LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 31313 Robot Kit with Remote Control for Kids, Educational STEM Toy for Programming and Learning How to Code (601 Pieces)

I am a seasoned RC vehicle veteran. Over the last several years I've owned and operated nearly 50 different RC vehicles, ranging from basic starter trucks all the way up to $500+ vehicles. My experience with RC vehicles led me to a Parrot AR.Drone, which has a few features on it that allow it to fly somewhat autonomously. These autonomous features made me start looking into ways to make a regular RC truck more autonomous, which of course led me to start looking into robotics. Years ago, when the very first LEGO Mindstorms set was released, I actually purchased one. Upon getting it home, I decided that it was probably too advanced for me, and I ended up returning it. Fast forward to this year. While looking into ways to start getting into robotics, I headed to the store to buy a Robosapien X. Although basic, the Robosapien X seemed like a good place to start with robotics, as it had a basic way of being programmed, and it had some options for modifying it to add features and accessories. While at the store, I saw the Mindstorms EV3 set. I was immediately in awe, as the box just draws you in. I liked the looks of the models that it was showing, and knowing LEGO quality I knew it would be a product that functioned as good as it looked. It was a bit pricey for me, so I passed on it initially. A few days later, I kept thinking about the EV3 set, so I just went ahead and ordered one on Amazon. It arrived quickly, as is the case for most of the things shipped from Amazon, and I was all set to get started. Upon opening the packaging, you quickly realize that the outside sleeve is a "course" for the robots that you are going to build to navigate on. It's a nice feature, and a good way to include something like this. The cardboard is more sturdy than just a poster that folds up, so it seems like it will last longer than if it was made out of regular paper and included in the box. After getting the box open, I started inspecting the things that were included. Lots of parts, the motors, sensors, and that all important "brain" type of brick. The instructions included are for building the first model, which is called Track3r. I set about following the instructions to get the Track3r built. It was a fairly quick build, with no real issues that popped up. As is always the case the instructions were clear and concise and didn't leave me guessing at any point. After getting the model built, I headed to my PC to download the EV3 software, which installed quickly and easily. I then went about following the instructions for setting up my first program. Now, I'm pretty tech savvy...however, I've never really tried any kind of computer programming. This was the part of the Mindstorms EV3 kit that had me a bit concerned, as I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to wrap my head around it. Luckily, the LEGO programming method is extremely easy to use. It's a graphic system where you drag and drop "blocks" that serve as the commands, and then in those blocks you change settings in order to change what the robot will do when it reaches that portion of the program. In a matter of minutes I had the first program written and installed, and the robot very quickly did exactly what it was supposed to do...it moved forward, spun a blade and knocked a tire off of a spot, then moved back to the starting point. I was impressed. I had managed to program a robot all by myself, and it didn't even seem to frustrate at all. Over the next several days, I continued using the EV3 software to progress through the different models and "missions" that went with the Track3r. I continued to not have many problems with the programming, and by about the third mission I realized something...the LEGO EV3 software was slowly, subtly, but surely TEACHING me programming. Each mission was bringing new variables to the table that required different programming blocks and options. It was so subtle that at first you don't even realize that you're being taught something, and to me this is ingenious. Any time learning can be disguised as fun, I feel that it's something that will be more easily recalled and will be something that people WANT to continue to do. After the first four missions, before even progressing to the final mission with the Track3r, I decided to give it a go at creating a program completely from scratch. What I wanted to do was effectively "reverse" the Track3r, so that it's back was it's front and it's front was it's back, so that it could use the IR sensor as an "eye." I then wanted the Track3r to move around on it's own, and when it came into a certain proximity of an object it would back up and turn around, then continue going. It took me a little while to figure out a couple of the functions, mainly because I wanted the speed it reversed and the amount it turned to be "random," but with the help of the great Mindstorms Community on LEGO's site, I was able to figure it out...and in fact, I figured it out while waiting for a response from that site, but then used the response just to check my own work. After about a night worth of work, I had managed to create a program that had the Track3r roam about on it's own. Whenever it would get within about 8" of an object, it would back up (at a random speed), growl, turn around (a random amount at a random speed) and then move forward again. With this program, the Track3r is effectively able to just autonomously roam around the room and not get stuck on anything. Success!!! I had built a robot, and programmed it myself with a program that I had built from the ground up. I've had so much fun tweaking and adjusting this program that I've made, that I haven't really felt a need to move on to any more of the models. That's not to say I'm not looking forward to moving on to those other models, I am, and I probably will start a new one this next week...but the ways I've been able to slowly tweak my program to do EXACTLY what I wanted it to do has been a lot of fun for me. I believe that even though I've only gone through a small portion of what this set has to offer, I'm already convinced of this set's awesomeness. This is, without a doubt, the best LEGO set I've ever had...and, dare I say, one of the best products I've ever bought, period. Is it pricey?? Absolutely, but I believe it is worth every penny. I've had so much fun with the first set of builds for the Track3r that I feel I've already gotten value out of the kit...and the fact that I have a ton of stuff left to do before I even start moving on to ground up models with ground up programs just says to me that this kit's value is through the roof. Highly, highly recommended!!

