Walking through Toy Fair this year I was struck by how many manufacturers are incorporating Apple products – especially the iPad - into their new toys. From infant to big kid toys, there are all sorts of new uses for these parent-owned gadgets. 

Even something as basic as crayons and paper, has found a new electronic canvass. Crayola ColorStudio™HD and the new iMarker truly enhance the colouring experience, providing animation, sounds and complete flexibility. You can even still print and display the little masterpieces on your fridge – or e-mail then to friends and family. 

Board games really come alive, too, with the iPad Living Game Board – very cool to play! There’s an initial cost of $80 for the console and two games (Smurfs and Wildlife), but additional games cost less than $10. 

But probably the coolest application we saw was Parrot AR.Drone. It’s $300 mind, but it has just so many cool features. First of all, it’s literally an R/C flying video game – and it’s controlled by your Apple device (iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad). Not only are you part of a WiFi connected flying community, you can download games to use as a backdrop to your R/C flight. Plus, it’s designed to be open source, which pretty much guarantees a strong community of young adult users. 

There were also accessories, the most noteable of which was the Laugh & Learn™ Baby iCan Play Case, which completely encloses mom or dad's iPhone or iPod Touch, protecting it from baby's dribbles and drools. Fisher-Price even provides baby-appropriate apps to download free from the iTunes store.  

 All in all, Apple had a pretty good showing at the 2011 Toy Fair, and this is likely just a taste of what’s to come. In fact, I’m thinking I might just have to buy myself an iPad!