While some recoil at the thought, bugs and
insects are just plain interesting - there's something undeniably cool about
our more than four legged friends. And while you may not readily admit to
owning a Starship Troopers DVD (or its priced-to-own sequels), maybe your ears
always perked up a bit when the subject of insects came about in high school
biology class.
i-Robot
Beetle
So you might be tempted by the i-Robot
Beetle, a small, detailed, cockroach like robot (complete with antennae) that
can be readily controlled from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Similar to
assorted robot kits that you might find on the market, the Beetle moves about
on six thin, plastic legs, can be recharged via a USB port, and features a
nifty LED-lit, glowing abdomen that activates when turned on.
While
some recoil at the thought, bugs and insects are just plain interesting there's
something undeniably cool about our more-than-four-legged friends
The Beetle, once deployed, can move
forward, backward, left, and right, as well as repeat recent motions and vary
its speeds as desired. A transmitter attaches to the audio jack on your iOS
device and emits shrill squeaking sounds as the Beetle scuttles around. You
control it with the free i-Robot app, which is simple to figure out: just press
the directional buttons or tilt your device in the direction you want the bug
to go.
It’s
fun, but that fun has the lifespan of, well, a real beetle.
While it's fun to surprise friends by
sending the Beetle scurrying toward them across the table (your coworkers will
love being surprised by a robotic cockroach as they're relaxing in the break
room eating chicken Caesar wraps), there’s limited appeal. The Beetle proves
fun for about 20 minutes, but it quickly gets old. since it can only move in a
few directions, gets stuck on any surface higher than a few centimeters, and
can’t right itself when it becomes inverted. The Beetle feels cheaply built and
it shows. One of the left legs on ours got stuck, and so it was unable to
travel forward without veering to the left (although it could back up
perfectly). Plus, we wish it used Bluetooth to connect, instead of the awkward
4-inch dongle.
The bottom line. At $40, i-Robot is asking
a lot of its potential customer base. The Beetle's lack of fine motor control
plus a dearth of additional software or games makes this a hard sell. Maybe the
Beetle will improve, maybe its iOS app can offer more to do with the toy. but
until then, this is a bug worth avoiding.
At
$40, i-Robot is asking a lot of its potential customer base. The Beetle's lack
of fine motor control plus a dearth of additional software or games makes this
a hard sell
|
i-Robot
Beetle
·
Website: www.ihelicopters.net
·
Price: $40
·
Requirements: iPhone. iPad, or iPod touch
running iOS 5.1 or later
·
(+) Nifty cockroach design. Makes squeaky
sounds. Guaranteed to surprise and/or disgust friends, family, and co-workers.
·
(-) Limited function and appeal. Becomes
boring after a short period of time. Poorly made.
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