As the 21st century moves forward, our reliance on technology increases. That time isn’t far away when we’ll have cyborgs amongst us, or maybe, the kid that has an exceptional memory in your little one’s classroom is a cyborg due to a secret government operation, who knows?!
Alright, fun apart, since you are here, it means you are in search of the best robotics kits for kids 10 and up. Well, you don’t need to look further because in this post we have compiled a list of toys that are most suitable for learning robotics at home. We have analyzed each one of them separately and ranked them according to various criterions, such as the difficulty level.
Our research showed that the Makeblock mBot Robot Kit is the best Arduino robot kit for beginners. On the other hand, if you are in search of the best Lego robotics kit, then jump to the Lego Mindstorms EV3 31313 Robot Kit section. What are the other options? Let’s have a look!
Table of Contents
- 1 Best Robotics Kits at a glance
- 2 Lego Mindstorms Robot Inventor (new October 2020)
- 3 Sphero RVR – All terrain programmable robot kit
- 4 Makeblock mBot Robot kit
- 5 Ubtech Mythical Series: Unicornbot kit for kids
- 6 Thames & Kosmos Robotics: Smart Machines Science Kit
- 7 ELEGOO UNO R3 Project Smart Robot Car Kit V 3.0
Best Robotics Kits at a glance
Best Arduino robot kits for beginners: Makeblock mBot Robot Kit
Best robotics kit for girls: Ubtech Mythical series
Best Lego robotics kit: New Lego Mindstorms Robot Inventor
Best robotics kit for home & school: Sphero RVR
Lego Mindstorms Robot Inventor (new October 2020)
Do your kids love transformers? If yes, then why don’t you get them their very own Wheelie? In fact, you can get them to make it on their own, all you need is the LEGO Mindstorms Robot Inventor.
Through this complete robotics package, your children will not only learn how to assemble robots, but they will also learn different ways to code them so that they walk, play games, complete tasks, and even talk with them.
This package contains 1,000 pieces, with intelligent brick, servo motors, and three different types of sensors; these are color, touch and IR. After receiving the package in the mail, just download the free programmer app and your kids will be ready to learn robotics!
It is considered as one of the best robotics kits for kids ten and up because through this just one package, your little ones can make 5 different robots. These include EV3 Storm, Track3r, Gripper, R3ptar, and Sik3r.
Pros
- A complete robotics learning package including coding
- The intelligent Brick has a USB port for internet connectivity. It also supports Wi-Fi.
- Infrared remote control
- 5 different robot designs
Cons
- A few customers complained that it needs frequent charging
- With LEGO MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor (51515), kids gain essential STEM skills as they build, code and play with remote-control model robots and intelligent creations that shoot missiles, play ball, drive around and more!
- Kids build Charlie, Tricky, Blast, M.V.P. and Gelo, and take on activities and missions using the Scratch-based LEGO MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor App (visit LEGO.com/devicecheck for a list of compatible devices)
Sphero RVR – All terrain programmable robot kit
Robotic driverless mass transportation systems are already functional in multiple countries around the world, and soon, such smart cars will be ruling the roads as well. You can teach the beginner level robotics at home to your child by gifting him/her the Sphero RVR. You must have heard about the line following robot, but Sphero RVR is on a whole new level.
The most distinguishing feature of this car robot is that it doesn’t require excessive assembly or complicated set up to get it running, your kid can start playing with it right out of the box. It doesn’t require a plain surface to function, thanks to the treads on the wheels and high torque that allows it to function in rough terrains.
It has 3 types of sensors, color, light and IR, and an accelerator, and a gyroscope on it. This robot is not just for kids, but teen hackers can also use it to practice and advance their skills through SDK and API libraries, which qualifies it to be one of the best robotic kits for teens. Let your kid learn Draw & Drive, Scratch blocks, or JavaScript in the most entertaining way possible!
Pros
- Suitable for both kids and elders
- Doesn’t require assembly or complicated setup
- Expansion port to connect with external hardware such as Raspberry Pi or Micro:bit.
- Removable cover plate
- Removable developer plate with quick-release button
Cons
- Doesn’t work with the full range of Sphero apps
- GO-ANYWHERE, DO-ANYTHING PROGRAMMABLE ROBOT: Meet the Sphero RVR, our most versatile coding robot yet, packed with a diverse suite of sensors and built for customization. Drive RVR precisely and accurately right out of the box – no assembly or complicated setup required.
- DRIVE IT: RVR’s powerful motor, all-terrain treads and high torque give you the freedom to drive just about anywhere. This advanced tank-style robot is packed with on-board sensors including a color sensor, light sensor, IR, accelerometer, and gyroscope.
Makeblock mBot Robot kit
If your mischief-maker is just beginning to show his/her interest in robotics, then you should teach him/her the basics of Arduino. A robotic toy kit would be an excellent teaching solution in this regard, but which is the best one out there in the market? Our pick is the Makeblock mBot Robot Kit, the perfect entry level device for kids or non-technical adults.