We have purchased a lot of LEGO® MINDSTORMS® kits from Amazon in the past. My wife who teaches kids grades K5- 8 uses these kits to help them prepare for FIRST LEGO League (FLL) competitions as well as impart knowledge and spark interests in kids who wants to pursue Robotics in the future. These LEGO® MINDSTORMS® kits are must and provides the necessary building blocks for kids to get started with robotics. The previous model LEGO Mindstorms NXT 2.0 (8547) was popular with kids for several years which is now seen replaced with LEGO Mindstorms EV3 31313 . From my understanding This is the third generation of the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® platform and the "EV" stands for evolution, hence EV3 in the product name. The NXT 2.0 seems to have been discontinued by LEGO® but in comparison I think EV3 is an natural evolution of the product as we move forward in sparking interests in kids. There are some common parts that you need to identify as your child gets into building robots using this LEGO® MINDSTORMS® kits the most important part of this kit is known as "BRICK" - The LEGO® MINDSTORMS® EV3 Brick is a programmable intelligent Brick that you can refer to as 'The brain' of your robot - This BRICK controls motors and sensors to make it move, walk and talk; as well as provide wireless communication through Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. It is powered by QTY 6 AA batteries. There are several other parts that comes with this kit like Building instruction for the starter robot, 'TRACK3R' Connecter cables, 1 USB cable for programming the brick, LEGO Technic Elements: Total of 594 pieces 1 EV3 Brick, 2 Large Interactive Servo Motors, 1 Medium Interactive Servo Motor, 1 Touch Sensor, 1 Color Sensor, 1 Infrared Sensor, 1 Infrared Beacon. So what can you do with this kit? - There are five robots which you can build straight out of the box - the building instructions along with accompanying programs are available in the EV3 Software. In addition there are many more 'fan-made' bonus robots that can be accessed via the EV3 Software Lobby or via the LEGO website - all additional fan-made designs can be built using the elements from the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® EV3 (31313) set sold here. Apart from this if your child gets creative then they can make their own design. Also, If your child wants to participate in First Lego League then you must visit FLL website to determine this year's design and build a challenging design to compete with others in the same category. The year 2014's challenge and past years challenges can be found in my comment section. Please note: The new software for 'EV3' is bloated and runs very slow even on high-end laptops. The previous generation of LEGO product used to use 'NXT' software. As stands, It is not possible to program this new 'EV3' Brick with the old 'NXT' Software which kids & educators still love. However, you can program your old 'NXT' Intelligent Brick using the new LEGO® MINDSTORMS® EV3 Home Edition Software. Having said, as seen in practical classroom uses by kids not all Software features are supported by the old NXT Brick and can be frustrating at times. So we ended up having both the old 'NXT' software and the new 'LEGO® MINDSTORMS® EV3 Home Edition' Software side by side and preferably on a different laptops in order to co-exist with the new generation of bricks moving forward. As far as using The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Sensors with the old NXT kit please be aware that the new sensors are completely digital and therefore will not work with the old NXT Intelligent Brick. However, LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Brick uses the same RJ12 connector cables as the old LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Brick therefore LEGO® MINDSTORMS® EV3 Sensors be used together with old NXT Sensors. If you have a classroom wherein you have a mixture of old and new sets I strongly recommend that you keep them apart in separate storage bins and do not mix match the critical parts. We always purchase Sterilite 18748606 Clear Nesting Showoffs Box to keep the kits safe after opening them. Hope this review proves useful to you. Cheers!

