Review: WowWee Roborover

Written on Oct 23, 2009 by RuthJS and filed under News, Reviews, WowWee

WowWee’s line of automated toys just got bigger with the addition of Roborover, a happy-go-lucky robot who plays games, lights up, and interacts on a basic level with it’s user. While WowWee calls it “a fusion of technology and personality,” our testers called it just plain “fun!”

Out of the Box

First things first, Roborover’s bright yellow color, “human-like” styling, big eyes and broad smile attract children of all ages (I particularly like the baseball cap).  The carry handle and the treads add to the functionality and the look. Add in the promise of interactivity and the lure of a remote control, and our testers were sucked in instantly.

While it is possible to begin playing with Roborover and figure out many of its functions on the fly, I strongly recommend reading the manual first where you’ll learn about important things like volume control (a very important feature in my world) and the toy’s limitations. Plus, then you’ll be able to sooth frustration when your child comes to you and says, “it won’t move!” and you discover it’s in Lookout Mode (Roborover isn’t designed to drive when it’s in Lookout Mode, a tidbit included in the manual but not necessarily intuitive to the 6+ crowd).

After feeding Roborover the requisite four C batteries and the remote three AAA’s, press the on/off button and you will be greeted by a VERY chipper bot who asks to go on an adventure with you and starts exploring his environs.  As he moves, Roborover gives a running commentary that is more-or-less connected to what he is experiencing.  My testers thought it was really fun that the bot was talking to them.  Personally, I found it to be annoying idle prattle (typical mom). But, I guess this is why there’s a volume control. And it’s worth noting that my 7-year-old LOVES everything Roborover says, regardless of how pertinent it is. I must admit, however, that I did think it was funny that while most of the time the bot spoke like a young American boy, some of the phrases were uttered with an Aussie accent.

Testing Roborover’s Features

After a brief overview, I pretty much let the testers take Roborover for a spin, assisting if they got stuck or if they asked questions. The kids had a blast!  The adults tried to treat the bot like a sophisticated, indestructible machine (more on that later). Anyway, here’s what I saw:

The tread-based wheels allow Roborover a fair range of motion and keep him pretty stable, even on somewhat uneven surfaces (like moving from an area rug to a wood floor).  That said, he slowed significantly when we used him on carpet vs. hardwood floors.  And, the treads did tend to pick up dust, carpet fiber, and pet hair.  Fortunately, they slip off easily and can be cleaned whenever necessary.

Roborover detects obstacles directly in front of or behind him . . . usually.  The obstacle sensors were designed to detect obstacles 8-12 inches directly in front of and behind Roborover.  Most of the time the sensors guided the bot away from obstacles, but sometimes we found that he got into a tight space and couldn’t get out on his own.  It seems that multiple obstacles (as might be found in a child’s playroom) can cause confusion and delay. But, you can turn this feature off and play on, even with block towers, Lego structures and toy boxes in the way.

With such a sturdy-looking toy, it was tempting for our testers to challenge the robot with obstacle courses and crashes. However, the manual clearly cautions users against rough play saying, “be careful that the obstacles do not unbalance him, or he might fall to one side” and “be sure not to damage Roborover in trying to [drive over small obstacles].”  I was all set to disregard the manual and let my testers push Roborover to his limits and see what he was capable of, even it some damage occurred.  However, the bot does not have the power necessary to damage himself by crashing into block towers with any kind of speed.

On that note, I really wanted to run Roborover up a ramp and see what he could take.  I decided to start small and try him up the side of a one inch binder.  Well, he didn’t make it.  He went partway up the binder and stopped.  I had to back him down to keep playing.  So, again, despite my best efforts, his limited power and third “tripod” wheel saved him.

The remote control is easy to use, even for small hands. The buttons are clearly labeled and, well, it’s a remote control.  Now, the remote does connect to Roborover using infrared, so the remote must always be pointing toward the bot in order to transfer commands. Additionally, a TV remote, gaming console or halogen light bulb can disrupt the signal and lead to Roborover doing his own thing instead of responding to my commands. My recommendation is to use this feature in an electronics-free zone and expect about the same level of responsiveness as you would from any six, seven, or eight-year-old.

