Lego has unveiled a new Mindstorms-themed set - the first Mindstorms set in seven years - called theRobot Inventor 5-in-1.
It’s basically a Lego building system with robotic and coding elements, which Lego says helps develop STEM skills in children of all ages.
The upcoming kit has instructions for five robots called Blast, Charlie, Tricky, Gelo, and MVP. Lego said Blast is a stoic action hero master robot that fires or hammers its way through obstacles and grabs. Charlie is a helper bot that high fives, dances, drums, delivers gifts, and smiles. Tricky is a sporty bot that plays basketball, bowling, soccer, etc. Gelo is a four-legged robot that walks, avoids obstacles, and perform tricks.
And MVP is a Modular Vehicle Platform. “Create and code your own remote control and build the MVP into a buggy, a crane, a shooter turret, or even a brick-eating truck to pick up Lego bricks left by the other robots,” explained Lego.
You get 949 pieces altogether, including a colour sensor, distance sensor, four motors, and Lego’s own Bluetooth-enabled Intelligent Hub. It’s described as an “advanced yet simple-to-use device featuring six input/output ports for connecting a variety of sensors and motors”.
Lego’s free Mindstorms Robot Inventor app contains building and coding instructions for each of these robots. It supports code using aaa drag-and-drop programming language based on Scratch as well as Python. The app is available for Windows 10, macOS, iOS, and Android.
The Robot Inventor 5-in-1 set will cost $359.99 (€359.99 / £329.99) when it releases this autumn.
