Oh look, a dog!  How fun to play with!  No, wait, it’s not. It doesn’t do anything.

Well it’s 2009 and like everything else on the planet, they’ve improved on stuffed animals by adding USB connections.  My son had his first birthday recently and one of our friends got him this guy:
 

This rad little brother’s name is Scout and he’s not your average stuffed animal. Inside he’s got a little computer that you hook-up to your computer via USB. Once connected a small piece of software installs that connects you to a special website where you can customize Scout. You can update Scout to say your child’s name, favorite color, favorite food and favorite animal.  You can also add and remove the songs stored on Scout.

When my son turns on his Scout it says, “Hi Collin, do you want to play?” And when he sings the song about favorite things he mentions mangos and dogs.  That’s pretty sweet if you ask me.  And Collin loves the fact that it says his name.  As soon as it turns on he flies across the room for it.

Scout’s pretty cheap too. He’s only $15 on Amazon right now. Hey, pick a few up for Christmas.  He’s recommended for children from 6 months to 3 years.

I’ll admit, I’m a sucker for techie-toys, so Scout’s a winner in my book.