My kids are a bit on the young side but my husband really enjoyed the littleBits Base Kit ($99) that came in the mail for us to review and I know he’ll be using it with the kids as they get a bit older. This kit is an electronics construction kit that allows you to easily connect pieces without soldering, programming or wiring and yet create things that spin, light up and make sounds.
The Base Kit includes:
- a 9V battery
- a re-usable case
- the motorMate for easy attachment of wheels, cardboard and other materials to the DC motor.
- a handy Project Booklet, with step-by-step instructions for 8 great projects like the Art Bot and Three Wheeler.
We found it easy to initially pull out the pieces and quickly make things light and spin. I love some of the projects of my fellow bloggers who took the construction to the next level like the light controlled car built by my friend Candace and her sons or Valerie who made her own flashlight – how cool is that?
littleBits come in Base, Premium and Deluxe Kits which add increasingly more circuitry to build bigger and more complex projects. Bits intuitively snap together with magnets making the projects foolproof! To simplify the process, bits are color-coded into four categories (blue/power, pink/input, green/output and orange/wires).
We found it very easy to put a simple line of bits together and make things happen but I know there is soooo much more here and we certainly have plans to keep working with the kit over the coming holidays — when we have a bit of a break from the craziness of the season.
Use the following coupon code to get started on your own unique project with littleBits:
MAMANISTA COUPON CODE: 10% off any Exploration Kit with code mama10 (expires on 12/31/13)
Head over to littleBits.com to do some last minute Christmas shopping and check out the projects tab for some really cool ideas.
To see more clever ideas, follow littleBits on Facebook and Twitter.
(Disclosure: I received a Base Kit for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)
