A very particular phrase I've been hearing lately, especially in regards to the PS3. A phrase that just happens to also irritate me to no end.

A toy is an object, primarily favored by children but also by some adults, that is used in play. A toy can be anything ranging from a rock to a doll. Used primarily to encourage positive growth in a child. It helps to occupy, build an imagination, learn, and promote social growth when used by groups. The same could also apply to a gaming console but the similarities of the two are like fire and ice.

A gaming console is used as a way to interact with an artifical enviroment with visual feedback. Somewhat similar to the way you would use your imagination and use your toy as an outlet. However, gaming can breach a variety of topics, situations, and environments that toys do not. Gaming consoles are not used to promote growth but as stimulation, or entertainment. Modern gaming consoles are used for more than one purpose, as they can now be used as hubs for the intertent, movies, or music. All of which are forms of enterainment not classified as 'toys'.

Gaming consoles are not geared to endure the harsh treatments that toys are engineered to face. A gaming console is somewhat of an investment, you buy it in order to enjoy what may be possibly available for them in the future. A gaming console also by itself is not geared towards a specific role that most toys are. They are not 'action heroes', 'glamour queens', 'monsters', or 'animals' making them redundant for role playing or for use in made up situations.

While they can be used and some of it's software may be geared towards children, this does make up it's complete purpose. They are used as a form of media and entertainment. They do not have static rolls, and are reliant on a variety of senses and factors to make them any form of use.

While Nintendo may have marketed their NES in it's early days as a toy to promote sales, It is anything but