Cheapest places to get the best Christmas toys
Pay less for this year's must-have Christmas presents.
You may feel it’s too early to put much thought to Christmas (a large part of me certainly does), but planning ahead can help you spread the cost over several months and avoid a last-minute panic when the stores have sold out in mid-December.
Hamleys has released a list of this year’s must-have toys, but they’re pricey to say the least. We have tried to find more budget-friendly deals, so that you can delight your children and still have some dosh left over.
Interactive Tracy Island
RRP: £80 | Cheapest deal: £65.99
Thunderbirds will never stop being cool. This latest version of Tracy Island comes with over 50 actions, lights and sounds, but also features a hefty price tag of £80 RRP. Amazon is selling it for £65.99, which is a saving of nearly 20% but it is still quite expensive.
The Thunderbird vehicles aren’t included. If you’re handy with crafts, you could try making a papier mâché Tracy Island à la Blue Peter. It's great fun, and uses junk you probably have lying around the house anyway.
You can then perhaps get your kids the vehicles as their present – without which the island would seem a bit dull anyway. The ‘super set’ of all four Thunderbirds costs £29.99 on Amazon.
Skate and Sing Elsa
RRP: £40 | Cheapest deal: £34.99
If, and only if, you can bear listening to the song Let It Go after the countless times your kids have watched Frozen, then the Skate and Sing Elsa doll may be the one for you.
It is controlled by remote control, and will glide and spin around the room, belting out the hit song. Its RRP is £40, and Smyths are selling it for £34.99.
i-Que Intelligent Robot Action Figure
RRP: £65 | Cheapest deal: £55.72
This robot can hold a conversation, crack jokes, and answer questions about “pretty much anything” (so says the sales blurb).
It’s hard to find a good discount, but Amazon have shaved nearly a tenner off the RRP, for a sale price of £55.72.
Clever Keet
RRP: £59.99 | Cheapest deal: £54.99
If your child is begging you for a pet, but you don’t fancy cleaning up after one, they might settle for Clever Keet. A robotic bird, he will respond to voices and answer questions, as well as singing and dancing.
We found it cheapest for £54.99.
Peppa Pig Princess Plush Toy
RRP: £19.99 | Cheapest deal: £17.99
Another singing toy, this Peppa Pig Once Upon A Time Princess Rose Plush Toy (to give its catchy full name) retails for about £20 and no one seems willing to duck under that price point – at least for the moment.
Argos has the toy on sale for £17.99, as does Amazon.
Kinetic Sand
RRP: £21.80 | Cheapest deal: £10.65
This stuff is pretty cool. The sand is mixed with binding polymers, which allows you to shape it into interesting sculptures, and it will then retain that shape. It’s also, er, gluten-free. But I can’t imagine that it tastes that great.
Asda is selling the playset for £19.97, which comes with a pound of sand (around 450g) but if you prefer, you can get a kilo of the stuff (without moulds) for £10.65 at D&G Educational or five kilograms for £25. This might be preferable, as reviewers on Amazon have commented that the playset doesn’t come with an awful lot of sand.
3D Magic Maker
RRP: £39.99 | Cheapest deal: £35.95
Fill up the moulds and stencils with ‘magic’ gel, and place it into the kit to transform them into 3D models. The kit comes with an ‘under the sea’ themed set of moulds and stencils.
On Amazon, you can get it for slightly less than the RRP at £35.95. The gel refills cost nearly £10 for three small tubes, so this gift may end up fairly expensive in the long run.
My Friend Freddy
RRP: £39.99 | Cheapest deal: £24.99
Freddy can be hooked up to an accompanying app for iOS or Android devices, where information about the child and their family can be entered – so the bear ‘magically’ knows all about your child when they receive him.
He does educational activities that encourage letter, number and colour recognition. When not connected to a device, he’ll talk when cuddled and played with. Amazon is selling Freddy for £24.99, a saving of £15 on the RRP.
Shopkins ‘Scoops’ Ice Cream Shop Playset
RRP: £19.99 | Cheapest deal: £16.99
Shopkins are collectible figures, and this playset lets the kids play with them in a new environment – namely, an ice cream truck.
Smyths has now discounted the price of the playset to £16.99.
LeapPad Platinum
RRP: £99.99 | Cheapest deal: £68.99
The LeadPad Platinum is a seven-inch Wi-Fi learning tablet which comes with a learning library and over one thousand educational resources such as games, books, videos and music. It also boasts a kid-safe web browser and enhanced parental controls.
Amazon has the device on sale for £68.99 with free shipping, more than 30 pounds cheaper the RRP.
This piece is being updated regularly in the run up to Christmas.
Spotted a better price for any of these toys? Help out your fellow loveMONEY readers by sharing the name of the retailer or a link in the comments below.
Now read this!
Why you should start your Christmas shopping today
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