Though these goggles are sold in the toy aisle of major retailers, they actually work; you can see in the dark with them.

One telling sign of the lack of fresh merchandise could be found in the notoriously fickle toy aisles where Ninja Turtles remained a hot product for yet another year.

Senator Palpatine, the "Star Wars" politician who later rises to the status of the Emperor of the Galactic Empire, is a regular in the toy aisle.

They are also often used to implement a cross-marketing/merchandising program, e.g. selling batteries in the toy aisle or displaying a soup ladle in the canned soup section.

Lorrie K. Browning, general manager of preschool toys at Hasbro, said the new products would put Playskool into the hands of parents who do not regularly shop in the toy aisle.

Like the baby care products at CVS, those lines will take the brand beyond the toy aisle, where fierce competition has led to deep, profit-eating discounts.

Maybe she will go back to the toy aisle after all.

Occasionally, she would wander the toy aisles in the department store, gazing at the products and figuring out what she would like to buy for a boy or a girl.

Yet the nearly $400 million industry is not quite as dormant as the best-seller list, or a trip to Wal-Mart's toy aisle, may imply.

Simply walking through a toy aisle will show you the major differences in boys and girls toys.