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Toy Insider Chief Toy Officer Laurie Schacht appeared on FOX Houston’s Chattin’ with Chelsea to present eight toys for families seeking alternatives to screen time. The selection ranges from a story projector and dolls to construction, slime and active-play toys; the segment does not establish that every item is fully screen-free.
Toy Insider Chief Toy Officer Laurie Schacht appeared on Chattin’ with Chelsea on FOX in Houston to discuss toys for parents looking to reduce children’s screen time. The accompanying Toy Insider report lists eight products, spanning story-based play, dolls, construction, sensory activities and games, giving families several kinds of alternatives to choose from.
The Toy Insider’s list includes the Luna StoryTime Projector, described as offering read-along text, projections, graphics and music. Its Starter Set includes a pink projector with a carry handle, an owl content character, a stand and a cable. The source describes it as supporting independence, but does not give an age recommendation or explain whether all content can be used without a screen.
Other featured toys emphasize pretend play and interaction. The Cottage Door Press Baby Born Real is a 17-inch doll, hand-painted and sold with a reusable handled bassinet and a scannable Cuddle Key for digital interaction. Just Play’s FurReal Gabby the Grow & Roar Tiger is an interactive plush with more than 100 sound-and-motion combinations; the source lists it for ages 4 and up at a suggested retail price of $79.99.
The remaining products include Spin Master’s Monster Jam Chomping Megalodon vehicle, Mindframes’ Click ’N’ Create construction set with more than 130 shapes and 10 guided activities, and Gui Gui Mega Slime Haul, which comes with slime, accessories and mix-ins. The list also features a Fuggler Advent Calendar and PlayMonster’s Rump Race, a physical game in which players use manual pumps. Listed prices and age guidance are provided for several, but not all, of the products.
Eight Options Beyond Passive Viewing
The segment presents screen-time reduction as a practical shopping and play choice rather than a single product solution. Its range includes creative building, pretend play, sensory activity and movement, allowing caregivers to match an alternative to a child’s interests and age. The variety also shows that “screen-free” can be an imperfect label: the Baby Born doll includes a scannable feature for digital interaction, while Luna’s projector uses electronic components and projected content.
For readers, the distinction matters when deciding what counts as an alternative to screen use. Some toys invite hands-on play without describing any digital component; others combine physical play with technology. The source provides product features and some age recommendations, but it does not compare screen time outcomes, independently test the toys or report that any item reduces children’s screen use.
screen-free story projector for kids
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How the Toy List Was Presented
The Toy Insider report describes Schacht’s appearance on a FOX Houston program and introduces the products as options for parents looking to cut down on children’s screen time. It directs readers to product notes for additional information and points to the publication’s 2026 Holiday Gift Guide for more seasonal toy recommendations.
The article includes shopping links and discloses that The Toy Insider participates in affiliate programs that may generate revenue when readers buy through those links. That disclosure is relevant to the commercial context of the product roundup. The source does not provide a transcript or broadcast date, nor does it state that the listed products were independently evaluated for educational value or screen-free use.
“Off Zero screens. Infinite fun.”
— The Toy Insider, introducing the FOX segment
Screen-Free Labels Need Qualification
The available report does not give the appearance date, a full broadcast transcript or details about what Schacht said about each product on air. It also does not clarify how the phrase “screen-free” applies to every item: the doll’s Cuddle Key is scannable for digital interaction, and the Luna projector uses projected content and music. No evidence is supplied about how often children use the products or whether they change screen habits.
Age guidance and product specifications are also incomplete in the supplied notes. Ages and suggested prices are stated for several toys, but not for the full list. Prices and availability may vary by retailer, and the report does not provide independent safety testing or a comparison of the products.
Check Details Before Buying
The Toy Insider directs readers to its product notes and the 2026 Holiday Gift Guide for further shopping information. Families considering an item can check current retailer listings for price, availability and age recommendations, particularly where the segment notes do not supply an age range. For child products, caregivers should also review age appropriateness and check for applicable recalls through the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission before purchase.
No follow-up broadcast or additional reporting is identified in the source material. Any further detail about the segment’s timing, product demonstrations or recommendations would need to come from the program or a fuller Toy Insider report.
Key Questions
What was featured on Chattin’ with Chelsea?
Toy Insider Chief Toy Officer Laurie Schacht presented eight toys on FOX in Houston, including a story projector, dolls, an interactive plush, a construction set, slime, a holiday calendar, a vehicle and a physical game.
Are all the toys entirely screen-free?
The source does not establish that. The Baby Born Real doll has a scannable Cuddle Key for digital interaction, and Luna uses projections and electronic content. The report presents the products as choices for reducing screen time, not as a verified screen-free category.
Which products have age recommendations listed?
The source lists FurReal Gabby the Grow & Roar Tiger and Monster Jam Chomping Megalodon for ages 4 and up, Mindframes Click ’N’ Create for ages 5 and up, Gui Gui Mega Slime Haul and the Fuggler Advent Calendar for ages 6 and up, and Rump Race for ages 8 and up. It does not give age guidance for every item in the list.
Did the report show that these toys reduce screen time?
No. It describes the toys as options for parents seeking to cut down on screen time, but provides no study, measurement or outcome data showing that any product changes how much children use screens.
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