“Magik”al Playtime

Children’s toys take another step into the technological era with the Magik Play Starter Kit from Portuguese startup Magikbee. The product is the latest in “phygital” educational entertainment for children, blending the digital world with physical pieces. All that’s needed is an iPad.

Children as young as two years old prop the iPod up on a wooden holder and assemble their 10 wooden blocks as they solve the puzzles shown on the screen. Magikbee founder Hugo Ribeiro partnered with a computer scientist to create Magik Play when he noticed his daughter discarding traditional toys in favor of iPad games.

“We started thinking it could be amazing if regular and traditional toys could somehow interact with tablets to create a kind of seamless experience between reality (physical) and digital,” Ribeiro said. “My partner, who was a university researcher in interactive technology for kids, and I started building the first concept and then the prototype.”

For more information, visit Magikbee.com.