Sphero, created by Orbotix, is the first robotic ball gaming system, that you control with your smartphone.
The ‘ball’ is a Smart Robot inside a “high-impact polycarbonate shell” which is shock and waterproof. You control it from your compatible iOS or Android device via a Bluetooth connection, and it can move at up to 3ft per second through a 50ft plus range.
Sphero is essentially a ‘converged’ device, combining the physical gaming world, with the virtual gaming experience provided on the latest smartphones and tablets. Merging the two creates a new type of experience that as Orbitex say “bridges the virtual and real worlds”.
It comes with a collection of 22 Apps you can download to play and interact with your Sphero, making it almost like 22 different toys!
There are driving games, shooting games, coordination and memory games, and even a music game – the full list provides hours of entertainment.
Additionally Sphero can glow in a range of configurable colours, giving it a nice touch of personalisation.
The Sphero ball earned a positive review from U.S. President Obama during a visit to Boulder, Colorado, earlier this year. After watching a demonstration, President Obama said, “I like that… let me drive this around. Excuse me, give me some space to drive my ball.”
Augmented Reality
Some of the latest games for Sphero include Augmented Reality, mixing the real world Sphero with the on-screen character in the game such as Sharky the Beaver.
It even has an open API and Mobile SDK so anyone can be a developer and create their own apps/games to control the ball and further enhance the Sphero experience. Don’t forget to check out the Featured Fan Videos showing what other people have been up to with their Sphero’s…
See Sphero in action in the video below!
Sphero is available from online retailers such as Amazon, and is available starting from £99.99. If you’re looking for the gift for the tech geek that has everything, then Sphero is their ultimate accessory!
This post was written by Rob Gordon, an IT geek, gadget lover and blogger. Rob has been using the internets since 1994 when the only streaming video was that coffee pot in Cambridge (rip)….
Follow Rob on Twitter – @robgordon – about.me/robgordonuk
