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6 Gift Ideas For Kids That Won't Break The Bank

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Retail stores put out a list of the hottest toys of the season every year before Black Friday with the hope that parents will stay up late or get up early to try to score their child's favorite toy at a low price.

This year, you don't have to work too hard to find one of the hottest toys for less than $50.

Dolls are always on all of the hottest toy lists.

The more popular ones include 'Lalaloopsy' which start under $20. And around the same price are 'Monster High' dolls.

For those of you too nice to buy your niece or nephew a drum set for Christmas, how about the "I Am T-Pain" microphone?

It's a spin-off of the iPhone app that alters your voice to make you sound like the rapper, T-Pain. It sells for $39.99

'FIJIT Friends' are quickly climbing the list of popular toys. They will dance, crack jokes, and more for $40.

As if the Angry Birds game wasn't popular enough -- so are the toys. Small plush birds run about $5, medium size sells for $8.97, and large for $12.97.

And it seems like store shelves wouldn't be complete without Elmo.

This year, the holiday toy icon wants to rock. 'Let's Rock Elmo' is high on many retailers hottest toys list.

"It just really cheers up a kid and they get excited about that item. And the parents know that Elmo has a great message to give. Then the parents are excited to buy that for their children as well," said a Wal-Mart manager.

Some retailers, including Wal-Mart, are using more customer feedback this holiday season. Websites are keeping track of how many parents "like" a toy and the site uses that information to recommend gift ideas for certain age groups, and price ranges.

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