Up to five of the tiny robots can interact with each other
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| © Image: Sphero |
By Dani Deahl, The Verge
Sphero has announced another rolling ball robot called the Sphero Bolt. The Sphero Bolt follows in the company’s ethos of having a commitment to education-based products, but it comes with some upgrades that give it more capabilities than the original Sphero and Sphero Spark+.
The biggest and most noticeable difference with the Sphero Bolt is that it comes with an animated and programmable 8 x 8 LED screen so it can show a winking smiling face when a task has been completed or an arrow for the direction it’s moving in.
Sphero has announced another rolling ball robot called the Sphero Bolt. The Sphero Bolt follows in the company’s ethos of having a commitment to education-based products, but it comes with some upgrades that give it more capabilities than the original Sphero and Sphero Spark+.
The biggest and most noticeable difference with the Sphero Bolt is that it comes with an animated and programmable 8 x 8 LED screen so it can show a winking smiling face when a task has been completed or an arrow for the direction it’s moving in.
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| © Image: Sphero Sphero BOLT |
The Bolt also sports four infrared sensors, meaning there’s an opportunity for these little robots to communicate with each other. This is the first time Sphero has created the ability for multiple robots to interact, and the company says that up to five Bolts can speak to each other within a radius of about five meters.
Also new to the Sphero Bolt is a built-in compass that gives it better aim, an ambient light sensor, and a better battery for up to two hours of heavy use play time (perhaps longer if performing simpler moves) before needing to be recharged.
Sphero’s ball robots can be controlled via the company’s mobile app and are meant to be a tool to teach kids about robotics and computer programming. There are actually two apps: the Sphero Play app for scooting the ball around by interacting with your device’s touchscreen and the Sphero Edu app that lets users stack blocks of code to program how the robot behaves via its gyroscope, accelerometer, magnetic compass, light sensor, and more.
The Sphero Bolt is available now for $149.99 via the company’s website, and it will be at select retailers later this month.
Also new to the Sphero Bolt is a built-in compass that gives it better aim, an ambient light sensor, and a better battery for up to two hours of heavy use play time (perhaps longer if performing simpler moves) before needing to be recharged.
Sphero’s ball robots can be controlled via the company’s mobile app and are meant to be a tool to teach kids about robotics and computer programming. There are actually two apps: the Sphero Play app for scooting the ball around by interacting with your device’s touchscreen and the Sphero Edu app that lets users stack blocks of code to program how the robot behaves via its gyroscope, accelerometer, magnetic compass, light sensor, and more.
The Sphero Bolt is available now for $149.99 via the company’s website, and it will be at select retailers later this month.
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