A battery-free torch

This penguin torch caught my eye in the window of our local eco-shop, purely because it looked so cute. Then my daughter's torch conked out; she claimed she couldn't go to sleep without one; I remembered this one, went into the shop, and found out there was so much more to it than looks.

I particularly wanted to share my discoveries with Babygadget readers because I don't think it is being particularly marketed towards the parents of pre-schoolers - yet, in many ways it's a perfect torch for threes and up. Here's the thing: no batteries.

No batteries, so no problem if it happens to get left on. No problem if it runs dry, either. It's powered by an internal dynamo, which you trigger by repeatedly squeezing the penguin's pop-out wing: that's the only reason I'd say it's best for the over-threes, as that action does require a bit of gumption, and hands that are big enough to envelop the whole body of the torch.

My daughter loves it, and had no problems figuring out how to power it up and how to switch it off again (it preserves any energy you've built up). I can also see it being a real asset on camping trips, sleepovers, you name it.