The Internet of Toys (IoToys) is a developing market within our Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem. This book examines the rise of internet-connected toys and aims to anticipate the opportunities and risks of IoToys before their widespread diffusion. Contributors to this volume each provide a critical analysis of the design, production, regulation, representation and consumption of internet-connected toys. In order to address the theoretical, methodological and policy questions that arise from the study of these new playthings, and contextualise the diverse opportunities and challenges that IoToys pose to educators, families and children themselves, the chapters engage with notions of mediatization, datafication, robotification, connected and post-digital play. This timely engagement with a key transformation in children’s play will appeal to all readers interested in understanding the social uses and consequences of IoToys, and primarily to researchers and students in children and media, early childhood studies, media and communications, sociology, education, social psychology, law and design.

Provides instructions for fifteen projects using wireless technology, including a wi-fi antenna cable, a solar-powered wireless repeater, and a car-to-car wireless video link.

For over a year, the photographer and journal­ist Gabriele Galimberti visited more than 50 countries and created colorful images of boys and girls in their homes and neighborhoods with their most prized possessions: their toys. From Texas to India, Malawi to China, Iceland, Morocco, and Fiji, Galimberti recorded the spontaneous and natural joy that unites kids despite their diverse backgrounds. Whether the child owns a veritable fleet of miniature cars or a single stuffed monkey, the pride that Galimberti captures is moving, funny, and thought provoking.

A fascinating, eclectic analysis of the changing geographies of play in contemporary society.

Provides step-by-step instructions for creating a variety of RFID projects, including a home door lock, an electronic safe, a doggie door, and an object locator.

This book offers a fresh look at recent developments in policy, curricula and pedagogical discourse around children’s play with Internet of Toys (IoToys). By expanding the notion of digital and smart play perspectives in early childhood education, the authors critique and develop the broader subject area of IoToys play to better serve its end users. The book brings together research from across three different countries: Australia, Norway and England. It offers tangible examples of how one can use IoToys to build children’s social skills, emotional intelligence, sense of achievement, collaboration and aspects of STEM and design play thinking processes. The learning stories of children’s IoToys play will deliver a comprehensive review of how practitioners and parents can come together to build communities of practice for (re)enhancing children’s learning and growth using evolving technology-based play and engage in paradigmatic debates. Readers as a result will better appreciate the growth in pragmatic applications of technologies together with theoretical perspectives. The book will be a valuable resource for any academic or practitioner just beginning to understand the complexities and success stories of integrating IoToys for children’s playful learning.

In "Plastic Culture", British comics artist and illustrator Woodrow Phoenixxplores our relationship to toys in the twenty-first century, witharticular emphasis on Japan - an exporter of both merchandise and ideas.lastic Toys based on comics, movies and TV shows from "Astro Boy", "Godzilla"nd "Gatchaman", to "Power Rangers", "Sailor Moon" and "Pokemon" have had aowerful effect on the West, and have kick-started trends in design and populture that have crossed from Japan to the West and back East again. Withts blend of incisive analysis and stylish photography, this is a book thatill appeal to a wide range of readers: from those interested in the latestrends in contemporary art, to toy collectors young and old, and to anyoneith an interest in Japan's influence on contemporary pop culture.