The 10 Best Robots For Kids

Kids who want a robot that reacts to them will find plenty in Wonder Workshop Dash. It rolls around the house, hears which way a voice comes from and senses walls in front and behind. Coding starts with drag-and-drop blocks in free tablet apps and can move on to typed JavaScript as a child grows. A charge lasts about five hours of play. It needs a phone or tablet to do much, and one robot costs a lot.

Makeblock mBot arrives as a kit, so a child builds the robot before coding it, which is half the fun for ages eight and up. The metal frame goes together in an evening, and its sensors dodge walls and follow a black line. Kids start with drag-and-drop blocks on a computer or tablet, then move on to the typed code hobby electronics use. It runs on AA batteries bought separately, and the wireless link can be fussy to pair.

On a small budget, Sphero Mini packs a lot into a ball the size of a ping-pong ball. Kids steer it with a phone, play games by tilting the screen, and code it in a free app that starts with drawing a path on the screen and moves up to blocks and typed code. Little pins and cones come along for bowling and obstacle courses. Play time is short, about 45 minutes, and the shell opens to small parts.

Classrooms like Ozobot Evo because it works two ways. Kids draw lines and color patterns on paper with markers, and the tiny robot reads and obeys them with no screen involved. Older kids can switch to a block coding website with five levels that ends in typed Python. The kit adds a zip case and access to hundreds of free lessons. The catch is the price, which is steep for a robot that fits in a child's palm.

Parents who want coding without a screen should look at the Learning Resources Botley 2.0 set. Kids press arrow buttons on a remote to plan a route, then watch the robot follow it across the floor tiles, around cones and through gates. Picture cards show each step, so a five-year-old can lay out a plan before pressing go. Its weak spot is reliability: it can stop responding partway through a coded run.

Preschoolers get a gentle first taste of coding from the Learning Resources Code & Go Robot Mouse. Children press colored arrows on the mouse's back to set a path, then watch it scurry along with lights and squeaks. Cards help them plan each move, and an activity guide suggests challenges for when the basics click. It runs on AAA batteries you buy separately, its turns can drift off course, and some units quit early.

Fans of building bricks can turn a pile of pieces into a tracked robot or one of several small vehicles with the Apitor Robot J kit. Pieces snap together without tools, and a free tablet app walks through each build step by step. Kids then drive their creation or code it with picture blocks that teach loops and variables. It takes AA batteries that aren't included, and the hundreds of pieces need a careful sort.

The Teach Tech Mech-5 shows that coding is just a list of instructions, with no app or screen involved. Kids build the robot from flat plastic sheets, then snap pegs onto a big wheel to program it to walk, kick a ball, lift, throw or draw. It suits patient builders ten and up. Every piece has to be snapped out of its frame and fitted with care, and some parts feel flimsy once assembled.

Younger kids who want a robot pal more than a coding lesson tend to enjoy the KingsDragon RC Robot. It glides around, dances, sings and follows a wave of the hand, and the remote can record up to 50 moves to play back as a routine. The battery charges from any USB port. It's a toy rather than a teaching tool, and its battery can stop holding a charge within a couple of months.

As a big birthday gift, the Ruko 1088 makes an entrance: it stands well over a foot tall, with a light-up face and moving arms. Kids run it from a remote, a phone app or spoken commands, and they can string together dance moves and songs. A charge gives about 100 minutes of play. Only the cable in the box will charge it, and some units stop working early.