Every year, Toys R Us reveals its Fab 15 list. This list details the 15 most popular toys among kids this year, and chances are your kid wants at least one of the items. All sorts of items will go on sale for Black Friday, but some of the most bloodthirsty shoppers will be dueling over these toys. If you’ve ever seen Arnold Schwarzenegger vying for a Turbo-Man doll in the movie Jingle All The Way, you have some indication of this process. You can click here to see the full list, though we will be commenting on a few of them below.
Thanks to dealnews.com, however, we can offer you some advice on how to go about pursuing these items. One of the biggest shopping myths out there is that you will never be able to beat the early-morning in-store sales on Black Friday. That’s why you see lines circling around the buildings at the biggest retailers. However, dealnews.com has research on hand that suggests that shopping in-store on Black Friday may not always net you the best deal. They have found that 70% of the in-store deals you find at places like Walmart and Target are available online for the same price or less. If you include the items that receive FREE shipping with a minimum order, then it’s actually 85%.
So, if not at some ridiculously early hour on Black Friday, when is the best time to go hunting for these Fab 15 toys? Again, dealnews.com’s advice is wait. Don’t pull the trigger on buying these toys until the last second. Procrastination is not usually our advice, but the prices tend to be best in the two weeks leading up to Christmas Day. That 14-day window is what you should be watching for as you consider the following Fab 15 items:
Furby – Lets get this abomination out of the way first. Americans clearly have short memories, as Furby went out of style in the 1990s when kids realized the furry beasts were psychotic and frightening. It doesn’t even look like the toy has changed any, teaching a moral about history. Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it, and today’s kids are lining up to learn the lesson anew.
Wii U – Nintendo’s latest attempt to earn back some of its lost market share from the X-Box and Playstation 3, the Wii U allows gamers to experience two integrated screens with the television and the new GamePad. The GamePad works as a touch-screen while also have dual analog stick controls. Whether it will boost Nintendo Wii sales remains to be seen, but its appearance on the Fab 15 is probably a good sign.
One Direction Singing Dolls – Who said the boy band era was dead? With Backstreet Boys and N-Sync all grown up, the band One Direction has taken over the hearts of pre-teen girls. And when they make dolls designed after all your singers, you know you’ve made the big leagues. You can try to collect all of the dolls, or hope that settling for one will be enough for you to coast through the fad. The names of the dolls are Niall, Liam, Louis, Zayn, and Harry.
LEGO Ninjago Epic Dragon Battle – If you’re looking for a kid’s version of cool, mixing LEGO with dragons is probably a sound decision. LEGO is one of those toys that never seems to go out of fashion, though the sets undoubtedly look different today than they did years ago. The set comes with seven characters from the Ninjago Saga, including the otherwise-rare Green Ninja.
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