Not exactly James Bond caliber, but the Spy Net Video Watch is nonetheless a fantastic little wrist gizmo that will bring out the budding secret agent in young boys. An amalgam of several ubiquitous technologies crammed into a wristwatch, the Spy Net Video Watch from Jakks Pacific delivers on its promise of spy game tomfoolery.

While somewhat ostentatious in size - i.e. not particularly covert - the watch includes a web-grade camera and microphone that can record up to 20 minutes of video, 3 hours of audio, 2000 photos (including time lapse shots) or a mix of all those things to onboard memory.

It's also a watch, of course, complete with stopwatch, alarm and related chrono-gizmotica.

The unit's color TFT screen is surprisingly legible for both video and photo playback or just displaying the time with Mission Impossible flair. It also features a few simple games and some spy-flavored apps to round out its utility for cerebral stimulation rather than just disposable gimmickry.

It's powered by an embedded battery that's recharged via USB, which is also how you connect the thing to a PC to offload accumulated video and audio as well as interface with an online Spy Net hub. Here, spy tools like faux voice analysis - a "lie detector" that doesn't actually work as such (no baseline reference) but is fun just the same - and "special mission" project downloads abound.

With proof in the pudding, our 7-year tester (sorry, 7 and a half) took an immediate shine to the Spy Net Video Watch. Despite some worry of excessively finicky connectivity and menu management, he managed to figure out all of its trappings within an hour. More importantly, it's got him skulking around the house and yard doing "spy stuff" born mostly of imagination, with the Video Watch a mere companion piece to real live make believe.

And that's exactly what you want in a toy, isn't it?

What you probably don't want, exactly, is a watch that craps out after about 3 weeks, which this thing did. No harm no foul, apparently, as my going-on-8 year-old had moved on to the more blatant likes of water balloons, no USB required. Me, just $20 out of pocket and a little Spy Net wiser.