Electronics North America, LLC is based in Arlington Heights, Illinois. VTech Electronics Limited is headquartered in Hong Kong with distribution globally. VTech is the largest supplier of ELPs from infancy to preschool in the US and Western Europe.

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