Makeblock mBot2 Coding Robot
CyberPi controllerScratch and Python in mBlockWi-Fi and 20+ sensor options
Where to buy
Australian store · we earn a commissionIs it right for your child?
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Description
This is the one schools buy, and it’s a different class of machine to the block kits. The mBot2 runs on Makeblock’s CyberPi controller, a dual-core board with Wi-Fi built in, and it takes Python as well as block coding. If a child has outgrown drag-and-drop and wants to write something that actually looks like code, this is where they go next.
- CyberPi controller: Xtensa 32-bit LX6 dual-core at 240 MHz, with 8MB of storage and 8MB of PSRAM. Makeblock’s figures.
- Block coding and Python in mBlock: Start in blocks, switch to Python in the same software when they’re ready. The board also takes Arduino IDE for C and C++.
- Sensors on board: Light sensor, microphone, gyroscope and accelerometer built into CyberPi, plus an ultrasonic sensor and a quad RGB sensor on the robot.
- Wi-Fi and Bluetooth: It connects to a network, which is what makes the internet-of-things projects possible rather than theoretical.
- 2500mAh battery: Makeblock quote about five hours of play from a one-hour charge. Top speed 20cm/s.
- Aluminium alloy chassis, 820g: 90 x 180 x 130mm. It’s built to survive a classroom.
Worth knowing before you buy: this is the most expensive thing on the page and it’s aimed at a child who’s genuinely interested, not one who might be. It also expects a computer running mBlock, not just a tablet. For a child who wants a robot to play with, the Codey Rocky costs less and is more immediately fun. Buy the mBot2 when coding is the point and the robot is the excuse.