Jedi trainees can stop wandering the neighborhood looking for a kindly old man or frog-like hermit to train them in the ways of the force. Uncle Milton's new Star Wars The Force Trainer can help them hone their mind-object control skills. I'm no longer a kid, but I grew up with Star Wars and still secretly (well not so secretly now) wish I had Jedi mind skills.

The $99 product arrived in our offices last week, and I took it for a test drive earlier today. It takes AA batteries and three AAAs, but otherwise set-up is a no-brainer (get it?). The double AAs go in the base, which uses a fan to push a decorated ping-pong ball up a transparent tube. It communicates wirelessly with the adjustable headset, which features three sensors that ostensibly read your brainwaves and transmit the information back to the base. With the right kind of concentration (sit still, don't hold your breath, and think about making the ball rise), you can make the fan blow harder (or softer) and send the ball up and down the tube. Training takes you from Padawan level to Jedi Master--Yoda is your audio coach throughout.

Virtually all promotion pictures and video show a boy with his hand stretched toward the device. This isn't necessary, but a fair amount of concentration is. I didn't break a sweat during the test drive, but I believe I may have, with Yoda's help (he coaches you throughout), finally become a Jedi. The proof is in the video.

Check it out, after the jump.