Reebok's toning shoes, which launched to much controversy last September, are a huge hit with the ladies. Housed under a new umbrella at the company called Easy Tone, the athletic shoes claim to aid weight loss, tone muscles and relieve stress on your knees and hips—all by simply wearing the shoes. Numerous news outlets called the Easy Tone pitch a hoax last fall, citing doctors' opinions that disproved any sneaker could transform one's posterior with so little effort. But that doesn't seem to have stopped shoppers from buying into the 'make your boobs jealous' marketing ploy. In fact, "we are well on track to selling at least 5 million pairs of toning footwear in the U.S. alone this year," Herbert Hainer, CEO of Reebok parent Adidas told AdAge.

'One to watch' is a phrase thrown around exceedingly often in fashion, but if there's one footwear maven on the rise truly worth taking note of, it's Brian Atwood. You may remember him as the shoe designer that cast Rene Russo for his look book. While his coveted, high-priced women's shoes have been making a splash among fashion cognoscenti for seasons, 2010 marks a big year for the ex-model and former Versace assistant. First off, the placement of his shoes in Sex and the City 2 is giving the designer a decided boost. "The New York and Milan-based designer made four custom pairs of heels for Parker's character, Carrie Bradshaw, for Sex and the City 2, and created 30 decadent pairs for the actress' whirlwind promotional tour," says All the Rage. Whether he gets name-dropped in the sequel anywhere near as often as Manolo Blahnik did in the TV series, I have yet to see.

Believe it or not, men in stacked boots is a trend finally gaining quite a bit of steam (thanks in large part to the likes of Rick Owens). The chiseled, long locked Paris-based designer has been churning out sleek, androgynous styles including men's shoes with a sizable lift for seasons. Following in his footsteps, Rad Hourani likewise showed stacked platforms for guys on his SS10 runway. But, the gender-bending look has been slow to take off. Men in Tokyo may be forming 'skirt tribes' en masse, but heels have for seasons seemed to have a long way to go before reaching the masses. That is, until now.

Adidas Originals is launching a new product: the “first Augmented Reality experience in footwear.” What’s this, you ask? Well, it’s a pair of old-school sneakers that double as a video game controller. That’s right. The company has invested millions in a pair of kicks that you hold in front of your webcam to play online video games. You actually talk into the shoe. The product debuts at Champs Sports Stores on the 15th, but it’s not the first attempt at merging technology and fashion. A couple other recent tech-cum-clothing ventures after the jump.

Ivanka Trump is expanding her empire. The business brain and fledgling designer (not to mention former model) is moving beyond jewelry, reports WWD, saying the daughter of the notorious mogul "has inked a deal for a contemporary footwear line via a licensing agreement with Marc Fisher Footwear." No specifics on styles to be included or price point, but expect shoes that for grabbing dinner at the Four Seasons or taking tea at the Plaza. Meanwhile, downtown, another former model and celebrity is soon to turn designer.

This summer has been a roller-coaster ride for the Croc-hater. Earlier, the Boulder-based company rolled out a new, unfortunate style that looks like Espadrilles mated with ballet slippers. We thought that, yes, finally, this was surely to be the shoe's death-spiral, and perhaps the final summer of the Croc. Well, good news and bad.

Alexander McQueen’s partnership with Puma is unleashing a wild (and wildly priced) shoe slated for sale in late August. The Puma AMQ line has most recently created a chocolate-brown crocodile leather kick that manages to combine urban style (note the high-top build) with high fashion -- plus a little bit of a jungle vibe mixed in. "There is a part of me that is very couture, and a part of me that is very street," the designer explains. A street sneaker that doubles as a dress shoe made from gator hide. Why didn't I think of that? Although the three-grand price tag may seem hard to swallow, the shoes come in a handmade wooden shoebox with a complimentary pair of crocodile leather flip-flops. If you plan on getting your claws on a pair of these, act fast, as only 28 pairs will be distributed in the United States.

Lazy? Can't be bothered with laces? Creaky back? Have we got the sneaker for you. Right as Vans rolls out its new line, Converse counters with a new slip-on. It looks exactly like the classic low-top Chuck T's -- same design, lace grommets, etc.-- except, well, it's a slip-on. No laces! If they're good enough for button-nosed model Heidi Klum (Mrs. Schatz was sporting them recently in Los Angeles), they're good enough for me.

Vans have come a long way since the days of Jeff Spicoli pulling bong hits and slapping his noggin with the classic checked slip-on. They've branched out to all sorts of designs, fabrics, and styles, and they've bridged the overlooked culture gap between skate rats and head-bangers. All this generates annual fall lines that get Vans aficionados frothing at the mouth. Now get ready for fall 2008 kicks, which include two-tone corduroy lace-ups in muted colors, as well as sweet-ass Iron Maiden high-top-style classic Sk8-Hi, featuring the group's album cover artwork from its 1983 album Piece of Mind. My fave? The Johnny Ramone slip-ons.