Sphero has been making excellent programmable robots for years, and last year everybody went nuts for their gorgeous little BB-8. And rightly so.
Now we’re getting a new range, adding a new BB-9E (an evil twin to BB-8) and everybody’s classic favourite, R2-D2. The detailing on Artoo is excellent – including a third leg that drops out to move across difficult terrain.
But the killer feature for Sphero really is the amazing app integration and genuine programmability. These robots don’t just have good apps, they can also be programmed through other programming education tools, like Apple’s Playgrounds app.
These can get a little expensive, but if you’re looking to sell your kids on programming robots, there’s no better way to do it.
Launching at $299 in JB Hi-Fi (and stock is probably going to struggle to keep up with demand through Christmas).
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Seamus runs Byteside. You may also have spotted his words at the Australian Financial Review, the ABC, Junkee, Gamespot, The Esports Observer, CNET, Gizmodo and a few other spots over the years. He's very happy that he gets to nerd out for a living.
