Add dreidels, lights, peppermint candies and more to your new monster friends! It’s available on the iTunes App store and Elmo approves it.

Hooray for HD holiday cheer!

We’re pleased to announce the launch of our new app- Balloonimals Pop!

Balloonimals Pop! is a tilt to play game which is easy to play but difficult to master. Tilt to fly your favorite Balloonimals Friend, Ziggy the T-Rex through the forest, the sky and space while catching bubbles to keep him afloat.  Ziggy doesn’t like sharp objects – so avoid the push-pins and pencils…. Or you’ll Pop!

Balloonimals Pop! is great for kids of all ages and even has an easy mode for the youngest of players.  Fun sounds, silly animations, awesome powerups and incredibly action-packed gameplay will keep you coming back for more.

Check out our screen shots for a sneak peek!

Can’t take the suspense? Buy it now for $0.99 from the App Store.

Twitter: @ideotoylab
Facebook: Balloonimals Fan Page
YouTube: iphoneappsforkids

AppChatLive: So Ziggy, tell us about your new game, Balloonimals Pop!

Ziggy: Well, I had developed a big following with my first app, Balloonimals, and I just thought,

“How could I challenge myself? What’s next in my career?” So naturally, I thought that I should be doing what balloons do best: fly!

Ziggy: In Balloonimals Pop! I fly free catching bubbles and powerups to stay afloat. It gets really tricky though. As a balloon, I have to be careful and watch out for sharp things. Pencils and push pins are game over for me.

ACL: Yes, any tips you can give to new Balloonimals Pop! players?

Ziggy: Sure. Just think like a balloon. Be the balloon. You can nimbly bob and weave around obstacles catching protective bubble gum and special surprises like the Super Suit. And if the game is too tricky for young players, you can always switch to Easy Mode in the Help screen.

ACL: Nice, where do you fly to?

Ziggy: In a really good game, I can get above the forest, into the sky, and then into space!

ACL: What’s your favorite powerup prize?

Ziggy: Wearing my superhero cape is pretty cool.  I can whizz around super fast with it. Also floating upwards with a balloon umbrella is pretty neat too.

ACL: Exciting!  Where and how can folks join you on your mission?

Ziggy: Soon my game will be available on the App store for iPhones and iPod touches.

ACL: Great. Thanks for taking a moment to chat with me.

Want to be notified when Balloonimals Pop! and new apps launch, get app giveaway codes and hear about our updates? Sign up for our newsletter.

We’d like to thank the Academy… I mean Parents’ Choice for recognizing our efforts in the area of awesome and fun entertainment for kids on a mobile electronic device.  Elmo’s Monster Maker and Grover’s Number Special were both awarded Parents’ Choice Silver awards!  You can see all of the winners on the Mobile Apps Award page on the Parents’ Choice website.

And learn more about Elmo’s Monster Maker and Grover’s Number Special over on iTunes.

That’s right, what “Fans” of our iPhone apps for kids have known all along has finally been recognized by an official, credible publication; Parents’ Choice.

Parents’ Choice Foundation strives to provide parents with reliable unbiased information about tools to help their children learn, to explore new challenges, to discuss ideas and to pursue dreams through their print and online publications.

A very special thanks to Parents’ Choice for recognizing all of our hard work of passion.  We love making products and experiences that enrich the lives of kids around the world.

If you would like to stay up to date with our latest creations, releases and inspirations, make sure to join our IDEO Toy Lab Mailing List, and our Balloonimals Page On Facebook to learn about FREE iTunes promo code promotions.

Thanks again to the Parents’ Choice Foundation, Sesame Street Workshop, the IDEO family, and especially to all of our fans around the world who make all of our work possible!

The update for the iPhone/iPod Touch includes a new duck Balloonimal in addition to the snails from our last update, higher quality animations, motion blur and other bug fixes. Furthermore, Balloonimals will be released for the iPad in the next few weeks and will include High-Definition animations, which are only available on the iPad. How cool is that!

