Mattel Launches New Hot Wheels 'id' Smart Track Kit and NFC Cars Exclusively at Apple Stores

[Analog Kid]

Why?! I get Mattel is trying to figure out how to be relevant, but this just makes me sad... How is having a digital garage for your hot wheels different than just playing Asphalt?

Is the next Barbie just going to be a box with an AR tag you put on the table so you can talk to her through your phone?

Loving both, but I agree that the beauty of old school Hot Wheels tracks is that you could build them as long as you wanted, and could test your skills in refining something where the cars wouldn’t fly off!

And learn that gravity is more than a way to make your phone switch from portrait to landscape mode... Learn a bit about friction, and momentum...

Learn that life is completely outside your control and that, once you push the release, forces you barely understand have set your destiny and no amount of cheering or desire can change the inevitable outcome...

 

[EdT]

[/QUOTE

Why?! I get Mattel is trying to figure out how to be relevant, but this just makes me sad... How is having a digital garage for your hot wheels different than just playing Asphalt?

Is the next Barbie just going to be a box with an AR tag you put on the table so you can talk to her through your phone?


And learn that gravity is more than a way to make your phone switch from portrait to landscape mode... Learn a bit about friction, and momentum...

Learn that life is completely outside your control and that, once you push the release, forces you barely understand have set your destiny and no amount of cheering or desire can change the inevitable outcome...

Your Barbie example would be very popular and if they weren’t working on it before I bet they start working on it now.

 

[w5jck]

It's interesting that Hot Wheels do well while Lincoln Logs don't... it seems like they're both rather expensive toys that lack in variety of what you can do with them.

Maybe Hot Wheels mostly do better for brand/aesthetic/collector reasons? I own a few Tesla Hot Wheels that decorate my cubical at work. They've never been on a Hot Wheels track, and probably never will be.

Go ask your granddad about HotWheels and why they are still popular. They came out in his generation (also mine) during the era of the muscle cars. If you don't understand that, then you will never understand the fascination they have, even on old timers! Lincoln Logs were fascinating for about ten minutes when we were 4 or 5 years old, but HotWheels are still fascinating to anyone who is a gearhead or remembers the glory days of muscle cars. To bad the new cars for HotWheels do not include any of the old muscle cars...

 

[EdT]

Go ask your granddad about HotWheels and why they are still popular. They came out in his generation (also mine) during the era of the muscle cars. If you don't understand that, then you will never understand the fascination they have, even on old timers! Lincoln Logs were fascinating for about ten minutes when we were 4 or 5 years old, but HotWheels are still fascinating to anyone who is a gearhead or remembers the glory days of muscle cars. To bad the new cars for HotWheels do not include any of the old muscle cars...

The single notch logs were small and if you put your finger in the notch then with practice you could put a pretty good spin on the piece when you threw it at an annoying sibling.

And is there any other variety of sibling besides annoying?

 

[seriouslyjaded]

Not entirely sure why you’d buy this instead of Anki overdrive.

 

[york2600]

Add this to the list of garbage I would never buy my kid.

 

[sinsin07]

Tyco needs to get in the game and go digital.

Yeah I used to do this, but with AFX.
Didn't know Tyco was still around.
Impressive layout.
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What a weird comparison.

Lincoln Logs, created 1916
Hot Wheels created 1968

Lincoln logs superseded by Lego.
Hot Wheels superseded by Mario Kart.

Not gonna try to address why Hot Wheels do better as it seem from other post of yours you never played with toys.

That might be your experience.
My anecdotal experience is different.
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Go ask your granddad about HotWheels and why they are still popular. They came out in his generation (also mine) during the era of the muscle cars. If you don't understand that, then you will never understand the fascination they have, even on old timers! Lincoln Logs were fascinating for about ten minutes when we were 4 or 5 years old, but HotWheels are still fascinating to anyone who is a gearhead or remembers the glory days of muscle cars. To bad the new cars for HotWheels do not include any of the old muscle cars...

They do have some of the old muscle cars.
We have a Plymouth Superbird, Cougar, Charger, Cameros, Mustangs, etcs. (too long to list).

Sure wish I could of got my hands on a Bugatti Veyron before the price when over $100

 

[techwhiz]

What a weird comparison.

Lincoln Logs, created 1916
Hot Wheels created 1968

Lincoln logs superseded by Lego.
Hot Wheels superseded by?

Not gonna try to address why Hot Wheels do better as it seem from other post of yours you never played with toys.

Hot Wheels do better because I'm a car guy and will buy all the Hot Wheels my boys want.
I also have some large scale Hot Wheels that are collectors.

