Parents and grandparents are going to breathe a sigh of relief this year, at least if Toy Fair is any indication of what's to come. My theory is that the toy safety scare put a little fear into toy manufacturers and that they've all focused on making fewer, better toys instead of more and "let's see if we can get one to stick."

I was struck by the creativity of this kinder, gentler Toy Fair. Fewer light sabers; more science kits. Here are few things that caught my eye because they go back to the basics that kids love and typify a major trend. (Remember, these toys won't be out on the shelves until fall; Toy Fair is preview.)

Melding of the Real and Virtual

One of the most interesting toys at the show, Disney Clickables, was from Disney and TechnoSource. Clickables are a new technology that lets sensors touch to share information in either the real world or the virtual world. The first Clickable world will be housed on DisneyFairies.com Think of it like this:

Susie is walking down the street wearing her new Disney Clickables bracelet. She spots Amy, her best friend, who has her bracelet on, too. They click their bracelets together and magically they exchange gifts—maybe a special fairy wand or a cape.

When they go home and log on to the Disney Fairies web site on their PCs, the stuff the girls exchanged in the real world appears on the web site. Wild, huh?

Clickables are based on a little Y-shaped contact point on the charms. That means that to share information with friends you need to touch. Interestingly, I hear through the grapevine that these Clickables can be installed at retail, too. So maybe your child can click to receive $10 off on the purchase of a Disney sweatshirt? Get the picture? When they come out this fall, Clickables won't hurt your pocketbook either. They start at $5 in charm form and range to $29, for which you get a jewelry box and jewels as a starter kit.

Toys Turn Green

I saw a number of toys that had "green" written all over them. Science kits to learn to recycle paper. Globes that stayed afloat because of magnetism. But one of the coolest was the H2GO hydrogen fuel cell car from Corgi, Inc. The car runs on hydrogen created by sunlight and from water. Solar panels create the current to separate the water into hydrogen and oxygen that gets pumped into a bulb inside the car. The car then uses a traditional remote control device and you're off to the races with it.

I suspect we'll be seeing lots more of these green toys that are part demonstration of what could be, part consciousness raising for kids, and part just plain old fun. The car will sell for $129 with the solar panel and $99 without.

Freedom to Explore

Last year, one of my favorite toys was the EyeClops from Jakks Pacific. It was an inexpensive webcam that also magnified what you saw. Lots of kids were pointing it up their noses and onto their eyeballs to take a look. The image could be projected on TV or computer.

This fall, you're going to see the EyeClops become untethered, letting kids go on mobile explorations. The BioniCam is a little battery pack and LCD screen that you can wear on your belt to take your EyeClops outdoors and explore there. It will cost $79. There'll also be EyeClops Night Vision Goggles that will let you see and capture photos in the dark—just like the real infrared goggles ($79). And finally, a Bug Vac will let you vacuum up stuff around the house and see it magnified. (Pray for no bedbugs!)

The World as a Panorama

Although you can't see it up on the web site yet, 360 Gizmos looks like a little man on a stick. But it's really a rather sophisticated panoramic digital camera. One button press snaps a 360-degree view that you can move to the web and email a URL to mom, dad, grandpa, or anyone else who wants a tour of your world. What a great way to capture the family vacation ($129).

If you want to get a nice pictorial walkthrough of how rich this year's toys will be, look at Make Magazine's coverage. Thanks to them I got this photo of the 360 Gizmos.