Lego’s Smart Brick Gives the Iconic Analog Toy a New Digital Brain

The new sensor-packed Smart Play Brick will land this spring as part of a special Star Wars collection. The update adds interactive lights and sound to the Lego experience—including the Minifigs.

At CES in Las Vegas today, Lego has unveiled its new Smart Play platform, aimed at taking its distinctly analog plastic blocks and figures into a new world of tech-powered interactive play—but crucially one without any reliance on screens.

Smart Play revolves around Lego's patented sensor- and tech-packed brick. It's the same size as a standard 2x4 Lego brick, but it is capable of connecting to compatible Smart Minifigures and Smart Tags and interacting with them in real time. By pairing these components, kids big and small can create context-appropriate sounds and light effects as they play with the Danish company's toys.

For example, launching on March 1, the $100 Lego Star Wars Smart ...