Last Halloween, I had both a 12-foot Home Depot skeleton and a 20-foot inflatable Lowe's skeleton in my front yard, and the inflatable proved to be the more popular decoration.

This year, however, Home Depot's new 12-foot Skelly may retake the crown, as it's being updated to include more lighting, sound effects, and the ability to move, which should really thrill and delight the trick-or-treaters in my neighborhood.

Here's a look at what the new 12-foot skeleton — which goes on sale today for $379 — can do.

A "smart" Skeleton

The new Skelly is Bluetooth-enabled and can be controlled via an app, which will let you save up to 30 different sounds and control the movement of its head and jaw.

If that's not terrifying enough, a "live" mode will let you control the Skelly in real time, and have it speak whatever you say with voice-changing effects. I can see having a lot of fun with that.

The app will also let you switch its LED eyes between 30 different options, pick from five pre-recorded sounds, and change the color of the lighting in its ribcage. Plus, motion sensors in the Skelly will also trigger its movements when it spots trick-or-treaters coming to your door.

If that's not terrifying enough, a "live" mode will also let you control the Skelly in real time, and have it speak whatever you say with voice-changing effects. I can see having a lot of fun with that.

Home Depot will also continue to sell the non-app controlled 12-foot Skelly for $299.

More things wicked this way come

(Image credit: Home Depot)

In addition to the new Skelly, Home Depot is also launching about two dozen new animatronic Halloween decorations, including:

• An 11-foot Giant-Sized LED Mummy ($299) with posable shoulders, LED lights in the eyes and chest, and three sound effects
• A 9-foot Wicked Woods Giant-Sized LED Dry Rot Dennis ($299) that has color changing LED lights in the eyes, mouth and chest
• A 3-foot animated Disney Stitch ($199) with servo motors in its head, can say 5 Stitch phrases, and comes with both Halloween and holiday costumes
• An 8-foot long LED Zombie Velociraptor ($299), which is motion-sensor activated and can move, make noises, and has LED lights
• A 4-foot animated Flying Monkey from "Wicked" ($199) that has flapping wings, lunging torso, tilting head and moving mouth, in addition to five sound effects.

All of the new products go on sale today (July 16), which seems really early for Halloween — talk about holiday creep — but if the past is any indication, the new Skelly should prove popular. Some of the products, such as the new Skelly, will only be available as in-store purchases.

Time to clear out more space in your garage!

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Michael A. Prospero is the U.S. Editor-in-Chief for Tom’s Guide. He oversees all evergreen content and oversees the Homes, Smart Home, and Fitness/Wearables categories for the site. In his spare time, he also tests out the latest drones, electric scooters, and smart home gadgets, such as video doorbells. Before his tenure at Tom's Guide, he was the Reviews Editor for Laptop Magazine, a reporter at Fast Company, the Times of Trenton, and, many eons back, an intern at George magazine. He received his undergraduate degree from Boston College, where he worked on the campus newspaper The Heights, and then attended the Columbia University school of Journalism. When he’s not testing out the latest running watch, electric scooter, or skiing or training for a marathon, he’s probably using the latest sous vide machine, smoker, or pizza oven, to the delight — or chagrin — of his family.