Q-dino Coding Robot Kit

In spring 2019 I ran a small robot club using the robobloq ecosystem. I liked that the robot frames are metal, had lots of features built into the control box, such as lights, a buzzer-speaker and a button and also it was much less expensive than more popular children’s robot learning kits. It was a positive experience and I recommend this and other Robobloq ecosystem products. I have purchased several Q-dino, Q-scout and Qoopers kits for this robot club. The servo actuator of the Q-dino is unique to this model and very versatile. The Line following sensor is not included with the Q-dino or the more expensive Qoopers kit so I think that buyers should get one or two of them separately, along with other sensors. The motor plugs on these models are uncharisitally fragile and difficult to repair, so they need to be treated gingerly.The club I had meet 6 times with a line-following competition at the end, I created a curriculum based on my experience as a maker, with each lesson building on the last. With kids being used to on-demand fast-paced entertainment it’s a challenge to slow down and think, especially when something does not work the first time, so knowledge of how to keep kids engaged helps. we all had windows-10 PCs to modify the programs and we learned about inputs like the ultrasonic sensor, line following sensor, the button and some of the bevy of special sensors I bought from their webstore, including a color sensor. Then we learned about outputs, like the led lights, the extra MP3 chip and the motors. Lastly, we spent two sessions debugging in preparation for a line following contest, with the scoring based on how many times the competitors had to touch the robot to correct something. There has to be a winner.The software is based on the SCRATCH icon-based programing. this method is very easy for kids as young as 7 Y/O to use, so it’s very approachable. Also, the more advanced features keep older kids engaged. It can be programed to have more functions than I expected with the ability to program in music notes and beat length which is all that is needed to make familiar songs, which is fun for the music types.The great things about these robot kits are the durable metal pieces that are able to be reconfigured. They are more like an erector set but with a .330” bolt spacing, which is slightly off the .5” bolt spacing of the old erector set I have, but still the pieces can line up every third hole or so.Connection to the PC using the USB cable is a learning experience, we always plugged the cord into the same USB port on the computer so that it would not change the port number. This is a familiar scenario to people used to the Arduino microcontroller, which the Q-dino controller is based on. Also, we struggled with the Bluetooth app to control the robot, the app is where the directions are to build the robot. We also struggled with the drive motor power levels, the motor speed is related to the battery charge level and in a line-following competition the robot behaves different on a full or low battery because of this. However, challenges like this make the students think around that problem and find clever solutions, like pulsing the motor at 100% power instead of running it continuously at say 50% power. A lithium battery is available, and without that we went through lots of AA’s.Overall, the Q-dino or other Robobloq kits represent a great value, perfect for a small group to make something real, while learning new things. The extra sensors available really expand what the machine can do. The Q-dino can really benefit from the line following sensor so make sure to budget to get this.

Hello,My eight-year-old son was super excited to get this robot. The robot is really well built; made of metal and a durable plastic cover for the controller. We found it easy to build, the directions were self-explanatory, and it was fun building. We both have had a great time coding with it and look forward to doing more of it! He has even used it to carry out tasks like grabbing items from under the couch :-)Looking forward to having more fun with it!!!!

I ordered this for my 9yo. We already have the Qoopers kit, and we love it. The build qualityis top quality as usual. It also looks very cool, vibrant color and very Dino like!It was great value.We found it easy to build and are looking forward now to doing some interesting projects...

If you are already an arduino or C coder, and and need a kit to experiment, then this kit actually has very good hardware. But if you are looking to introduce a child to arduino, or teach Python coding, and want something that works out of the box, this one does not do what it is supposed to do. Uploading code to the board with BT does not work. The block coding software is so clunky that it is like a ver 0.0 alpha. You cannot upload Python code to the robot, contrary to what the description implies. Again, if all you are going for is just usb ardino hardware, this kit is good, but that's not how they present it in the description

The media could not be loaded.  I bought this for my son who love dinosaurs and Battle Bots. Honestly, I think I expected this to be a bit gimmicky and just have the shape of a dino but the eyes, functional mouth and roar made this pretty awesome. All the body pieces are solid and there are plenty of screws and bolts. It was nice that tools are included - the mini "socket" tool was particularly helpful. In the dino build there are a few tight spots that require some maneuvering to get the bolt or nut lined up but not bad. We had a small glitch where my phone didn't want to recognize the bot at first but after a bit of time we tried again and that issue went away. It appears to have similar hardware and brains as their other bots and so it seems like it will be easy to do some interchanging. See our video for more information.

This is very cool toy for family project. It come with screw, typically the kids can't assemble it alone. So the parents have to involve in. I spent around two hour with my kids to put everything together and really enjoy the time we work together.It is nice toy and programming interface super friendly. Both my son learn lots of programming skills by play with this robot kits. They really have fun and enjoy it.

The quality of all the components is very high and the instructions are clear. Good project for young kids working together with an adult. The control interface is easy for young kids to use, and has some basic visual coding for slightly older kids.

Buy this for my little one, he loves it very much. My little one is a dinosaur fan, so you can imagine how exciting he is. Now he can use the App to play it-control its running route, change the eye colors and play music when it is running. Sometimes when I am working, he let it run to me and turn several rounds in front of me, then let the dinosaur open its mouth “ mommy, I am the little dinosaur!” Lots of fun for him. Hope he can start coding use this soon