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This topic sprang off a discussion on Duplo trains. We were getting off-topic discussing the changes made in time of Duplo trains and the age of the kids the sets were aimed at. A few of us decided it was time to start a new topic, and as I was the one to suggest it in the frist place, here we are. Perhaps this can be incorporated elsewhere, but I could not find a suitable place easily. If it exists, we will be considering moving there. Note: this is NOT about Duplo, though the summary contains mostly references to Duplo. It is about how sets and parts evolved and what the target audiences were/are. Since I also proposed to give a summary of the thoughts expressed and make a back-link, both of these now follow. Enjoy & join. backlink to the original Duplo trains discussion Summary of the off-topic bits of that discussion: (heavily excerpted and some spelling corrections made) Adam Badura, 19 January 2013: How it was with the old “smart locomotive”? As I think it was far more “difficult” and “complex” Peter Nolan, 17 April 2014: The intelli train (http://lego.wikia.com/wiki/10052_Intelligent_Locomotive) was released in 2003. In my experience the extra features do make for more interesting play. However, I'd say that kids would have to be at least three to enjoy the set. Certainly fun for fathers though... Robert Cailliau, 17 April 2014: Yes I agree that the extra features are for older kids. They can probably enjoy the trains until much older (like 67...) IFF there are enough rails and enough switches. :-) Ambroise, 17 April 2014: ...kids were not using all the functionalities, and especially If they want the train to move backwards, they simply take it off, and put it back on the track in the opposite direction. I personally enjoy the Intelli train a lot, they have became quite rare and valuable. Peter Nolan, 19 April 2014: I think that this highlights the problem with the Intelli trains--the system is quite structured and prescriptive. For instance, if the child wants to fill the train up with fuel, they have to place the correct smart brick in the track, start the train and then wait for the train to travel over the smart brick before filling up with fuel (when the train makes the 'glug glug glug' sound). With the current model train, they just need to stop the train and start filling (and the train makes the 'glug glug glug' sound). I think that if the other Intelli functions (e.g. cargo and passenger sounds) had have been designed in a similar fashion it would have worked better as a childs toy. All that being said though, it is a great toy. Robert Cailliau, 19 April 2014: You say play with the intelli-trains is structured and prescriptive, and from what you describe I fully agree, it's too complicated even for 5 year olds. When they are old enough to play with that imaginatively, they have switched away from Duplo. It should not go too much in the other direction though: I learned that the latest issues of the locos no longer stop when they hit something. Now, that is not a "function", it is a protection, and it has been removed. The older issues have a little magnet on the axle that is not driven. It passes before a reed relay at each turn so the computer knows the axle is rotating. When the train falls over, is picked up or gets blocked, the computer stops the motor after a few seconds. That saves batteries and protects against wear and so forth. It also prevents little fingers getting caught in the driving wheels, at least for any length of time. But this feature has been removed. I find that annoying. Peter Nolan, 21 April 2014: On the subject of the latest Duplo trains having fewer features, I think that this is part of general shift in the positioning of Duplo in the market. It seems that Duplo is now being marketed to a younger market than it used to be. I've also noticed that a lot of parents see Duplo as more of a baby/toddler toy rather than something that is good for kids up to 5 years or so. It seems to be that people decide that once their child is a certain age it is time to get rid of the Duplo and then move on to Lego. (sorry if I'm repeating some of the sentiments that have been expressed earlier in this thread). At the moment I find that my son is happy playing with both Duplo and Lego and creating hybrid models (not everyone realises that Duplo and Lego are compatible it seems). When you throw in some Duplo Toolo (bought second-hand, like the Intelli trains) there are all sorts of play possibilities. Robert Cailliau, 21 April 2014: Yup, agreed. Now that you raise the point, there is also a degree of age-variety in Duplo: the big blocks are no longer very attractive after 5 or 6, but the trains certainly could go for much longer. Again, IFF there are enough rails. I consistently find that train sets of any make or scale have far too few straight rails. An oval, even with an intellitrain soon loses all attraction. And yes, few people realise that Duplo is called Duplo because it is "double size" and compatible (to some extent) with the single-size blocks. Thanks for reminding us of it. Toolo is very rare. Strange stuff, well designed. I ony have some incomplete things that Nora has "inherited" from cousins, but she does not play with it. zg0, 21 April 2014: my first try to make duplo compatible train base from lego pieces. Adam Badura, 21 April 2014: Nice! Be sure to check it with switches, crossings (both rail-rail and rail-street), and bridge. Those are places where other Duplo bases fail. For example 10558: Number Train doesn't fit on that type of track and that is sad. Yours looks like it would have no issue but it is always good to keep that in mind. zephyr1934, 22 April 2014: The intellitrain was from an era where Lego figured the under 3 set would be playing with quatro or primo. The rest of the toy industry is pushing "realism" down to an insanely young age these days. I played with Tonka trucks (the real ones, made of metal) until I was at least 10, but now the toy industry has the blue isle all figured out. First dinosaurs, then trains, the superheros, then .... With trucks falling by the wayside somewhere around 5 years of age. I think duplo has also been pushed to younger ages as a result of consumer demand. It is too bad, because the modern lego sets can't be anything more than a model for the 5-8 yr olds (as in, there is very little room to go off and build what you like with so many specialized pieces, you can build the main model and that is it). For the simplicity of the bricks my first grader still plays with duplo even though he has a room full of system bricks. Nolan ... the trains certainly could go for much longer. Again, IFF there are enough rails. As it happens, my son's train set does seem to have many more curved rails than straight. We are yet to run out of either though... BTW do you mean IFF in the mathematical sense? Robert Cailliau, on 21 April 2014 - 04:07 PM, said: Toolo is very rare. Strange stuff, well designed. Peter Nolan, 22 April 2014: Toolo is quite interesting. Some of the parts look like they would be very expensive to produce--the standard 2x4 block has screw threads on five surfaces, which would necessitate quite complex mould tooling. Although there are no retail Toolo sets available now, you can still buy two educational sets: http://education.lego.com/en-us/lego-education-product-database/preschool/45002-tech-machines http://education.lego.com/en-us/lego-education-product-database/machines-and-mechanisms/9656-early-simple-machines-set zg0, 22 April 2014: disagree. lego bricks sets long time was 3+, now 4+. creator was 4+, now 6+/7+. so lego clears 1-2 years from lego for duplo. and in 2013-2014 set we can see that duplo sets became more "constructional". cars from monolitic became consists from 4-5 pieces. and pieces became more universal. Peter Nolan, 22 April 2014: Interesting. I was skeptical to start with, so had a look at some of the new Duplo sets and can see your point. If you compare the new ambulance (10527) with the old one (4979) the new one does indeed have more parts.
