Hasta La Gadget!

TinkerBots (formerly known as Kinematics) let you make robots that are easy enough for a child to build. The pieces snap together easily, and you can make things much more complex than a robot dog too. Want to train the dog to walk? Just switch on the Tinketbot’s Power Brain’s recording mode and twist and turn the dog manually. Press play, and it repeats the motion you just programmed. How awesome is that?

The Power Brain has a built-in gyroscope and accelerometer, speaker, Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity, and a rechargeable lithium-polymer battery.

It’s Arduino compatible too, so you can build even more complex creations if you want. You can also program robot movements from your mobile device. Other active modules include motors, pivots, grabbers, and IR and light sensors. You can update any or all of them through the Power Brain when there’s new software available.

TinkerBots are even compatible with LEGO and Technic pieces with the proper adapter blocks in place. The cubes are roughly the size of 4 X 1 LEGO brick, cuboids roughly 4 x 2, and there are two different kinds of angled prism pieces.

This is going to be a great toy for your kids. And you of course. You can get yourself a basic set for $159(USD) on Indiegogo, with bigger sets ranging from $299 to $499.

A few years back, LEGO builder Marshal Banana created an incredible Star Wars Sandcrawler model. Later, the model would find its way to Cuusoo, but never quite got to the point it needed to go into production. Now, it looks like LEGO has managed to finally release its own Sandcrawler kit, though it’s not as epic as the 10,000 piece original.

LEGO’s version of the Sandcrawler is about 1/3rd the number of bricks, at 3,296 pieces, but still looks pretty awesome. Part of the Ultimate Collectors’ series, the model is quite large, and has plenty of room for minifig Jawas and droids inside. Overall measurements for the vehicle are 18″ (L) x 9″(H) x 6″ (W).

It’s got a number of moving parts, including a ramp on the front that can be raised and lowered with the turn of a knob, a droid-lifting crane, and even has that vacuum sucky thingy for lifting up droids.

While its treads aren’t motorized, they can move when pushed across a surface, and they can be steered too. Here’s hoping someone figures out a way to hack a motor in there.

The set also comes with a number of minifigs, including four Jawas, Luke Skywalker, Uncle Owen, C-3PO, R2-D2, R5-D4, and four other droids. It even comes with some spare droid parts, because that’s what Jawas do. Below is just a sampling of the minifigs included:

You can check out the full details of the LEGO Sandcrawler in the video below:

LEGO expects to ship the Sandcrawler this May, and it will sell for $299.99(USD) at shop.lego.com.

We’ve seen a number of artists create hand-cranked "GIF machines" over the past few months, from the Giphoscope to Juan Fontanive’s creations. The only problem is how expensive they are—but now, thanks to this handy little kit, you can make your own on the cheap.

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Here’s a fun project that can be scaled depending on your skill level with electronics. Like the Magic 8-ball, the Executive Decision Maker Pro lets you outsource your fate to a gadget, which is just as clueless as you are but is at least more decisive.

Press the Decide button and the EDM Pro will flash either Yes or No for four seconds; press the Reset button to clear the answer right away if you need to answer another question. You can also hold the Reset button and keep pressing the Decide button for rapid fire answers.

If you took one look at the EDM Pro and you already know pretty much how it works, then all you need to do is to get the design files from Vagrearg’s website. But if you need a bit of help, you should get Vagrearg’s ready to assemble EDM Pro kit for $57.50 (USD). The kit has all the parts you need but has an unassembled circuit board. If you’re a beginner, you should pay extra for the LED mounting guide and the assembled board.  If you’re a Physics nut, get this EDM instead.

[via Hack A Day]

Cycling is a pretty big deal in the Bay Area, where it’s been said cycling is the new golf. So it should come as no surprise to learn that nearly every tech company from Twitter to Intuit has a dedicated …