 

[RowellE]

More fun and more affordable than Anki Drive (RIP).

 

[TheIntruder]

Not entirely sure why you’d buy this instead of Anki overdrive.

Well, for starters, Anki has run out of funding, shut down and laid off all staff.

And if/when Mattel abandons "id" or Apple does something that renders it inoperable, these cars can still be used in perpetuity as dumb toys.

 

[mrex]

if those kids were 1-2 yo babies that picture would be more convincing. kids on that age wont play with such a dumb toy. calling it as a ”smart toy” doesnt make it any smarter. there is no room for imagination, no way to try something different, no fun to build something impossible and learn from mistakes.

god, that looks just boring. i hope people would rather buy ”dumb” toys for they kids to learn through imagination.

that could be categorized: ”just another toy you try once and then forget it to a closet”

 

[Vjosullivan]

What happened to the days when toys had less technology than the space shuttle?

The makers went out of business.

 

[seriouslyjaded]

Well, for starters, Anki has run out of funding, shut down and laid off all staff.

And if/when Mattel abandons "id" or Apple does something that renders it inoperable, these cars can still be used in perpetuity as dumb toys.

Oh ****, really? Damn, glad my daughter has all the gear she needs then.

 

[BuddyTronic]

Mattel's Hot Wheels brand is getting a major digital upgrade with the launch of the Hot Wheels Smart Track Kit, Race Portal, and Hot Wheels id vehicles, all of which are available exclusively from Apple starting today.

With the Hot Wheels Smart Track Kit, Hot Wheels id vehicles can be raced on a track that incorporates digital tracking elements through an app on the iPhone or iPad. The system allows users to keep track of speed, count laps, build a digital garage, and more, providing a mix of physical and digital play.

The new Hot Wheels id setup includes 51 die-cast cars with NFC tags that are going to be released in six mini collections throughout 2019, with each vehicle to be priced at $6.99. Each car can be leveled up digitally, with challenges available to break race records.

Launch vehicles include the Corvette C7R, SRT Viper GTS-R, 2016 Mercedes AMG GT, Aston Martin One-77, Howlin Heat, Motosaurus, Shark Hammer 2.0, and Arachnorod.

There's a Hot Wheels Race Portal ($39.99) for connecting classic Hot Wheels track and scanning Hot Wheels id vehicles to measure speed and count laps via infrared sensors, and then there's a Hot Wheels Smart Track ($179.99), which provides a whole kit so kids can jump right into racing.

The Smart Track has been designed to boost speed and enhance racing, jumping, and crashing, while also keeping track of total distance traveled by each car. Mattel says the track includes the most powerful booster the Hot Wheels brand has ever made for maximum speed.

Each component can be purchased separately, but the Race Portal includes two id cars (and can be used with existing Hot Wheels track you might have), while the Smart Track is a set that includes the track, a Race Portal, and two exclusive id cars.

You can use the Hot Wheels id system with the free Hot Wheels id app, which provides a virtual garage and features for racing, collecting, and more. Gameplay modes include Collection, Portal play, Smart Track play, and digital racing.

Hot Wheels id vehicles, the Race Portal, and the Smart Track Kit can be purchased today from the Apple online store and from Apple retail locations. Vehicles are priced at $6.99, the Race Portal is $39.99, and the Smart Track Kit is $179.99.

Article Link: Mattel Launches New Hot Wheels 'id' Smart Track Kit and NFC Cars Exclusively at Apple Stores

When we play Hotwheels, we do not want to interact with iPhones or IPads. I have a 4 year old son.

The old hot wheels tracks actually worked from the 1970’s and 1980’s. Any hot wheels garbage from the last 15 years is incredibly poorly designed. The tracks that are 8” long - avoid them! Buy only vintage hot wheels track and accessories is my advice.

As for this thing? I tried an “anki” car set and it was lame. Hi tech, but lame.

This - for $179 USD - well.... I can afford it, but I just don’t know. Will my 4 year old miss it? Sorry to be negative, but I have seen hot wheels turn into garbage. They even have to state on the box “ this accessory may or may not work with all hot wheels cars” - what does that tell you? !
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What a weird comparison.

Lincoln Logs, created 1916
Hot Wheels created 1968

Lincoln logs superseded by Lego.
Hot Wheels superseded by?

Not gonna try to address why Hot Wheels do better as it seem from other post of yours you never played with toys.

