Legendary Yoda from Spin Master Toys Trains Padawans on the Ways of the Force

**A Geek Daddy received the featured product for free to review **

Learn the ways of the Force with Spin Master's LEGENDARY YODA interactive animatronic toy.  Experience being a padawan training to be a Jedi knight under the guidance of Master Yoda with this 16 inch high toy that is one of the most realistic Star Wars toys A Geek Daddy has ever seen.  Our family has enjoyed hours of fun playing with Legendary Yoda as he demonstrates light saber dueling skills, imparts Jedi wisdom and teaches you how to use the Force.



We've enjoyed practicing handling a light saber on our back deck with Legendary Yoda on multiple occasions and the toy has worked really well though the instructions very clearly state "not for outdoor use."  I believe this warning is primarily for two reasons.  First, the toy is powered by 7 motors that provide for it to operate with an incredible 360 degree level of motion and there is the risk that water, dust and other outdoor elements could damage these mechanics.  Secondly, sunlight hinders your ability to see Yoda's light saber illuminate which takes away from the play experience when using the toy outdoors.  Though I do have to say it is still fun to play with outside!



As you can see indoors, Legendary Yoda's light saber is clearly visible as he engages into Warrior Mode.  Equipped with his signature green light saber, Legendary Yoda will share with you advanced techniques any Jedi will need to know in order to defeat an evil Sith opponent.  He also shares some of his Jedi Master humor with padawans.  Don't despair from Yoda's mocking as with continued patience and practice he will provide you with the wisdom of a Jedi.



Legendary Yoda's Wisdom Mode provides voice recognition to six key phrases allowing any Jedi want-to-be to converse with the toy and trigger a variety of mechanical actions.  In Wisdom Mode, Yoda will utilize the Force to answer any Yes or No Question you may pose to him.  Yoda is programmed with more than 100 phrases to keep his banter from being too repetitious during continuous use.  Just like Santa Claus knows if you have been bad or good so does Yoda with his built-in Dark Side sensor that becomes activated during Wisdom Mode.  Spin Master has also included a walking stick accessory that can be switched out with Yoda's light saber to provide a scholarly appearance for the Jedi Master while engaging in Wisdom Mode.



Once you've experienced Warrior Mode and Wisdom Mode, utilize the toy's Force Mode to use this mystical power for yourself.  Legendary Yoda really moves when you use the Force to control pushing him back across a room.  Who hasn't wanted to mimic using the Force from a Star Wars movie scene in real life?! Legendary Yoda gives you that chance, but beware if you see his hand light up because he may respond against you with his own glowing "force blast."

The toy requires 6 C batteries to operate and doesn't utilize its own rechargeable plug-in battery which is a bit of a drawback as I hate buying and replacing batteries for toys; but it does provide a lengthy amount of play time with the 6 C batteries as our family has played with the toy for several days without having to replace them.  Just be prepared to have to buy batteries for this toy as they are not included. Legendary Yoda's motion works well on flat surfaces such as cement, tile and hardwood floors and thin carpet but avoid shaggy rugs which will hinder its wheels not allowing it to move or spin.

Legendary Yoda has earned A Geek Daddy nod of approval because it is a dynamic toy that has provided our family with a tremendous amount of enjoyment playing with it.  The interactivity, iconic phrases, and mechanical motions that are incorporated together to bring Yoda to life truly makes this a wonderful toy to play with.  Any Star Wars fan, no matter if they are young or old, will enjoy playing with Legendary Yoda from Spin Master Toys.  Are you ready for Legendary Yoda to teach you in the ways of the Force?

Legendary Yoda is available from Toys R Us and can also be purchased directly from Spin Master Toys.  Legendary Yoda is recommended for Jedi 6 years old and up.

The Force Trainer II: Hologram Experience

** A Geek Daddy received the featured product for free to review **

My kids explored what it is like to be a Jedi on May the Fourth as we had some Star Wars Day fun with Uncle Milton's THE FORCE TRAINER II: Hologram Experience. Who hasn't watched a Star Wars movie and dreamed of being able to move physical objects through the power of concentration? Utilizing a tablet, special Bluetooth headset, and a holographic display, The Force Trainer from Uncle Milton provides users the feeling of using the Force by allowing you to move holograms with the power of your mind. The Force Trainer II creates holographic images that are impressive to observe then enhances the fun to another level of awesomeness by allowing these holograms to be controlled through the power of your mind mimicking a Jedi's use of the force. This really is impressive, most impressive!

These holograms are created by downloading a free app that works with most current iPads (iPad 2 and newer)and Android tablets (Samsung Tablet 10.1 recommended)onto a device which is placed on top of an included theatrical display and projects images upon special panels to create a three dimensional illusion. My kids were really delighted by these holograms with my daughter yelling out in excitement when she saw her first image "it looks just like the pictures R2-D2 shows in Star Wars!"

While simply viewing these holograms is thrilling in itself, amazingly The Force Trainer also allows you to move them with your mind. Instructions from Master Yoda will guide you through a variety of Jedi Challenges ranging from constructing a light saber to knocking down battle droids. Both my son and daughter agreed that their favorite challenge was recreating the scene from Empire Strikes Back where you raise an X-wing space ship out of a Dagobah swamp.

The Force Trainer harnesses the power of your mind through the included headset which uses advanced dry neural sensor technology that monitors your brainwaves. As people concentrate they generate Beta brainwaves. The headset can detect these Beta brainwaves and send a measurement of their intensity via Bluetooth to the tablet which controls the holograms movement based upon your level of concentration. The higher the level of concentration the quicker you will complete a challenge. There are 10 levels to conquer to move up the Jedi ranks from Padawan to Master. Each level requires an escalating intensity of Beta brainwaves to complete challenges and continue moving on. Can you demonstrate to Yoda the concentration needed to obtain the rank of Jedi Master? Do or do not. There is no try!

The entertainment value of the Jedi Challenges combined with the educational insights that can be gained from its scientific elements earns THE FORCE TRAINER II: Hologram Experience a nod of approval from A Geek Daddy.  Incorporating music and sound effects from the Star Wars movies with real life holograms that look like they jumped right out of a sci-fi film is a great way to combine learning with having fun.  Parents can jump right in and compete with their children to see who can earn the rank of Jedi Master first making this a great experience for the whole family to enjoy together.  It also comes with a science learning poster to reinforce the educational aspects of this game. This really is worth checking out!



THE FORCE TRAINER II: Hologram Experience is recommend for ages 8+.  It does require a compatible iPad or Android tablet (not included), Internet access to download an app (though not needed to operate the app), and 1 AAA battery to power the neural sensor technology.  It is important to achieve a good fit with the adjustable headset because if the sensors don't maintain a good connection the game will be interrupted and paused because the game needs to be detecting Beta brainwaves for the challenge modes to function. The sensors must be flush against a person's skin on his or her forehead and behind each ear. Be aware it may take some adjustments and trial and error before a good connection is established but once you get it working the headset works very well when it comes to interacting with the holograms.  The Force was awakened in our house with this great product from Uncle Milton as my children really had a blast pretending to be Jedi and interacting with the Star Wars holograms.

CLICK HERE for more information about THE FORCE TRAINER II: Hologram Experience from Uncle Milton.