It has all the basic functions, such as obstacle avoidance and line-follow, to kick start your child’s learning. You might be baffled by its tiny size, but don’t worry, it performs all the functions. Your child can assemble it in just 15 minutes, after which, s//he can use either the remote control or the Makeblock app to control it.
Even though the mBot comes with the instructions, but your kid is free to play with his/her imagination and build it into a completely unique version. An incredible useful STEM tool to introduce children to robotics and programming.
Pros
- Excellent teaching robot for beginners
- The robot can be built in a unique method, different from the instructions provided with the toy.
- Enhances logical thinking.
- Highly expandable with hundreds of other Makeblock parts.
Cons
- A few customers complained that the remote control looks a little cheap.
- Proudly presented by Makeblock, a global leading brand in STEAM education solution that has integrated in 140+ countries.
- Don’t judge it by size, he is a real robot that has many modes to play with, like obstacle avoidance, line-follow and etc. It is easy to build within 15 mins and can be controlled by remote or smartphones through Makeblock App (iOS/Android).
Ubtech Mythical Series: Unicornbot kit for kids
Attention unicorn lovers! We’ve got a treat for your kid! I’m sure that since you are attracted, then most probably your little bundle of joy will be overwhelmed by the aesthetics of the next product as well, the UBTECH Mythical Series. Unicornbot is one of the most advance STEM toys your daughter can own, a great starter kit into programming and robotics
This adorable pet-ish robot is an excellent choice for your lady robot lover. UBTECH has named it Unicornbot, because of its colorful unicorn look-alike aesthetics. The most fascinating part is its color-changing capability through eight magical color cards, which can be done via the Blockly coding app. She can also change its horn color as per her choice.
The Unicornbot has PRP, which stands for pose, record and play; these are custom actions that your daughter can program. She won’t require any tools to assemble this adorable bot, the package comes with 3D, 360ᵒ animated building instructions.
This robotic kit for kids 10 and up includes 440 snap-together parts, a color sensor, 2 Smooth motion robotic servo motors, a DC motor, a Rag light-up unicorn horn, main control box, USB cable, and quick start guide.
Pros
- Teaches coding and robotics via JIMU App
- Animated building instructions guide
- Color changeable
Cons
- Your girl will need around 4 hours of assembly, a little tedious time if your child is not used to play with building toys like Lego
- Introducing a brilliant, buildable, codable robot from UBTECH Robotics
- Learn to use Blockly coding to program your UnicornBot's special color sensor using eight magical color cards.
Thames & Kosmos Robotics: Smart Machines Science Kit
The crucial part of learning a new subject is its basic knowledge. Robotics isn’t an exception, and the best way in which you can teach your kids its basics is by buying them the Smart Machines Kit by Thames & Kosmos Robotics.
This comprehensive kit for learning beginner robotics at home is capable of building 8 motorized machines. Once your child has played with his/her creativity and developed a robot, s/he can program it through the company’s app, whose instructions are received by the little guys through the ultrasound sensor.
This kit is kid-friendly because it comes with a thick 64-page guide that contains illustrated instructions. It will teach your loved one the basics of real-world robotics in a fun and entertaining way.
The different 8 robot models include a Bipedal Droid, Spy Bot, Beetle, Crocodile, Tiltrotor Aircraft, Robo Dog, Robotosaurus, and Catapult.
Pros
- 8 different models of robots in one kit
- Detailed manual containing illustrated instructions
- Ultrasound sensor
Cons
- Bluetooth connectivity issues
- This kit gives kids a simple, fun, and customizable introduction to robotics that lets them build eight motorized machines.
- Using the app interface, you can program the robots you build to behave based on the feedback coming from the ultrasound sensor.
ELEGOO UNO R3 Project Smart Robot Car Kit V 3.0
The ELEGOO UNO R3 Project Smart Robot Car Kit V3.0 is a comprehensive combination of programming, electronics assembly, and robotics for kids in their initial phase of these subjects’ learning.
It contains 24 different module parts that your little one can assemble and program to develop robots that perform obstacle avoidance and line tracing. The package also contains an infrared remote control. Your adorable engineer can also control the robots through a smartphone or tablet.
The kit comes with a CD that contains all the assembly-related, coding and other necessary instructions in HD resolution. Let your kid’s robotics adventures commence!
Pros
- CD with complete instructions in HD resolution
- 24 different module parts
- Assembled robots can be controlled via an infrared remote control or an app
Cons
- The car only moves forward in a straight line, unless the provided code is altered.
- ELEGOO Smart Robot Car: An educational STEM kit beginners (kids) to get hands-on experience about programming, electronics assembling and robotics knowledge. It is an integration solution for robotics learning and made for education.
- Complete Package: Contains 24 kinds of module parts including obstacle avoidance, line tracing module, infrared remote control and also you can control it via phone and tablets of Android and iOS system, etc.
These are our top picks for the best robotics kits for kids 10 and up. We hope you’ll find something that will suit your needs and make your preteen happy!
Do you need more ideas: check our Holiday Gift Guide.
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