Blue Acrylic Mecanum Robot Car Kit Arduino/Raspberry Pi

It's been a while since I did an Arduino project so when I saw this kit I bought it as a way of catching up with the latest in Arduino and to give myself something to build on. This kit met all of these goals.

First I want to say that I completed lesson 1 which will get you to running an autonomous program that moves the car in different directions. After that there are 5 more lessons to expand on using materials that were left in the kit or assembled in the first lesson but never connected, like a Bluetooth Module, Ultrasonic Sensor & Holder, Servo Motor, 3-Points Line Tracking Modules and Obstacle Sensors.
I agree with the step-wise approach they are using here. Like many Chinese products the instructions are a bit confusing. There is a page you are directed to for lesson 1. On that page you are directed to download a file, which is the Arduino code for the lesson, and the manual that covers all lessons. That was pretty straightforward but to build for lesson 1 I had to keep going back and forth between the manual and the video as each, by itself, did not provide the full instruction. This was a bit of a hassle and at one point I had to go backwards a few steps once I realized I missed something.

If you have never built a kit like this you may have to do some google searches to teach you some skills they assume you already have. Other than that I really enjoyed finishing lesson 1 and then seeing the car go through its routine when I turned it on. The project got me back into connecting to the latest Arduino IDE, loading a program and running it. You also learn some basics of board connections, wiring and the organizational techniques you need to hone to manage a lot of wires on a small board. I cannot wait to finish the other lessons. If I run into any snags I will update this review.

I highly recommend getting this robot car if you are just beginning in Arduino and want to grow with your model.

This 5-in-one kit is truly remarkable, but experienced DIY builders will miss many of the joys of building your own cars. This kit is a little on the expensive side until you consider that it provides the sensors and code for obstacle avoidance, line tracking, object following, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi controls - 5 types of cars in one kit. However, experienced DIYers will miss the joy of patching the car’s platforms because all the drilled holes fit perfectly. They’ll also miss the pleasure of searching for the right screws because all the hardware is included and in well marked bags - even a few spares to rob you of the joy of finding dropped parts. The wiring was a little hairy until I realized that scrolling down the instruction PDF clearly shows all the connections in great detail. The included code is elegant (to a non-programmer) - no fancy pointer math but it’s clear and works. Not only are the tools and batteries included, but the darn thing includes a battery charger. I won’t show up as a verified purchase because this was a gift from my wish list. After experiencing all the pleasures mentioned above I wanted to see how the pros designed a car. I’ve been very impressed by their design and the quality of this system. So now I’ll go back to my old systems to fix my code, patch a few holes, and look for all the screws I’ve dropped.

This has been great for an electronics-loving dad to work on with my daughter. She needs help with it but has done several parts of the assembly herself. It's great that the projects have such good instructions that I can just tell her to look at a section and she can find the parts and follow it. These are digital instructions so I'd prefer to have hard copies as things disappear on the internet. If nothing else just her reaction when we toss some code on there and it starts doing something tells me that it's a good project. Everything has fit together as expected and provided great opportunities to talk about what is happening. I like that it uses an Arduino as the brain as it's sort of a standard for beginning electronics. Wiring the different layers was something I had to take over on and took quite a few references back to the instructions to make sure I had it right so there may be opportunity to improve them there. Using the standard 18650 batteries is great as you can recharge them and they last a while. I'm very happy with the product.

This is a really thoughtful gift on several levels. First, the completed robotic car is undeniably cute...the little guy appealed to everyone, regardless of sex or age. Second, ANYTHING that promotes an interest in science, especially in this day and age, should be encouraged. Third, it makes a nice father/son or big brother/little brother project (obviously this is entirely suitable for females, as well.). While at first blush it might appear to be just another RC car, and it can function like one, it is far more than that. It is not overly complicated to assemble, but some assistance might be helpful along with an explanation of the function of some of the various components....an ideal family project. Finally, the things the completed robotic car can do are pretty amazing, especially the sideways and diagonal movements with the Mecanum wheels.

This is a really nice gift for the budding young scientist or engineer in the family. It was an instant hit and just the look of accomplishment as the car was being demonstrated for the family was priceless.

Ordered for my 11 year old son who is very much into stuff like this, stem, etc- he blasted thru the builds quickly and had a very easy time doing so. Price is on point