Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Yak Bak and Talkboy


It's amazing to think we could have once derived hours of entertainment from a simple recording device. Nowadays I'm lucky if the television and computer can briefly captivate me with their collective charms. One means of technology is no longer enough. We've become so accustomed to complete technological inundation that it's tough to recall a time when we could still get worked up about a basic electronic function. Back in our as-of-yet-un-embittered days of innocent youth, though, a tape recorder was more than enough to pique our collective interest.


I'm equally amazed that the toy marketplace made room for not one but two major brands of basic tape portable kid's tape recorders. We were apparently once so desperate to record and play back soundbites from our everyday lives that we required an array of different features and options. Their functions remained pretty simple, though, particularly in contrast to today's crazily complex contraptions for kids. We didn't know about iPhones. We just wanted our Yak Baks.

The two toys served generally similar functions, but they did each have their unique appeal. Let's delve into the exciting world of 1990s voice recorder technology, shall we?



The Talkboy


The Talkboy actually originated as a fictional toy, costarring with Macaulay Culkin in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. As the film title implies, Kevin is indeed lost in New York. He uses his then-prop Talkboy toy to record his voice and slow its speed to a crawl to change the pitch. Apparently it makes him sound adult enough to check into a hotel or something.


Either way, fans went nuts for the Talkboy. The fact that it didn't exist wasn't enough of a deterrent to curb the incessant demand for Talkboy ownership. Fans wrote letters begging for a full-scale release of the toy. Tiger Electronics was up for the challenge and churned out a real working handheld version of the once-fake toy.

Demand for these was massive. Stores couldn't keep them stocked. The film tie-in must have accounted for most of the hype, considering the Talkboy's functions were pretty limited. It was a standard handheld tape recording device with a little moveable microphone. Like the Home Alone version, it featured a speed change scale, allowing one to either sound like Alvin, Simon, or Theodore or what I imagine to be the voice of a dying robot. Behold, the glorious and much overplayed TV ad:




Oh, how I yearned for one of these bad boys. The sheer potential for mischief was a major selling point. The second that kid in that commercial changed his voice to a slow low-pitch and played his "Hi kids, we're home early!" recording, I was sold. I mean, how hilarious is that? His sister was going to make out with that guy, and then Talkboy intervenes and messes up her otherwise well-orchestrated date night. What a toy.

The Talkboy went through a series of incarnations, including a pastel-hued Talkgirl model and the Talkboy FX Plus. The FX Plus upped the havoc-wreaking quotient by several degrees of adult-irritating potential. It housed our illicit recording device in an unassuming writing utensil, allowing us to engage in all sorts of practical jokery in the classroom. As you can imagine, our teachers were absolutely thrilled.



The Yak Bak



The Yak Bak was generally cheaper than the Talkboy, giving it parental appeal but earning it some playground trash talking. The original couldn't quite live up to the big screen fame of its direct rival, the Talkboy, but it was not without its voice recording charms. The Yak Bak 1.0 was more compact than a Talkboy, but lacked some of the important mischief-inducing speed change technology. It had only two buttons, "say" and "play". Pretty straightforward, really, but entertaining nonetheless.



Check out the Yak Bak ad at 0:30


Later models gave us better and more competitive features. The second version included the speed warp function, putting it in direct competition with the Talkboy. After this major improvement, though, the changes got a little ridiculous. They give you a feeling that the Yak Bak development team was sitting around their work room table, throwing out whatever ideas came to mind, and instantly shoving them into production. We had Yak Bak watches, Yak Bak Yalp (reversal), Yak Bak room intruder alarm, Yak Bak football. You name it, they Yakked it Bak. They even made a recording pen to try to show up the Talkboy version, which was difficult considering they were almost exactly the same toy.

The Yak Bak may not have been quite as iconic as the Talkboy, but it served its purpose. After a few upgrades it could perform mostly functions equally entertaining to that of the Talkboy. Unfortunately for the Yes! Gear toy manufacturers, their product had never starred in a major motion picture and was thus judged inferior. Either way, you held in your hands the portable capability to mock your friends and family through the cunning use of playback.


