How smart are connected toys?

Toys are starting to talk back to children, but they may not be better for your children than a silent teddy

Think back to when you were a child: the thought of your favourite doll or teddy bear learning your name and intelligently talking to you would be simply magical.

That's the promise of connected toys. Hello Barbie is a $75 doll that can listen to your child and respond intelligently; CognitToys offers an artificial intelligence dinosaur for $120 that learns with children, getting smarter as they do; and the Avakai is a a67 wooden toy that communicates over the internet.