14 DAY TRIAL // Maybe it's a bit much to call a little ball a “robot,” but the toy that Orbotix has just introduced does have a degree of autonomous movement, and it doesn't really qualify as anything else. Besides, it can hop.
Although that might not be a strong enough word. Ollie reaches a bit too high up for “hopping” to define the movement. It can outright jump to great heights.
Ollie is the latest in the Sphero line of robots, all of which are shaped like spheres and run around, and do whatever else Orbotix had in mind, based on a phone app.
Which is to say, you use a smartphone as a sort of remote control, all thanks to an app that can be downloaded for free. Well, an app whose price is included in that of the bot anyhow, which is why it doesn't cost anything to get it.
Orbotix started making smartphone-controlled robots back in 2009, when “nobody was doing it,” according to founder Ian Bernstein.
Nowadays, using smartphones as remote controls is a bit less odd, but phone-controlled toy bots still aren't many in number.
Having something akin to a monopoly hasn't made Orbotix sit on its laurels though. Indeed, the company seems even more driven these days.
And it makes sense. After all, the manufacturing technique that it is now playing with is one that not only opens doors for newer and lighter designs, but promises a higher rate of manufacture and shorter time-to-market.
These are all standard advantages of 3D printing technology, hence why Orbotix used a MakerBot 3D printer to make the Ollie.
Instead of a sphere (like the Sphero), Ollie is more of a cylinder. It has wheels though, making it look like a sort of Sphero-car merger.
The speed is of 14 feet / 4.26 meters per second (twice as fast as Sphero) and uses a spectrometer and gyroscope to keep balance. Furthermore, built-in infrared sensors that allow multiplayer gaming, of all things. You can program Ollie to play with others like it.
And since it's so light, it was able to jump over four stacked boxes of Spheros. This is what cemented the decision to mass-produce it actually.
Originally, the wheels were printed in green PLA plastic, while the other parts were purple. It earned Ollie the nickname “Joker” for a while. Fortunately, you can customize the color scheme now. Sales will start this fall, for $99 / €99.
