My fiancée has always been one to spoil me, but this Christmas she went above and beyond - surprising me with the Sphero BB-9E App-Enabled Droid and a Force Band. Last year, I received the
Sphero BB-8 from my parents for my 30th birthday, and was immediately blown away by just how much he could do. The same is true of 9E. Despite the superficial similarities in appearance, this is no mere repaint. Featuring glowing lights in her head (yes, my fiancée and I have decided this BB will be female), 9E also possesses a new personality, negotiating her surroundings in a completely different way to her older brother.
A few new pieces of internal tech also allow her to do things her sibling can't. For one, internal vibration sensors allow her to be programmed to 'react' to passing humans while she's charging on her base. That particular feature hasn't worked too well for me yet - but that may be due to me placing her in a sub-optimal charging location. Alternatively, you can program her to spontaneously initiate conversations with other Sphero droids when she's not being operated by a user. This feature is particularly fun, as the droids carry out their interactions completely in character. Place 9E next to her arch-nemesis BB-8, and you'll find the two droids begin squabbling on awakening - with BB-8 usually running for cover somewhere in the corner of the room.
While Sphero began with an app that was exclusively for the operation of BB-8, they've now released a generic '
Droids' app that allows you to run all of your app-enabled droids from the same program. This app is also packed with new features - including an option to have your droids watch (and react to) the Star Wars movies alongside you. There's also now the ability to engage more than one droid in patrol mode simultaneously.
In addition to the usual charging base, 9E also comes with the new 'Droid Trainer' - unlocking even more options within the app. This collapsible base doesn't feature any electronics, but is probably better thought of as a something like a 'treadmill' for your droids. Featuring a low-friction concave hollow, the Force Trainer allows the BBs to spin and move on the spot. Sphero have hinted that they have a lot of upcoming features that will utilise this device, but for now it's main use is in the 'augmented reality' (AR) section of the
Droids app. Entering this mode allows you to use your touchscreen device to 'drive' around ships from the Star Wars universe, collecting items as you go. At the same time, your droid will move accordingly. Turn left, and your BB will roll left in its Droid Trainer cradle. Come to a stop, and your BB will come to an abrupt halt too. It's a fun little gimic, but not much more than that. It's also questionable whether it can be counted as genuine 'AR' as your BB doesn't actually appear on screen when you point your device at her. That being said, the base is covered in AR arma patterns, building in the functionality for the base to - at some point in the future - be used for a genuine AR experience. This might be a tantalising hint at what Sphero have in mind for future updates.
Gimmicks aside, the Droid Trainer is most useful in its simplest configuration - the aforementioned 'treadmill'. The Trainer finally gives us the opportunity to have an operational and interactive droid setting next to us on our desk without fear of it running off the table and (quite literally) losing its head. It's also a great way to practice emotes and movements when you're limited for space.
As an added bonus, my fiancée also gave me the Sphero Force Band. This has been out for a while now - originally created to work as a sort of 'remote control' for BB-8, but now compatible with all Sphero droids. I'd been somewhat dubious of this item, questioning how functional it'd truly be. It turns out my concerns were for nothing, however. I've had some bad experiences with kinetic-based devices (see my recent write-up on the truly awful
Force Link bracelet), but the Sphero Force Band works beautifully. Once the Force Band is on and synced, a simple 'force push' will send your droid rolling away from you, and a 'force pull' will bring her back. Raising and lowering your arm modifies her speed, and moving your arm to the left or right will roll her in that direction. Heck, she'll even look where you point! It's all incredibly intuitive, and after a couple of laps around the room you'll find yourself driving your droid without a second thought. Best of all, the Force Band runs completely independently of the
Droids app, so there's no need to keep your portable device on when using this function.
Surprisingly, this isn't all the Force Band has to offer. As well as operating your droid, the Force Band also comes with a standalone app that contains a raft of other features. For one, there's a virtual reality 'training' mission during which you use your Force Band to assist a (digital) BB-8 in a number of tasks. Most fun, however, is the 'Force Awareness' mode. Once entered, this mode will quietly tick away in the background until - at some point - it detects a holocron in your vicinity. The band will then vibrate in a sort of 'hot and cold' fashion as you move around the room attempting to find the holocron. Once found, your holocrons will appear in the app - containing data on some character, weapon, or other element from the sequel trilogy (very much like a set of digital trading cards). You can keep track of how many holocrons you've collected, and how many you have left to find. The holocrons also vary in rarity, adding some excitement to the hunt.
A select number of the weapons and vehicle holocrons can be added to your 'Armory' - another feature of the Force Band app. Once this mode is entered, your Force Band essentially becomes a kinetic soundboard, making different noises depending on what you have 'equipped'. Equip a pistol and make a point-and-shoot motion with your hand, and you'll be rewarded with a blaster sound. Equip a vehicle and swoop your hand as though it's flying, and you'll hear realistic engine noises. The playability options are endless - especially for kids (and, ahem, some adults) who still love to run around the house with a starfighter in their hand.
Technological wizardry aside, the physical construction of the Force Band is also superb. There's real quality here - from the fine in-universe detailing, to the authentic weathering, to the enormously satisfying 'click' of the magnetic clasp. Heck, it looks nice enough to even double as a straight-up costuming accessory.
I'm absolutely rapt with BB-9E - and the additions of the Droid Trainer and Force Band also open up a whole battery of new play features for both her and BB-8. I've no doubt Sphero will continue to add new features for this duo too, and I'll be sure to report on them here when they do!