There are five different play modes including:

• Demo- Roborover shows off what he can do with three routines that include speaking, moving forward, back, left and right, turning his head and illuminating his eyes and mouth (Note: the arms are poseable but not able to be moved electronically).
• Explore - Roborover will cruise around his environment and chat when he’s in “Explore Mode.” Pressing buttons don’t affect his movements unless you change the mode.  One thing to note: if, while he’s exploring, Roborover hits an obstacle that he doesn’t detect, he will change modes and he sometimes gets confused. This didn’t bother the younger testers much, but the over 30 crowd were annoyed by this and tried to reason through it (a completely futile exercise, I mean really, it’s a toy!).
• Game – WowWee has programmed two games into Roborover: the Tomb game and the Swamp game.  Both are memory games in which the bot will drive in a pattern and then ask the controller to repeat the sequence. The Tomb game tends to have fewer moves for a beginner player.  The Swamp game has more moves to repeat and a time limit, so it requires a bit more skill.  Additionally, the Swamp game requires a fair amount of open space to run since obstacles don’t change the pattern he moves in, but they make it more difficult for the controller to repeat the pattern accurately.
• Lookout -in this mode, Roborover will scan his immediate area and then wait.  If he detects motion or a new obstacle, he will sound an alarm, much to the delight of our testers.  Roborover will stand guard for up to 10 minutes, after which time he becomes bored and asks to play.  If you don’t play with him, he’ll go into standby mode.
• Seek – I think seeking is the coolest thing that Roborover does.  Basically, you put the robot somewhere, move a bit away, hold down the “Seek” button and wait for him to find you.  Unfortunately, because he uses infrared, Roborover can be confused by another IR signal or reflections of an IR signal and think he’s found you when he hasn’t. Also, if you move the remote so that it is not pointing directly at the bot, the connection may be broken, and he will think he has found you, even if he’s 5 feet from you and facing another direction.
• Standby – if you do not interact with him for two minutes, Roborover will try to get your attention by repeating one of his phrases. To resume, simply press any button on the remote. If you ignore his call to play, Roborover will go to sleep, much like a puppy.
• Sleep – after 12 minutes of inactivity, Roborover will nap. To wake him, press the bumper or toggle the on/off switch twice and he’ll be ready for action. Fortunately, he wakes up happy and ready to play, even if his nap has been cut short.  I can not say the same for me.

And, finally, what you’ve all been waiting for, here’s a video of Roborover in action:

Overall

Positives:

• Roborover is really cute and easy to use, even for a six-year-old.
• Is interactions thrilled the kids in my test group, and they loved all of his silly phrases (my son’s personal favorite is, “you’ve created an avalanche of rubble!”).
• The headlight is a big plus, especially when exploring dark places.
• He genuinely delighted the children who played with him. And, really, isn’t that what it’s all about?

Negatives:

• Several of the commands are not intuitive, so you really have to read the instructions before  you do too much.  For example, to change the volume, you have to toggle the “Stop” button, and to start Lookout Mode, you have to press the “Lookout” button, wait for the bot to talk and then press the “Lookout” button a second time to activate the feature.  I found myself referring to the manual quite a bit when I started playing with the bot before I introduced him to my testers.  Luckily, the instructions are clear and well organized.
• He does not work well on carpet with any pile.
• Roborover seems to power through batteries pretty quickly. We got several hours out of him, but as the batteries wore down, he became less responsive to the remote control commands. In any case, I would have extra batteries on hand to avoid any tears from young users. Also, the manual specifies alkaline batteries, and to maximize playing time, I’d follow WowWee’s recommendation.
• He is slow-moving.  Looking at Roborover, I really wanted him to be like an RC race car, cruising around the house, knocking down towers, bumping into things and zooming off, but he really isn’t.  I guess the upside is that it slowed my 70-mile/hour son to a walk while he was playing with Roborover. That and the speed didn’t seem to bother any of my young testers one bit. The more “mature” testers, however, were the ones who wanted to see more action and destruction and hear fewer of the chatty comments. I guess that explains why WowWee designates the bot for single-digit users and not those pushing middle age . . . something to think about.
• He does not have longevity. Unless WowWee comes up with some add-on games, I can see a child getting bored with the limited repertoire of Roborover. Personally, I want more long-term entertaining power from a $79.99 MSRP toy.

Editor’s Rating –  3.5 out of 5 stars.

Have a comment about this article? Leave a comment in the KidsTechReview.com forums.