If you haven’t seen our popular Balloonimals Page on Facebook where you can name the new Balloonimals, then you are missing a lot. It has been getting plenty of attention since we added colorful images with the names of all Balloonimals, linked it to IDEOToyLab’s Twitter account and added interesting discussion topics, like what you would like to see in a Balloonimals game.

So what are you waiting for? Being a Balloonimaniac is not a spectator sport, it’s about participating in the Balloonimals community, joining the discussion and sharing your love of Balloonimals with your friends, family and little ones.

If you don’t propose a better name for the duck and snail twins, we are just going to call them Eugene, Gertrude and Garth, and no one would want that (unless those are your names, oops!). So head on over to the Balloonimals Page on Facebook, “Like” our page and suggest some better names by clicking on the “Discussions” tab.

We are extremely proud parents and want to share our joy with the world.  We are releasing an update to our wildly popular Balloonimals app for the iPhone/iPod Touch which will include a brand new, never before seen Balloonimal!  Now, we are not going to reveal here what that animal is, but we are going to give you a chance to get a FREE download code and see for yourself.

FREE Download Code Drawing

To celebrate the birth of a NEW Balloonimal animal in the latest version release of our wildly popular Balloonimals app for the iPhone/iPod Touch, we are offering a chance to get 1 of 25 FREE download codes for this app from the iTunes app store.

To qualify for the drawing for one free download code, simply “Like” our Balloonimals Page (click the “Like” image located at the top of the Page), AND post a reply to the topic: “What Animal Would You Like To See Brought To Life In Balloonimals?” (located on the “Discussions” tab).  That’s it!

We will select 25 qualifying entries at random before May 31st, 2010 and winning Fans of our Page will be notified via Facebook.

Happy Balloonimaling!

Apple Features “Elmo’s Monster Maker” On Latest US TV Commercial (0:30)

Currently, Elmo’s Monster Maker is being highlighted on Apple’s “Family-Man” titled commercial.

This TV commercial demonstrates the iPhone’s value to the entire family as Elmo’s Monster Maker (EMM) is featured as a great way to keep the kids entertained on long (or short) road trips.

Featured along side Elmo’s Monster Maker app is Jamie Oliver’s cooking app (whoever that is ;P) and Viper’s remote car access app.  So I guess you could say that we are in good company.

Check out Apple’s 30 second commercial for yourself to see what parent’s who own EMM have known for a long time.

Then check out the product page to learn more about this great app and download Elmo’s Monster Maker from iTunes.

Don’t Worry, It Won’t Go To Our Heads

This isn’t the first time that IDEO’s apps have been featured by Apple.  You may recall (or just look at the older blog posts) that Balloonimals was featured in Apple retail displays on the display where the icons fly past you like a comet storm.

We would like to say thanks to Apple for recognizing all of our hard work.  But what gives us the greatest satisfaction is the miles of smiles that we see when someone picks up and really connects with our creations.  Play is not just fun, it’s our job, so we are glad that so many of you are getting exposed to IDEO’s iPhone apps for kids, and telling your families about them.

IDEO in partnership with Fisher-Price, are bringing three classic toys to life in a whole new way on the iPhone/iPod Touch.  See ‘n Say, Little People and Chatter Telephone are new apps available now at the Apple iTunes Store.

Fisher-Price: See ‘n Say ($1.99) – This classic childhood toy has found a great new home on the iPhone. Use your finger to spin the pointer and then watch videos, which contain interesting facts about your favorite farmyard animals, including fun sound effects.

Fisher-Price: Chatter Telephone ($.99) – Your toddler will love playing with an updated version of this classic childhood toy.  Dial the phone, play musical instruments or call people working in different jobs, such as a fireman, teacher or airplane pilot.  Just about any interaction will play a sound or vibrate your device.  Great for teaching tactile response.