Denmark: Lego's interactive building blocks
Danish toy manufacturer Lego has unveiled its Smart Bricks as part of the new Lego Smart Play system. With built-in computer chips, Smart Bricks can interact with their surroundings and produce sounds and lights. Is this a breakthrough or an end to creative play?
Big ideas in Billund
Jydske Vestkysten hopes that the Smart Brick will create new jobs in the Billund region:
“Lego describes it as its biggest innovation in almost 50 years. We don't yet know whether the Smart Brick will be the breakthrough that Lego is hoping for. But it's important that the company still believes in new ideas - and that Billund can continue to think big. This belief can be contagious. If Lego is right, Billund will remain a town with many jobs. And in our free time, we can continue to enjoy Legoland and Lego House - and perhaps discover the brick that kept the adventure going.”
This sounds like a threat
For Dagens Nyheter journalist Lisa Magnusson, the new product range is the exact opposite of what Lego has represented for play up to now:
“While the Internet makes the world bigger in many ways, it also constrains it, not least in terms of children's play. Lego, on the other hand, encourages children to think for themselves, to tinker and build, to solve problems and use their creativity. ... Observing a child playing with Lego gives you the feeling that all is not lost, that the old analogue world still exists. But now even this classic toy is set to start flashing, making irritating noises and becoming hyper-connected. The smart toy promises to be 'endlessly interactive'. To me, that sounds less like a promise and more like a threat.”