Pros: Educational, reasonable pricing, provides skills, lots of creative play
Cons: Several small parts, not for the impatience
The Bottom Line: Solid learning kit, teaches job skills, robotics, aids with hand and eye coordination. Helps with learning to follow instructions. Provides hours of enjoyment through assemblely and play.
Robotics are a wonderful and practical invention even if they are designed mostly for repetitive task. But as technology shrinks down in size of components robotics will become ever more useful in the future. The OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge is an excellent opportunity to spark any creative mind of any age above eight years.
I'm currently working on a project and elected to animate features for interest but add function too. I was one of those children growing up that enjoyed taking things apart to learn and understand how and why they functioned as the device did. My first impression of the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge was to purchase preassembled and incorporate it into my project. But I opted to understand the gearing mechanism and elected the kit version which is available retail. I think this is why so many are disappointed with their purchase because they believe assemble has been completed for them. Generally you need to buy the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge from a third party to acquire one prefabricated.
Now that I have mine which I assembled last night with the optional USB interface kit I will share the positives and negatives of the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge.
NOT MECHANICALLY INCLINE?
There is much more to the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge than most people realize. Yes it can be an educational tool and training in assembly of parts. The device offers a very basic understanding of gear construction and robotic movement. There are a considerable number of parts that include an instruction manual with Lego style 1,2,3, pictorials. Assembly is rather straight forward, time and patience will bring you much success and enjoyment.
The OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge is not for you if you like rushing through projects or task of any nature. If you are short on patience I strongly recommend you buy the Robot Arm Edge preassembled. They are numerous small parts so not a good ideal for small children. Children eight and above with some supervision can bring adult and child closer together.
THE ROBOT ARM EDGE BOX
Here is where most have realized their disappointment. The OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge arrives and the purchaser sees that the box is flat (about 3" H x 13" D x 20" W sorry I did not measure just a visual calculation of dimensions). The box is light around a few pounds and it shakes with a touch of rattle. Most retailers don't bother to list that this is indeed a kit requiring assembly. However the price point for this type of item should be a clear indication that fabrication will be up to you. Otherwise you would be spending $150 to $200 for the arm instead of $50 -$100.
Luckily I knew what I was purchasing. The OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge box was sealed with a clear round sticker seen on most products. I broke the seal and there laid in the box interior all the parts. Most of the chassis parts still attached to their production bars as seen with model car kits. The electronics and motors were securely wrapped in bubble wrap. Some hardware like gears, screws, nuts and washers were in sealed plastic bags and of zip-lock style.
The large manual provided parts identification to identify all supplies were present.
Though OWI did a nice job of packaging and identifying the parts there is room for improvement that would aid people creating a more enjoyable assembly experience. This is especially true with the number of different screws required and included, screws are indentified throughout the manual and in the front of the manual is a page dedicated to labeling and visionalzing a screw. Fact-of-the-matter a screw is a screw to me. If it fits it works. Some screws are very distinctive but the majority of them are very much akin. It would have been nice for the screws to be bag and labeled individually in groups or blistered packed with their corresponding numbers.
THE ASSEMBELY
How much time is need to assemble the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge is regulated on a number of factors like, age, experience putting things together, ability to read and follow instructions, and patience.
The Robot Arm instructions guide you through the assemblely in a modular fashion. Therefore you can dedicate time to your comfort level. Several of the pieces are color coded and the instructions makes several references to color and item during the procedure.
You will need a few tools to get your project under way. A clear surface area that's large enough to accommodate the supplies, tools with room to work. If you have intentions of completing your assemblely over a period of time you should have a space where your project will not be disturbed. You don't want any parts to come up missing either.
I wasn't sure of how much time I would be dedicating to my OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge so I keep the parts attached as they came and only snipped off the parts I would be using at the moment.
When snipping the plastic parts from the production bars sometimes a small nib is left behind. I attempt to cut as close as possible but still these nibs exist. For a finished product take a new emery board and lightly sand it away.
When you stack gears always check, be sure they move freely without any interference. Ensure that you have sandwiched the gears into their correct nesting. Continually checking along the way will ensure a completed project you will be proud of — that will function in the end as you expect.
I had such an enjoyable time with the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge kit that I finished the complete assemblely in under four hours in one sitting. The small parts took me the longest because my hands shake when I perform delicate task.
THE FINISHED PROJECT
When you have completed the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge assemblely it will be 15" in height with the arm completely extended in a vertical direction, the base a little over nine inches long and three and a half wide. The arm has very good rotation, nice articulation, and reasonablely smooth movement given the price range. You are limited to lifting three ounces so it won't be a workhorse but a treasure to entertain and delight.
When you purchase the kit it includes a wired controller that you will need to assemble and install as well. Since I opted to purchase the USB interface I was able to bypass the wired controller. With the supplied wired controller you or your child will be able to do a number of things through manual controls. But the USB interface which is optional permits you to program the arm via your computer with a very easy to use program. Programs you create can be saved for later use. Programming the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge on your computer provides smoother articulated movements vary similar to the industrial arms you many have seen on television.
Night play is possible with the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge now with the added LED. (A thought instead of one of those USB LED lamps to illuminate your keyboard. What could be cooler than a robotic arm swinging over to light the way.)
The arm requires four "D" batteries NOT INCLUDED. I would have liked to seen a removable battery door to change out with fresh but unfortunately you must remove three screws (YES 3) to gain access to the battery compartment. Motors are hungry monsters and there are five of them so image my surprise when I receive approximately and hour of play from used batteries laying around. After the batteries rested overnight I'm still running pretty solid but I'm starting to notice a loss in performance with articulation movements. Of course this will be cured once a fresh set of batteries are in place. I may even opt to modify so it can run off ac.
YES I DO
Any one that enjoys working with their hands, learning, and loves to play should get the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge for themselves or their child of reasonable age. It teaches on a myriad of levels, increases self confidence, and provides a wealth of accomplishment. In the hands of a genuinely creative mind the opportunities are limitless.
Yes I DO recommend the OWI-535 Robotic Arm Edge for most people whom have a willingness to forge on.
Thank you for reading my review I sincerely hope that you have enjoyed it and found the review useful. Comments are always welcome and responded too based on what's happening here at the time. As long as time permits a response will be given.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 48.00 Type of Toy: Model Kits
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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