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Total Control Racing (TCR)

Total Control Racing (TCR) was the cooler rival to Scalextric that ultimately fell by the wayside.

Galaxy Invader 1000

Like the Game & Watch, handheld machines were one-game affairs back in the 80s and one of the very best was Galaxy Invader 1000.

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Tomy Omnibot

The Stylophone pocket organ was hugely popular in the 70s and 80s for almost no reason as it make a sound like an electronic cat being strangled.

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Wii Balance Board

Considering how badly the Wii U sold it’s easy to forget that the previous console, the Wii, was a huge hit - especially with families.

Teksta (Tekno)

Teksta (or Tekno as it is known in the States) is popular in its current form but first came to life in 2000 with a more robotic look and fewer features.

Anki Drive

Anki Overdrive was a massive success a few Christmases ago, much to even Anki’s surprise and delight.

Star Wars X-Wing Starfighter Drone

A recent entry into our list purely because we think it’s awesome, the Star Wars drone series tick all the boxes for a must-have Christmas present.

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Bigtrak

Bigtrak (or Big Trak in the US) was a programmable vehicle that essentially taught kids to code many many years before it became popular.

Electronic Battleship

We did get an Electronic Battle for Christmas in the 80s but our nylon carpet created enough static to blow it up by Boxing Day.

Nintendo Game Boy

Choosing Tetris to come free with the machine was a masterstroke by Nintendo. We still have the music embedded in our brains.

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Lego Monorail 6990

We could’ve included so many different Lego sets, but this Monorail pack as part of the Space range in the late 80s is our biggest regret.

Thunderbirds Tracy Island

Atari 2600 (AKA Atari VCS)

Atari pretty much started the whole videogames console market in 1977 with the Atari 2600, it was priced at $199 so around $830 in today’s money.

Furby

Six Million Dollar Man

Based on the 1970s TV show of the same name, the plastic Steve Austin was seen as a more advanced Action Man so therefore we all wanted one.

Sinclair ZX81 / ZX Spectrum

The Sinclair ZX81 was a revelation on its release in 1981, but it wasn’t until the ZX Spectrum a year later that things really began to take off.

Speak and Spell

This was one of several Texas Instrument electronic devices that were designed to make learning fun.

Lazer Tag

Lazer Tag is still available today, in several more modern guises, but you can’t beat the 80s original.