Introducing Dash And Dot; Two Cute Bots That Blend Robotics With Education

Wonder Workshop’s interactive bots Dash and Dot’s here to make your kid’s playtime smarter and way more productive almost precisely the same way you wanted it to be.

These bots are fun to play with and can also promote computational thinking in kids such that they won’t even realize that they are learning and playing at one, and the same time.

Okay, now let’s take a closer look at the different attributes of these bots in a bit more detail.

The Set-up

“Dash and Dot” comes in a pre-assembled “ready to play” form. To get them into gear, you will just have to charge them a bit with the orange cable included in the box.

The bots require four apps for complete functionality. These are:

• Go,

• Path,

• Blockly,

• Xylo.

All of these apps are available for free and can be downloaded from their official website both for iOS and Android devices.

Dash and Dot: Appearance

• Dash

Dash looks like an assembly of 4 balls and is under 7 inches in height. Three balls constitute its body; one its head.

Although the appearance may look too simple at first glance, do not go solely by its looks. Dash is deceptively complex in the way it interacts with its surrounding environment. You will get the idea when you turn on the switch and see its eyes lighting up with glee.

Dash has 2 large wheels in the front and one small wheel at the back. All of these wheels bring a whole lot of versatility to Dash’s movement counting as a big upside in itself. Other parts include:

• A speaker,

• Three microphones,

• Four infra-red transmitters,

• Two robot receivers, and

• Three distance sensors.

RGB (Red, Green, Blue) LEDs are present in its ears that change colors occasionally. It also has a spotlight with RGB LEDs on its chest exhibiting the same features as those in its ears. A red tail-light is also present that adds to its aesthetics.

Dash comes with a micro-USB port for USB charging.

Dash

• Dot

Unlike Dash, Dot is stationary. It also exhibits a huge eyeball in front.

Its body constitutes a number of sensors, a speaker, a power switch, and a micro USB port for charging.

Dot has 4 buttons on its head for interactions. It has rubber-like protrusions at the bottom that act as its feet.

Dot

Both Dash and Dot have friendly looks capable of grabbing your kid’s attention at a moment’s notice. These bots are also not fragile and are built to sustain the unexpected shocks and bumps experienced by most children’s toys.

Interactive functionality

Dash and Dot can interact with their surroundings through built-in sensors. Their key interactive features include:

• Detecting object proximity,

• Hearing sounds,

• Knowing when and where they are being communicated with.

Both of these bots can be programmed to do anything as per your child’s bidding. Want to deliver a message? Or do you want the bots to compete in a robo-race? Everything is possible provided you program them in the right way.

 

Apps

You will have to pair the two robots to your smartphone to get yourself started with the app.

• Go

This is the basic app that transforms Dash into a remote-controlled robot.

You will be able to control the bot from your mobile itself in the same way you control an on-screen game character through a joystick.

• Path

Path is a basic programming app for Dash.

A series of instructions is provided that the user has to follow to program the app in the way s/he wants it to be.

• Blockly

Blockly; another programming app that works for both the Dash and the Dot.

It’s based on a drag and drop type programming environment that can be used by anyone without any prior coding knowledge or experience.

• Xylo

This app introduces the wonders of coding to children through means of music. The programming concepts taught are:

• Algorithm design,

• Control flow, and

• Loops.

Dash and Dot are really fun to get into and can be nothing short of an asset for your children. For more details regarding specifications and price, refer to this site over here. With that, we’ll sign off finally for the day. Hope you had an enjoyable read.