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  • Author Author: ntewinkel
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LittleBits Droid

ntewinkel

I picked up a littleBits Droid kit today!

I happened to notice it free on the local market-place, and only just 5 minutes from my house.

 

Apparently she was frustrated with the kit and the company because the little servo doesn't work - a known issue, but not covered under warranty because she had lost the receipt.

 

I think this might be a fun project to try and get going, and also just to try out the littleBits system.

 

Cheers,

-Nico

 

image

  • in reply to genebren

    Hi Gene,

    >But all too often, with older products, the links no longer function, or they no longer work with new versions of the supporting devices.

    Seems I've hit exactly that!

     

    Sphero (the company that now owns littleBits) basically said they stopped selling them 2 years ago and they are not supported after the 1 year warranty was up... ie, 1 year after warranty expires they've already removed the app and bricked the devices. yikes. I guess existing users just have to make sure they don't uninstall the old app and should be ok.

     

    Ah well, I was planning of customizing it eventually, so that will now happen sooner image

  • Looks like it could be fun with options to expand the kit to more interesting applications.

     

    DAB

  • Hi Nico,

     

    Wow that looks fantastic! This is just the type of toy that should be self-assembly like this.. kids would get a lot out of seeing how the mechanics and electronics assemble to make it function, and it looks really nice too.

  • in reply to ntewinkel

    Good luck on getting the app!  This can be a real issue in buying older kits.  No one seems to actually include app and downloads as a part of the product, but only links to where you can download the files.  But all to often, with older products, the links no longer function, or they no longer work with new versions of the supporting devices.

  • in reply to genebren

    I think so! and yes I hope I can get it running too image

     

    So far I'm already hitting a major hurdle - it looks like littleBits was acquired by Sphero in 2019, and the app that controls this specific kit does not exist anymore... and the generic littleBits app doesn't mention this kit. The Sphero webstore also no longer shows the kit. They do still have learning materials that mention the non-existent app.

    So I've sent in my support question and am hoping to hear something back.

     

    It's bluetooth controlled, so in a pinch I might be able to just use a generic bluetooth way to control it.

     

    And if all else fails, I'll replace the brains with one of my other dev boards. Maybe Arduino with a BLE module, or an ESP32 image