Playskool / 1983 / Owner’s Manual PDF
I had one of these. I loved the big red button on the top.
Author: dbmiller
Armatron
Tandy/Radio Shack / 1984 / Owner’s Manual PDF
I had one of these and loved it. Recently I bought two on eBay because, yes, I “missed” it. The construction is absolutely amazing – essentially a single motor runs a convoluted path of gears that changes as the user manipulates the joysticks.
2-XL
Mego Toy / 1978 / Owner’s Manual PDF
I didn’t have one of these but played with it at my friend’s house. I remember it had an 8-track tape.
Omnibot
Tomy / mid-1980s / Owner’s Manual PDF
I had one of these and loved it. It used an audio cassette to record and then play back movement instructions and audio. It has a remote control that operated its movements and also allowed the user to speak through it, which lit up the lights based on sound volume. The arms were poseable and could hold cups, pencils, or a tray.
Verbot
Tomy / 1984 / Owner’s Manual PDF
Didn’t have one of these. Think of it as the smaller cousin of Omnibot.