Hape believe that toys don’t need to be made from plastic or powered with batteries to entertain. This expertly designed wooden marble run is a fast-paced medieval themed game, the marbles are placed at the tip of the rotary tower, twist the flag and watch them get released one by one onto this marble run. With an angry Griffin threatening to attack the castle, the marbles are released to protect it with unique features, like a watermill, rotary tower and drawbridge. The castle is made from strong, child-safe materials, recommended from ages 4 and up.

When we were kids there was no cooler place to have a birthday party than at the local Laser Quest. If I concentrate hard, I can still smell the unique combination of sweat, feet, and pizza, so imagine my utter joy when I was asked to play with review the Laser X. This version came with two Laser X Blasters, both requiring 3 AAA batteries, I immediately raided all the TV remotes to get the Blasters working. I hopped from foot to foot until my husband got out of the shower and then yelled the instructions at him over my shoulder as I ran upstairs and hid.

More and more people are turning back to the superior sound quality of vinyl, and with that, people are digging out their old record players only to find they don’t work anymore. Or if they are from the younger generation of music lovers, then they are looking to buy their first record player. The Lenco L-85 is a good place to start, choose from 4 colourful designs, black, grey, red and white, to bring a fun and contemporary way to play your vinyl collection.

The Libratone Q-Adapt In-Ear Headphones are available in four attractive colours: Stormy Black, Cloudy White, Elegant Nude and Rose Pink. They come with a matching braided cable, four-button remote access for play, pause, volume, calls and noise cancelling adjustment, three different sizes of ear buds and built-in microphone.

Like all the best toys, Magna-Tiles were invented to educate children through the act of playtime, these were specifically made to teach about shapes. Each tile has magnets built into the shape along it’s edges, they will connect with each other even when flipped, and they always stay together. They have been designed to be the perfect size and weight for little hands.

The MH40’s are first and foremost, absolute show stoppers, even if you never use them it is a pleasure just to ogle them and hold them. These over-ear headphones are made with heavy grain premium cowhide headband, exterior surface and ear cup insets, with a soft lambskin on the headband, interior, and ear pads. The lambskin ear pads feature memory foam inside them for extra comfort, making them very soft against your skin, they also mould to your ears and are breathable to help prevent hot ears.

Perhaps it’s hard to imagine at this time of year that you will ever see the sun again, let alone need sunglasses, but I have heard rumours that it will return next year and what better way to prepare than treating yourself to a new pair of sunglasses. The Sand Island from Maui Jim combine a Matte Black frame and Neutral Grey Lens made from Maui Jim’s Maui Evolution material, they are also available in Gloss Dark Brown. Starting with the frame they feature an 63mm eye width, 46mm eye height and 15mm bridge length with a temple length of 120mm.

The Thermo by Nokia is Smart Temporal Thermometer that connects via an app (because if it doesn’t come with an app these days it doesn’t really exist), and uses an infrared sensor to get an accurate reading in a non-invasive way. It all comes in a rather stylish package and the thermometer itself has a tactile feeling about it, and comfortably fits the hand making it ideal for grabbing and using in low lights without the fear of dropping it on your patient’s face.

The Meridian 75 is a wonderfully large travel bag with a load of attributes that make those longer journeys as easy as possible. Starting with pure vanity, the Meridian 75 comes in 3 beautiful colours, Lagoon Blue, Metal Grey and Rainforest Green, all distinctive enough to stand out on the luggage carousel.  The Meridian 75 comes in two sections, a large 59L main pack and 16L daypack that clips together in a neat package, there are thick flaps of material which hug the daypack in place, giving it more protection as well as providing a cleaner profile.

When travelling with fragile and expensive equipment, you want to provide the best possible protection, but at the same time, you need to be able to move quickly and easily whilst on the move. The Peli Protector Case 1615 is a super lightweight polymer case weighing in at 6.4kg when empty (without foam).