Now as part of its efforts to branch out into other business areas, Intel is making some interesting moves to sell and develop high-tech toys that can make the PC more fun for young children. Then came a digital camera that recognizes body movements of the user, letting kids play computer games not by clicking with the mouse, but by moving their bodies. This latest offering, the Sound Morpher, lets kids record and alter the sound of their voice on the computer. A child's voice can be altered to sound like that of a monster or an echo or one of many other options. There's also an animated feature that lets players mix and match various weird faces to go with the sounds.
Kids can also e-mail their sound and animation to their friends.
Parents will like the fact that headphones are included. Intel's small toy division is beginning to bring a new level of sophistication to educational toys by leveraging the company's expertise with the computer. The toy business is an interesting departure for a company most often concerned with the ups and downs of the semiconductor market. Now on its third product, the division hopes to offer more new products each year. If there's one thing Intel has been known for in the last year, it's expanding into business areas that would have seemed to not make sense at all only a few years ago.