Gadgetory

with Lego Mindstorms and your computer you can build in program robots that do what you want hearing on TV in 1998 this is the commercial that sparked my interest in robotics and programming it's for the Lego Mindstorms RCX robotics invention kit which a kid could use to build and program almost any kind of robot they could imagine Lego Mindstorms has been an enormous source of learning fun and inspiration for millions of kids and adults and if you don't believe me just search for Mindstorms on youtube to be blown away by some of the incredible things that people have built and programmed using these kits and the LEGO Group has continued to update the Mindstorms platform over the years with our CX NXT and finally Eevee 3 the kit I'll be reviewing today I know I'm three years late to the party but this is still their flagship robotics kit and I wanted to see how it stacks up against new competitors like vex IQ that and Linus would only buy it if I made a video so here we go Corsairs ml fans feature magnetic levitation technology and custom engineered rotors to provide a high performance low noise experience learn more at the link in the video description opening up the box we see a bunch of disposable bags full of LEGO pieces and no storage tray the first generation of Mindstorms came with a storage tray but ever since then only the educational versions have had them which is a shame really I consider it essential to have something like this for organization how much would that have cost laïkó group anyway to complete your first mission all you need to do is follow the characteristically excellent paper instruction booklet which walks you through the first stage of building and running your first robot you can drive it around with the included IR remote and it's preloaded with a demo that autonomously knocks tires around on the included testing mat the paper instructions then prompt you to download the free Evie 3 programmer app which is very easy to install and get started with other companies take note kids and Terrans do not have the patience to wrestle with poorly designed software and the ev3 software itself is actually fantastic there's been a lot of development since generations 1 & 2 each of the 5 featured robots and the 12 additional robots come with instructions for building and programming this involves the placing and modifying of programming blocks onto the programing canvas you're introduced to motor control first then loops switches variables multitasking and functions which are called my blocks following along with these step-by-step programming instructions is easy and the complexity of both the robot and the programming increases from one mission to the next you are also given the option to load the finished programs for each mission I'm glad that they did this but it's a bit of a double-edged sword on the one hand it's good if you want to double check your own solution but on the other hand like answers at the bottom of a crossword it makes cheating easy potentially taking out a lot of the fun and learning again though it's clear that a ton of research and development has gone into the ev3 software when you modify variables the icons change to match when you add a sound or an on-screen image to your program you get to hear or see a preview on your computer which helps a lot if you need to debug a script and each mission comes with a short video that shows you exactly what your robot will do if programs successfully this process can feel a little slow sometimes but you're probably learning more than you think the method of programming is quite simplistic this is important to keep the barrier of entry low enough for kids but it also results in a lower learning ceiling fortunately there are several third-party options for programming the ev3 brick if you want more control and complexity there are a few things I did not like about the ev3 software worst of which was how it inexplicably crashed about five times during normal operation they might want to look into that so I'd give it a solid a - let's move on to the hardware I was not impressed in fact I was pretty disappointed the ev3 is in many ways a step backwards from the previous generation NXT 2.0 first of all the ev3 brain brick which requires six double-a batteries takes at least 20 seconds to turn off and even longer to turn on that's as long as my work computer and Linus built that turns out the ev3 brain is literally booting a complete Linux OS and this software bloat means that it needs more RAM and a better CPU than it otherwise would which just drives up the price now there are many features on the ev3 brain that I do like such as the SD card slot the Bluetooth and wireless connectivity and the RGB LED behind the buttons but the ev3 actually comes with fewer sensors than the NXT 2.0 it's got a color sensor just one touch sensor instead of two and the ultrasonic sensor is replaced by the infrared sensor that pulls double duty as distance sensor and as receiver for the beacon the infrared beacon or remote control has five buttons and a switch that can select one of four channels the problem here is that there are only eleven possible ways to use these buttons and the lack of joysticks means that there's no proportional control and with the standard control scheme if you want to control a third or fourth motor you'll have to switch to another channel but with only four total channels you'd better hope that there are no other Lego enthusiasts nearby with beacons of their own compared to radio control infra red is awful anyway with short-range and frequent disconnections the large Evie three motors however feature several welcome improvements with attachment holes in positions that offer more build flexibility they're even backwards compatible with NXT which is pretty cool Evie 3 also comes with a new medium motor it's weaker so you won't use it to power a drive shaft but its shape makes it better for attachments like arms and claws I just wish that there were two of these included for the price let's talk about the rest of the pieces now the most iconic Lego piece is probably the 2x4 studded brick this is classic Lego and it's easy and quick for kids to attach and detach while still ensuring a strong connection so it may surprise you to learn that all the LEGO pieces in the ev3 kit are studless they've been designed to be attached using pins and axles instead it's great in theory because it allows for a predictable eight millimeter three-dimensional grid system but here's the problem when they remove the studs they removed half the attachment points on a typical beam so studless beams cannot be stacked on top of each other without extensive additional support one solution would be a double or triple wide beam but the LEGO Group doesn't make any pieces like that so they've effectively removed functionality that we used to have and never bother to replace it there's actually a lot of LEGO Technic pieces that really should exist but don't I even 3d modeled a bunch of them and I sell them at cost on Shapeways where people are still willing to pay unreasonable amounts of money to get them despite all of that Lego Mindstorms is still great and it still plays an important role in getting kids interested in STEM fields I just don't see the same enthusiasm as I do from the Technic and power functions teams who continue to push the boundaries by releasing interesting and even insane sets like this one but Mindstorms has just stagnated and it's especially apparent when you look at the competition vex IQ came out several months before Lego Mindstorms ev3 and the electronic hardware is objectively better in almost every single way without compromising quality check out that video review over here so here's the conclusion people still ask me all the time if they should buy vex IQ or Mindstorms and I tell them if you're more interested in robotics and programming get vex IQ but if you're more interested in building and engineering and you already have League of Technic pieces Mindstorms or power functions is the better option ultimately though the best robotics kit would be some miraculous fusion of vex IQ inspired electronics and LEGO Technic pieces I certainly hope that the LEGO Group will step up their game for Mindstorms generation for I guess we'll just have to wait and see thanks a lot for watching everyone give the video a like or a dislike and get subscribed if you aren't already also you can buy some LTT merch or shop at amazon using our affiliate link and please let us know in the comments below what your Mindstorms experience has been like and have you tried the ev3 what did you think of it and if you're looking for something else to watch check out the aforementioned vex IQ review for one of the best robotics kits on the market or check out my mechanoid review for the absolute worst robotics kit on the market and I'll see you next time