In an age when we are constantly plugged into the newest and most provocative technology, it can be tough to remember when a simple recording of a friend's voice was enough to have us rolling on the floor with uncontrollable laughter. Don't worry though, you can have more than your memories. You can actually download a Yak Bak-esque app for your iPhone. Finally, your chance to enjoy the one device the Yak Bak people never thought up: a combination Yak Bak and phone.

26 comments:

courtney said...

The Talkgirl (the pink one) is one of those things on my list of presents I never got as a child and am still bitter about.

The other thing is Barbie power wheels.

Melanie's Randomness said...

Omg me too!! I always wanted a talkboy or Talkgirl, I didn't care which one & never got one. Those things were mad expensive back in the day. I need to maybe look on ebay or something for it.

Charlotte said...

I wanted a Talkboy, too! I would have been okay with a Talkgirl, though.

Kevin McCallister was AWESOME.

Badass Geek said...

Oh, yes. How I wanted one of both of those things... I would have had so much fun tormenting my sisters with them.

Unknown said...

I remember having a yak bak!! :)

Ali said...

If it's one thing I love, it's when my childhood memories are brought back to MY memory because of y-o-u.

Oh, Talkboy...

Literary Crap said...

I had a Yak Bak! I completely forgot about that until now!

Anonymous said...

We were pretty poor when I was a kid so when my friend Cyndi got a Talkboy I was insanely jealous! Luckily I could live vicariously through her. I remember hiding around corners with it trying to be like the commercial. :)

bibberly said...

The Yak Bak has the advantage of having a distinctly 90's logo.

Sadako said...

I'm embarrassed to admit I actually had these both...:D And my embarrassed I mean, I WANT THEM BOTH BACK. Esp. my Talk Boy. Er, girl. Mine was lavender.

buhdoop said...

Oh my gosh! I had a talk boy! That was one of my favorite toys back when the movie came out.

the real mia said...

I love the vintage Macaulay Culkin, from before Party Monster and Saved.

MizzJ said...

haha omg we were so innocent back then eh? I didnt' remember this device until I saw your Home Alone reference! Hilarious blog!

Thanks for visiting mine :)

Niki said...

YESSSSS talkboys! I begged my parents for a talkgirl, never got one. eventually just sniped my brothers talkboy when he got tired of it. SO EPIC.

xo Niki

http://ahautemess.blogspot.com

Cait said...

My parents were too poor to afford the talkboy...I got a YakBak pen instead. It was still the most awesome thing ever. My parents still have the home VHS of me opening the present and screaming "I GOT A YAK BAAAAAAK PEEEEEEEN!"

Janna said...

I think I still have my Yak Bak! lol. At least, I did for a very long time... might have finally gotten rid of it recently... can't remember.

Amanda said...

I had the Talk Boy and the Yak Bak. I loved them both. I got the talk boy for Christmas, and I remember it stopped working within a week or two and had to return it. There was such a high demand that when we went back to exchange it there were none left to exchange it for, so my dad just got the money back. I don't remember what I got in place of it, obviously not as cool as the talk boy, as I cant remember.

AJ said...

This bring back memories. The Yak Bak had a try me now button on the package without opening. Back in junior high , me and my friend when hanging around the toy store would record profanities into all the ones on display. And wlays wanted a talkboy while growing up as loved the movie Home Alone 2.

Paula Cross said...

I am looking for a toy from the early 90's. I thought it was a Yak Bak, but it was more than that. This toy came pre-loaded with insulting comments. Nothing hard core, just really funny. I can't remember the name. Any ideas?

Unknown said...

I loved my yak bak and i had the pen one too! memories!

mediabeing said...

I have a Yak Maniak...but don't know which button batteries to get for it.
Anybody know?

Unknown said...

I had a Yak Bak WARPR for a little...But then I found microcasette recorders at my dad's office...I WAS INTERVIEWING ALL HIS CO-WORKERS. So my dad had to get my a Hi-8 camcorder. Been shooting videos every since (excpet now they're 4K and 360) but i do remember the good ol' microcasette days...and the Yak Bak WarpR

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