At CES 2026 this week, Lego introduced its brand-new Smart Play system–a series of high-tech Lego bricks, tiles, and minifigures equipped with sensors, accelerometers, light and sound sensors, a miniature speaker with an onboard synthesizer, and more. The company says these pieces can communicate to enhance interactivity. The system will launch in March with three Star Wars sets, available for preorder starting January 9.
While this isn’t the first time Lego has experimented with electronic components, there are key differences with Smart Play pieces. For starters, they can detect nearby NFC-equipped smart tags. They’re also wirelessly charged. This is a big improvement compared to the Lego Super Mario toys, which required AAA batteries to function.
All of the pieces work with standard Lego bricks. Each piece contains a custom-made chip that is smaller than a standard Lego stud. So what do they do exactly? Lego says the Smart Bricks will respond to actions with appropriate sounds and behaviors. Here’s a closer look at what you can expect, starting with the new Lego Star Wars sets that will make use of this technology.
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Lego Star Wars: Darth Vader’s TIE Fighter (473 pieces) — $70
Darth Vader’s iconic spaceship set comes with a Smart Minifigure of the Star Wars villain and a Lego Smart Brick. Lego says the roar of the twin ion engines can be heard from the spaceship, and the set also comes with a Rebel Fleet Trooper minifigure, a brick-built Rebel Outpost, and an Imperial Fueling Station.
Lego Star Wars: Throne Room Duel and A-Wing (962 pieces) — $160
Fans can relive the climactic showdown between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader from Return of the Jedi with this set. The set features lightsaber humming sound effects and A-Wing engine sounds, but the coolest effect is reserved for the Emperor Palpatine minifigure. Place the despot in his throne, and you’ll hear the Imperial March theme played. The set also comes with a brick-built A-Wing Fighter and pilot minifigure, two Royal Guard minifigures, and a Smart Tag-enabled cannon turret to defend the Emperor’s Throne Room.
Lego Star Wars: Luke’s Red Five X-wing (584 pieces) — $100
This set comes with all the pieces you need to build Luke Skywalker’s iconic X-Wing fighter, minifigures of Luke and Leia, and special effects like laser-shooting sounds, engine sounds, and lights plus refueling and repair sounds through the Lego Smart pieces. You can also build an Imperial turret, transporter, command center, and R2-D2.
It’ll be a while before these new Lego sets with the Smart Bricks ship out, but right now, you can check out all of the new Lego sets that launched at the start of 2026. Fans can pick up Lego sets that celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Harry Potter franchise, a new three-in-one retro gaming console replica, and Amazon still has stock of the sought-after Ninjago Legacy 15th Anniversary building sets.
