I’m almost ashamed to admit it, but my daughter got a robot for Christmas, and I had absolutely nothing to do with it. As a matter of fact, I was totally unfamiliar with Dot, the cute, roughly 3.5 inch, sensor-packed, “brains of a robot” by San Mateo-based Wonder Workshop, Inc. Now that I’ve had some hands on time with Dot and read up about her mobile sibling Dash, I have to say that I am impressed with these learning tools in disguise.
Dot may look like a toy but she’s got a serious goal: to introduce kids to programming using her kid-friendly hardware in combination with a host of mobile applications, available for both iOS an Android, that gamify the learning process. We started with Wonder, and while we’ve only worked through the first few lessons together, I am already enamored with the visual programming language used to make Dot do things like speak and flash her various LEDs.
I hope to write more once we’ve spent some time coding. For now I can share some things I do know to be facts, and they would be Dot’s specifications as provided by Wonder Workshops themselves.
Size & Weight
Diameter: 3.39 in
Height w/ Stand: 3.74 in
Weight: 0.37 lbs
Sensors & Actuators
Microphones: 3
Speakers: 1
Eye Lights: 12 White LEDs
Ear Lights: RGB LEDs
Spotlight: RGB LEDs (in chest)
Tail Lights: Red LEDs
Transmitters: 4 IRs
Distance Sensors: 3 (12 inch range)
Detect Robot Receivers: 2 IRs
Power & Connectivity
Play Time: Up to 5 hours
Standby Time: Up to 30 days
Battery: Built in rechargeable lithium ion
Charging: Via Micro USB
Connectivity: Bluetooth Smart 4/LE
And now for some unboxing pictures …