BOTZEES – Create Robots Through Immersive Play

BOTZEES are a fun STEAM toy that teaches coding concepts, building, and play through the use of Augmented Reality.

Botzees are a fun new STEAM toy where kids 4+ follow 3D Augmented Reality (AR) instructions in an app to build up to 6 different pre-designed Botzees or come up with their own design.

With over 130 rounded building blocks, there is a lot of room for creativity to build fun Botzees and accompanying characters.  

Kids learn how to code Botzee in small steps through over 30 interactive Augmented Reality puzzles and trial and error.

Botzees Building

Botzees combine building, coding, and playing to help kids see how piles of colored blocks can be created to empower their own robots.

BUILD

The Botzee robot comes disassembled with over 130 different building blocks and tires. 

Using the Botzee app, kids learn how to build the Botzee robot pictured on the box.

The app uses a 3D method to help kids build.  One step at a time, it shows kids which block to look for and where to place it. 

Kids can move the robot their building with their finger to see a complete 3D view.  It’s very helpful is assessing visually where the piece belongs on the robot.

It’s a great way to build things and can give kids the independence in building something all by themselves.

CODE

There is a coding section where kids can make their Botzee robot do different things, like move forward, make a left or right 360-degree turn, turn its color red, play sounds, etc. 

It’s fun to explore here but this section is very limited.

You simply drop the “commands” to a rectangular panel and then press play to see what Botzee does. 

There is not much explanation of what the commands are. 

The idea is that kids learn the commands during the fun PLAY section and then can try them out in the Coding area.

Unfortunately, kids can only try up to a small number of commands. 

Also, once the play button is pressed to execute the commands, all of the command blocks disappear.  

So if your child wants to investigate moving different commands or adding a new one at the end, they have to reload the sequence of commands all over again, every time.

It would be helpful to expand this area in the app so kids could code Botzee to move all around a room, doing different commands.  Perhaps in a future version.

PLAY

This is a very entertaining AR game where Botzee goes through a path of different challenges. 

Each challenge is teaching kids how to code Botzee.  As an adult, I really enjoyed playing this game and found it better than other robot games at keeping one’s attention.

In the beginning, you map a boundary for your “playing field” virtually by adjusting a boundary line. 

I put one around the top of my table and placed Botzee in the middle of it.  Then you’re asked to use your phone/app to scan your Botzee.  This helps the app get its bearings.

Once the game begins, you see your Botzee through your phone along with some virtual plants and a tower. 

The tower has a sequence of commands that you are to copy on the coding rectangle.  You then play the commands to see if you got them right.  If you do, then Botzee follows them.

It’s a fun way to use Augmented Reality to interact with your robot while learning how to program it.

But what makes this app even more fun, that along with the challenges of using coding to solve them, sometimes, you are asked to build a device to help you solve the challenge. 

This is why you are given a bunch more blocks of all sizes so you can build such things.

Kids are also encouraged to build other characters in the challenges storyline by taking apart the Botzee they learned to build to build another robot. 

The idea here is to help kids see other ways a Botzee can be built.  Leaving it up to the kids’ imagination, once the challenges are all done.

Features:

• Kids can create and program their own Botzees using augmented reality, coding, and their own creativity
• The kit comes with 130 easy-to-grip blocks in varying rounded shapes
• Comes with 6 different pre-designed Botzees or kids can create their own Botzees
• The app makes it easy to build the pre-designed Botzees with step by step interactive 3D instructions
• The app includes 30 interactive augmented reality puzzles to teach kids sequencing, looping, and conditional coding

Pros:

• The blocks are easy to build with and are rounded, instead of sharp corners
• Botzees earned the National Parenting Center Seal of Approval and was a 2020 CES Innovation Awards honoree
• There are enough blocks to build a Botzee and even other characters or structures to add to kids’ play
• The AR challenges are a lot of fun and captivating
• Kids get to build additional characters, robots, and props during the challenges
• With 30 interactive puzzles, it takes a while before a child completes them, offering hours of entertainment
• The challenges along with their AR environment are fun and interesting for adults too
• Provides the art, engineering, and technology elements of STEAM

Cons:

•   The coding section is limited as a child can only code up to 5 commands

Botzee is available from Amazon for $99.99 with free shipping.

A Mom’s Perspective

I really enjoyed Botzees and trying the challenges in the app.  The challenges introduce kids to learning how to code Botzees one challenge at a time.  

The app is well thought out and engaging.  Kids (and adults) will enjoy using AR in their family room or table to solve puzzles while learning Botzees-focused code.

Later, kids can do their own coding after recognizing how to use the codes from challenges.

I really think the app should give kids the option to do multiple code segments, rather than just a small amount.

Kids could then code Botzees to go around the room, doing different actions like putting on lights, spinning, playing music, and more.

It would also be nice if kids could save certain programs to replay at another time.  This was a disappointment.

Nonetheless, Pai Technology did a great job creating the premise and app for Botzees. 

Botzees are a toy a child will enjoy and will be self-incentivized to keep playing until they complete all the challenges.

Then they can take apart their Botzee robot and make other robots.  If your kids are younger, try out the Botzee Junior Dinosaur kit.

* I was given a Botzee in exchange for my honest opinion.  All expressed thoughts are my own.