Holiday Gift Guide: Ozobot Combines Digital and Physical Play Plus GIVEAWAY 12/10

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It’s that time of year, everyone! The Holiday shopping season is upon us! (At least it is if you’re like me and get an early start to avoid the mad rush of frazzled, last-minute shoppers in December!) 

For the 2014 Holiday season, I will be featuring tons of great gift ideas for babies, kids, men, women, pets, and even for the person who has everything. We all have some of those on our gift lists, don’t we? There will even be loads and loads of chances to win many of the gifts I am featuring. How cool is that?! You can check out my 2014 Holiday Gift Guide at any time from now till Christmas. Make sure to check often, as it will be growing by the day! 

Today, I want to tell you about my daughter, Sophie. She will be 5 on New Year’s Eve, but she has the smarts of a child considerably older. She reads chapter books with no problems at all, and she can even write pretty well. (We’re practicing this daily!) 

My Sophie is definitely a Daddy’s Girl. She may look more like me, but her personality is all Dan. She loves pink and purple and is quite girly in some respects, but in all reality, she is a “geek in training.” In fact, if you ask Sophie if she’s a princess, she will matter-of-factly reply, “No. I’m a GAMER GIRL.” and then roll her eyes at you for asking such a ridiculous question. Yep, I am going to have my hands full with this one when she’s a teen! 

Since Sophie loves all things tech and gaming, I was truly excited when I learned about the Ozobot. This is a tiny, oddly cute, robotic game piece. It is often referred to as the game piece with a brain. (No, really….This little guy is one smart cookie!) 

This toy is geared towards those ages 13+, and Sophie is quite a bit younger. This is not a deterrent in our home, though. For once, there’s a toy that both my preschooler and my high school kid can enjoy together. Kyle is almost 15, and he definitely has an appreciation for all things science. Talk about a great way to encourage bonding between siblings with an age gap!

Well, here’s the official description of the Ozobot: 

“Featuring a color optical sensing module and two independent micro-motors, Ozobot is a fast and precise miniature smart robot that instantly reacts to lines, patterns and color sequences on both digital and physical surfaces.”

So what does that mean? The Ozobot actually “reads” the surface you place it on. You can draw multi-colored lines on some paper, create challenging mazes, or use the included maze cards. The Ozobot senses these lines, and literally works its way through the maze, all using its impressive smarts. Its ability to “see” colored lines and know the difference between them is the basis for all the activities and games you can play with Ozobot – like Ozoluck, OzoPath and OzoDraw (all free on the Apple and Google Play app stores.)  With more free apps coming down the road and the Christmas shopping season ramping up, Ozobot is sure to be on everyone’s list this year.  If you’re not convinced, just check out this fun video to see the Ozobot in action: 

I was absolutely thrilled when our Ozobots arrived! We received the 2-pack, which includes both a Crystal White and Titanium Black Ozobot. There are also colorful skins included that can be applied to change up their looks even more! (We like the light blue skin!) 

The Ozobot can take up to 40 minutes to charge, and offers about 40 minutes of continuous play time per charge. This is pretty impressive, if I do say so myself! Just imagine all of the mazes that could be conquered in 40 minutes! This definitely keeps the kiddos engaged! 

Once your Ozobots are fully charged and ready to go, it’s time to see them work their magic. We have drawn our own mazes and lines, and the Ozobots had no problem at all detecting and differentiating between different colors. I love the fact that these robots come with several pre-made game cards. These come in very handy when the kids are too restless to create their own. 

The way the Ozobot works is pretty amazing…The black lines tell the Ozobot where to go, and the colored sections of line command the Ozobot to perform different actions. For example, the Ozobot can be told to turn, spin, slow down, and speed up, all by the colors on the playing surface. Pretty darn nifty, if I do say so myself! 

If you like pretty colors and flashing lights, you’ll definitely get a kick out of the visuals. The Ozobot’s illumination changes colors, too, emitting a fun light show! 

Overall, I am definitely loving this adorable little robotic toy. At only about an inch tall and an inch wide, this would make the perfect stocking stuffer. Whether you choose to use the pre-made game cards, create your own intricate mazes, or use one of the official Ozobot apps, this robotic toy is sure to entertain, as well as sharpen those critical thinking skills and creativity. Like I said, these are really geared towards those 13 and older, but can be enjoyed as a family, too.  If you have any tech-geeks on your Holiday gift list this year, I would definitely recommend checking out the Ozobot. This ingenious little gadget combines digital and physical play like never before! 

You can check out the awesomeness that is Ozobot on their website.

You can also follow them on Facebook, on twitter, and on Pinterest to stay on top of their latest product news and promotions! 

You can find the Ozobot at select retailers, such as Brookstone.com, Momastore.com, and Amazon.

I am thrilled to announce that one lucky reader will receive an Ozobot of their very own!

How cool is that?!

Simply enter using the easy Rafflecopter form below! 

This giveaway is open to US Residents 18+ until 12:00AM EST on December 10, 2014. No PO Boxes. Winners will be drawn using Rafflecopter’s Random Number Generator. All entries will be verified, so play fair! I will notify winner via e-mail and they will have 48 hours to reply before I am forced to redraw winners. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. This contest is not affiliated with Facebook in any way. Thanks for entering, and Good Luck!