Zenwheels! Google em up

 

[Ruggy]

The Hot wheels cars have always been amazing. They were like the concept cars built up by designers that never got built but even more so. So of those designs are incredible.
I'm old enough to remember when they first came out though and it's perhaps hard to understand nowadays just how amazing it was to get a toy to move like that.
The Matchbox/Lesney/Dinky cars you would push and if you were lucky they would move a couple of inches, but you pushed a Hotwheels and it shot right across the room and disappeared under something.
That was an enormous deal. I literally couldn't believe how well they moved when I first saw one!!!
The original track with the loop was great but in the last 20 years I've bought them several times for my kids and the kits have been hugely disappointing.
They are over complicated and have boosters, batteries and levers that flip and make them jump etc. You spend hours getting them set up because they are badly designed and they are way too complicated for little kids to do. So you end up modifying them with books or whatever to support them so the track runs flat. Then they break apart as soon as you touch them or only work 1 time in 4 so they get thrown back in the box and never used again.

 

[LiveM]

Confused: How can the cars "race"? The track is only one lane wide, no overtaking?

Time trial.

 

[TheWatchfulOne]

It's interesting that Hot Wheels do well while Lincoln Logs don't... it seems like they're both rather expensive toys that lack in variety of what you can do with them.

Maybe Hot Wheels mostly do better for brand/aesthetic/collector reasons? I own a few Tesla Hot Wheels that decorate my cubical at work. They've never been on a Hot Wheels track, and probably never will be.

Interesting. I don't find Hot Wheels to be that expensive at around $1 per car (I think, last time I looked?) unless you just mean the tracks, which I agree are pretty expensive.

Are the Tesla Hot Wheels still available? I'd be interested in those for my desk at work.

 

[vixster1901]

Apple Car Play coming soon to your Hot Wheels

 

[Recognition]

I'd buy this if the cars had streaming wireless cameras in them.

If you have a GoPro Camera, you already can.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

Are the Tesla Hot Wheels still available? I'd be interested in those for my desk at work.

I think so. Two Christmases in a row I had a few relatives get me them. I didn't ask for them, so I don't think the relatives are bending over backwards to find them - I assume they're just on the shelf at Walmart or Target (or were on the shelf at Toys'R'Us, RIP).

Then the real prize is the 1/43 replica Model 3 that I got with my Model 3 for having stood in line to make my deposit... how many of those ended up getting made? I found 6 sold on eBay... they went for $36-$90. I'll hold onto it for a few decades... it'll remain office decoration until then.

 

[TheIntruder]

I think so. Two Christmases in a row I had a few relatives get me them. I didn't ask for them, so I don't think the relatives are bending over backwards to find them - I assume they're just on the shelf at Walmart or Target (or were on the shelf at Toys'R'Us, RIP).

Then the real prize is the 1/43 replica Model 3 that I got with my Model 3 for having stood in line to make my deposit... how many of those ended up getting made? I found 6 sold on eBay... they went for $36-$90. I'll hold onto it for a few decades... it'll remain office decoration until then.

It's very much a luck, or right place/right time kind of a thing to find the desirable ones hanging on a shelf peg at the store.

Mattel releases a new case of cars roughly every month, about 15 per year. Each case has 72 cars, and two or maybe three of a particular model at most. Sometimes a model will be included in more than one case, with subsequent case versions having a different color or paint scheme.

Collectors and dealers know which models will appear in a new case (from unboxing videos on YT, or other means), stalk out when a store restocks the shelves, and swoop in for the ones they think will be valuable.

So if one wanted something special like the Tesla Roadster with the Starman card, one would likely have to be lucky to find it on the shelf, or have to resort to eBay.

A particular store may lag in restocking the shelves, so they may put out the June case in July or August, which can be fortuitous, but it's all still random luck.

 

[RedRaven571]

Me too! When they were introduced, the basic10 foot track with clamp and 1 car was $2.74 US.
I remember begging my mother to get it for me. Great birthday that year.

I thought that little garage with the 2 spinning wheels inside that fired the cars out and through the loop in the track was the coolest thing ever
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I think so. Two Christmases in a row I had a few relatives get me them. I didn't ask for them, so I don't think the relatives are bending over backwards to find them - I assume they're just on the shelf at Walmart or Target (or were on the shelf at Toys'R'Us, RIP).

Then the real prize is the 1/43 replica Model 3 that I got with my Model 3 for having stood in line to make my deposit... how many of those ended up getting made? I found 6 sold on eBay... they went for $36-$90. I'll hold onto it for a few decades... it'll remain office decoration until then.

Do the model Teslas have ludicrous mode???