Safety is included in toys marketed in the US. Taste may or may not be. Developmental claims are largely unfounded.
Seven and a half years ago and two weeks before the birth of our first daughter, we went to Toys"R"Us to get baby things. The experience proved depressing, and we never went back. Furniture was expensive and redundant. For most objects I saw no use and still don't. Clothes and toys were ugly. We went home and ordered several Lamaze developmental toys on Amazon. Lamaze toys are made of synthetic fabric with different textures and simple contrasting patterns in bright colors. There were two soft fabric rattles, a ladybug and a mostly violet butterfly, with velcro fasteners, meant to teach a child hand-eye coordination, and, later, right hand from left. The ladybug had great success with four children -- I lost track of it now. The butterfly was completely ignored. I think babies prefer red to violet. Another toy was a shape-sorter, made of fabric: fabric box with padded sides and stuffed fabric prisms and cylinders with rattles and noisemakers. It was absolutely safe, and absolutely no use as intended: a determined baby could easily squeeze any shape into any hole. The box survived until it was used as a dollhouse, the pieces were squeezed and tossed all the time and are still around as safe throwing objects. Yet another toy was a Multi-Sensory Clutch Cube with handles with different texture and a nice-sounding bell inside. Each side was different color. That one was good.
Other favorite toys of my daughter were: spoons of different sizes, two beany parrots (mostly red), a pine cone, a fist-size stone, fabric pieces from my quilting, sketches of faces in black marker, and a red tea-tin with several rocks and coins inside -- that one I regretfully took away when she started teething and biting on metal. I'm not responsible if your tin opens. Make sure it is closed tight, it is not meant for babies and not approved for them in any way. My second, as a baby, played with Duplo blocks meant for the older toddler. His favorite object between 4 and 6 month was a strainer, followed by balloons.
It was debated for several generations whether baby's room should be soft and mostly white, or contrasting black and white, or strong primary colors. Make a room you can live in. Babies respond to contrast earlier than to specific color; they can follow an "eye" -- circle with a dot -- as early as second week of life. Babies who cannot yet seat can listen to bells and music boxes, look at things and grab them. An activity gym and a mobile are usual first toys. Activity mats are great idea. Unfortunately, ones available commercially are not much fun: manufacturers compromise texture and interest for safety and washability. Independent quilters make activity mats to order. After a baby is old enough to prop himself on elbows he can look in a mirror. Fisher-Price, LeapFrog, Little Tikes, Playskool, Lamaze, and others sell plastic non-breakable mirrors for babies. Some of this mirrors are rather distorting, so check beforehand if you care. When a baby can sit, he can play with many different things, pass them from hand to hand, push buttons and even stuff things in crates and boxes. The popular toy for this age is a round plastic table with a saddle for a baby in the center and bells and whistles in contrasting colors arranged on the tray around. A baby can turn from toy to toy pushing against the floor. Exersaucer by Evenflo is one of this kind. Pros: They are durable, washable and keep a baby localized and busy for a while. Cons: Noises are unbearable and colors are an eyesore. But this applies to most objects marketed as toys for babies. None of our children had anything that made an electronic noise. They survived, and so did we.
Baby bouncers and swings: children like them, but they require constant supervision. Swings are not intended for babies younger than three months. A "walker" -- a frame on wheels with a saddle for a baby which allows him to move around pushing against the floor -- is a very dangerous thing. It doesn't help them to walk earlier but helps them to walk into trouble.
An older baby or a toddler can push and pull cars, ride a cart, stand at activity table, stack wooden or Duplo blocks. Unit Blocks (Melissa & Doug or any brand) and Lego (not Multiblocks or other replicas) are everlasting toys: they can be used by a one-year-old but can still be challenging even for adults, made well, look good, virtually undestructible, and still work even if some pieces are lost. Brio makes smaller colored wooden blocks. Kapla is a superb wooden block variety. All pieces of wood are compatible, including, as our children discovered, spare bookshelves and walls of broken wooden boxes. Wooden railroads are great, too. All brands -- Brio, Thomas and Friends, and many others -- are compatible. Watch for the wheels and small pieces.
See also: children, newborn baby, baby travel bed, baby carrier, baby car seat, baby travel checklist, diaper, jogging stroller.