Passersby snapped photos of a $200,000 1966 Batmobile replica parked outside the entrance of the Hammacher Schlemmer store in midtown Manhattan, which hosted a reception Wednesday night to celebrate the completion of a nearly year-long renovation as well as the luxury catalogue company’s 165th anniversary.
Inside, to the left of the entrance, Zoltar, a $9,000 six-foot tall animatronic fortune teller machine, boomed, “I see you over there, come over” and spit out predictions on yellow cards.
Visitors gawked at the $90,000 Killer Whale Submarine and $19,500 red Hovercraft suspended from the ceiling, while others made a beeline for the $7,000 Cockpit Flight Simulator in the back, placing their glasses of red wine in its beverage holder while an attendant guided them through various missions.
The shelves along the store’s perimeter boasted some more modest gifts like a gadget that turns an iPad2 into a foosball table ($99.95) and tear-free onion glasses ($19.95).
As the holiday shopping season gears up, here are 10 other “unexpected” Hammacher Schlemmer products that are available online.