LEGO618/8782)LEGO£14.99Credit options available find out moreCheck stockTell us where you are to check stock:123456789Add to TrolleyAbout this productSwitch tracks – build a bigger, more exciting railway track. LEGO® model number: 7895. 41 reviewsOverall rating (4.3)QualityFunDesignQuestions & answersAsk a questionBoring but important info*Prices correct as displayed but are subject to change.Some big toy brands are as popular as ever, but the long-established model train maker has gone off track, and other traditional brands are also struggling – adapting to the digital world can be a difficult game Where’s the touch screen? A Hornby model train set. Richard Ames, CEO of Hornby, the model railway makers, resigned today after a third profit warning in five months. Hornby, like fellow toy giants Mattel, is having a bad time of it. Sales and stock prices are falling. Weep for your childhood. Leave a solitary Barbie and a Thomas & Friends train set on a gravestone marked “Traditional Toys”.
Or, don’t, because as it turns out, reports of the death of toys have been greatly exaggerated. While a couple of big-name toy makers may be in trouble, the industry as a whole is not. Now valued at £3.2bn, the UK toy market grew by 5.9% last year, driven by an upturn in the sales of action figures, building sets and stuffed toys, as well as tie-ins with a number of blockbuster film franchises. Lego, buoyed by its move into movies, is a bigger seller than ever. Every year brings greater integration between the toy and entertainment industries. “We haven’t seen a downturn in enthusiasm for traditional toys”, says Natasha Crookes of the British Toy and Hobby Association. “Yes, technology is great, but parents are aware of the need for balance in children’s play and using your hands and imagination provides that.” Hasbro’s Play-Doh, which combines the use of hands with the use of imagination, is as popular now as it was when it first appeared 60 years ago. Lego is bigger than ever, partly thanks to its moves into films and video games.
This doesn’t mean that today’s children are content to only sit with their imaginations and a couple of planks of wood, though. David Brandon, CEO of Toys R Us, has said that there is recognition among manufacturers that “the young people of today have a different attention span, and that their form of entertainment has to be different than it was even a few years ago”. This means that technology is increasingly being integrated into toys, and the crossover with video games is becoming more common. Radio- and remote-controlled toys are expected to be among the fastest-growing categories in traditional toys and games globally, according to analysts Euromonitor International. Euromonitor’s Mykola Golovko says: “Every year has seen greater influence of technology on the world of toys and games.” There are an ever-increasing number of toy drones available because, after all, if it’s good enough for the US military, it’s good enough for your child. The Oculus Rift virtual-reality headset goes on the market this year, and while it will be prohibitively expensive to begin with, analysts like Golovko believe that augmented and virtual-reality headsets will be a growing part of the future of toys.
The future, then, is one of dizzying choice, in which the anaesthetising power of the screen complements and competes with the more earthy delights of the object in front of you. Collectible (2) from $499.99 + $8.99 shipping Lego Monorail Transport Base 6991 lego monorail transport base 6991 25.5 x 18.3 x 4.4 inches 8 years and up #2,083,417 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games) #43,790 in Toys & Games > Building & Construction Toys > Building Sets 25 star100%See all verified purchase reviewsTop Customer ReviewsRare and expensive classic from 1994I owned this as a kid!My Parts: You need to be logged in to see your Set List. FREE Download: Available from PICSL The educational products department changes its name to LEGO Dacta. The word "dacta" derives from the Greek word "didactic", meaning "the study of the purpose, means and substance of learning and the learning process". Dr. Seymour Papert becomes LEGO Professor of Learning Research.
The first LEGO Dacta Centre opens in LEGOLAND (renamed TECHNIC LAND after a couple of years). Ole Kirk Kristiansen is inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame. Selected Product News 1989 World People (LEGO Dacta) Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen introduces the LEGO Group vision. The first official LEGO World Cup building championships are held in Billund in August. LEGO Canada is established. The exhibition "The Art of LEGO" tours the United Kingdom. Selected Product News 1988 The brick logo is developed. LEGO Products are now selling in 115 markets. The LEGO office in South Africa is closed. Korean Mountaineer Young-Hu buries a small LEGO model on top of Mount Everst in the Himalayas. LEGO Historical Collection (aka LEGO Idea House) which was founded in 1980, becomes an independent unit under KIRKBI A/S. Transfers to LEGO A/S in 1991. Selected Product News 1987 DUPLO and LEGO buckets The LEGO Group is granted the title "Purveyor to Her Majesty the Queen" on 16 April (the Birthday of Her Majesty Queen Margrethe of Denmark).
Godtfred Kirk Christiansen resigns as chairman of the board of LEGO System A/S and LEGO Overseas and Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen takes over. LEGO Fiction becomes LEGO Publishing. Selected Product News 1986 The DUPLO Family (dog included) Technic Computer Control (educational) The LEGO Prize is founded in April. It is an international annual award of DKK 750,000 (increased in 1989 to DKK 1,000,000) for exceptional efforts on behalf of children. Procurement department established in Korea. Approx. 5000 employees, 3000 of these in Billund. Collaboration with Professor Seymour Papert and the Boston M.I.T. begins. Selected Product News 1985 LEGO Technic Control (educational) New range of LEGO trains LEGO Brazil is established. LEGO Korea is established. McDonald’s co-promotion in USA and Canada. The American, Hong Kong produced, TYCO Brick is launched, leading to lawsuits in several countries. Selected Product News 1984
The LEGOLAND Castle Series LEGO Overseas holds its first World Distributor Conference in Billund. Selected Product News 1983 DUPLO Baby series (incl. six rattles) Big DUPLO figures with movable arms and legs LEGO South Africa is established. The LEGO Fiction department established. The LEGO Group celebrates its 50-years jubilee with all employees in Billund. The Book “50 years of Play” is launched. Selected Product News 1982 First LEGO World Show in Denmark. There is now a LEGO Strasse in Hohenwestedt, Germany. A new plant for decorating, assembly, packing and warehousing opens in Baar, Switzerland. The Scala Line, which is introduced in 1979, is cancelled. Selected Product News 1981 Educational programme (22 boxes) The Educational Products Department is established. Technic Logo is developed by Papermint. According to a survey, 70% of all Western European families with kids under 14 now have LEGO bricks in their home.