We have a ton of Lego kits so we are already Lego fans in my household. After you built enough Castles, Pirate ships and Fortresses, the models either get put away or they collect dust. I bought a used Mindstorms RCX kit used, 8 or 9 years ago and it was too much of a hassle with the IR tower and a working computer with Windows XP. My older son really was not interested in it after working with the NXT at School as part of a Robotics team. He was one of the main people on the team that understood how to make it work at crunch time in the competition, but Robotics was too nerdy for him. This Christmas I picked up the EV3 for my younger son. He was on the Vex team as a 6th grade student last year. I was hoping to do more on our own since the VEX team is not together this year. As aside note, I participated as a parent in the FLL with when my older son was in middle school and we made the trip with his team to compete at LegoLand. Last year I went to a Vex Tournament and I thought FLL was better at the middle school age group. The format was better and the kids really took pride being able to compete at LegoLand. Back to now - My son quickly built a couple robots that are on shown on the box and the kit got shelved till last week; we have many competing activities so finding projects that would capture his interest was the goal. We found the Mindcub3r Rubik's Cube Solver Robot. This one project really was fun and got my son really interested in the kit again. For us, the project was a medium difficulty level build. It used only pieces from the 31313 kit. Everyone who has seen this Robot is amazed and he was asked to bring it to school. Go to home depot and buy a large parts bin organizer or maybe even the DeWalt DWST14825 here on Amazon might work. It is easier to keep all the lego parts sorted and together. Before you buy any parts bin organizer you just have to make sure there a compartment that will fit the EV3 computer. You really need to go online and look for other projects and information as what comes in the box is good, but limited. We purchased "The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Discovery Book" and my son is already excited to take apart the Rubik's Cube Robot we built and start working on the workbook. Both the Rubik's Cube Bot and the projects in the workbook only need the 31313 kit. $350 might seem like a good chunk of change to put down on something like this, they resell well on eBay if it does not catch on with your kids, but I think as a parent you have to get involved too. I recommend getting the workbook with the kit. I have been looking through the woorkbook and it has some good information and good teaching moments. We are starting the workbook projects tomorrow, so I will update this review in the future.

I'm a second year FLL (First Lego League) coach. My team scored the highest points last year at the regional (and hope to do so this year too). We used the NXT (last generation) last year. We had lots of issues that I don't think the kids need to deal with as they have so much to learn already. This year, we upgraded to this long-awaited new generation. I'm sad to report that most of the issues stayed, just in a different form sometimes. The major gripes I have are (in chronicle order of discovery): 1. It takes FOREVER to start AND to shut down. I saw that the memory is astronomical, compared to the NXT. I don't know why they think kids can create 16MB of embedded code (besides, see a following point); and does it really have to take that long? 2. With all that computing power, the Human-Machine Interface didn't get better. The screen is just as small and low resolution; icons did not make any more sense than the NXT; it did not get brighter; there is no improvement to let you see longer names of programs... 3. As we start to work on competition missions, the project management capability proved not any better than NXT. It did get away from the useless "profile" setup of the NXT, but the new project/program-based setup did not prove to be any more capable of project organization. I manage an algorithm team at work, but I couldn't find a good way to teach these kids about organizing and collaborating on programing for the EV3. 4. The programing environment is different. Blocks changes... and it did get better. However, it's not nearly better enough to make it a good environment. At times the frustration level is intense, and I feel for the kids. I had to encourage them and say "when you become a real engineer, you'll have better tools - trust me!" 5. As we get closer to competition, it proved difficult just to leave only the useful missions on the brick (and in a specific order) to facilitate quick pit stops. 6. As we get closer to final programs, which are larger, bugs started showing up. It took all of MY reverse engineering skills to help the kids find out that those are bugs with the EV3 and find reliable work-arounds. These only happen when the program gets large. But then again, I thought they put 16MB in there to let you build large programs. 7. The on-line community help is slim. A main reason is many problems people have are similar to what I experienced above - and there is simply no solutions or too hard to even diagnose. If you're new to programing and embedded control yourself, then there are some good advices in the community to help. That said, it's not an expensive toy for what it is. Given the non-existence of competition, it provides a great platform for bringing the kids a LONG way into modern engineering. Because of the problems I described, it is harder than necessary to reflect what they learned reliably in competition scores. For that, I would give it a three star. But this product by itself is not just for FLL, so I find it unfair to not give it an above-average score.

My 10 year old son and I love the set we've been using since Christmas. We had the NXT2 and had lots of fun with that over the years, but the look of the pieces and included robot (instructions) in the EV3 set are excellent. The R3PTAR has especially mesmerized my son. My one big gripe is the software makes it too easy to skip learning any programming. When you go to program it gives you two options: Open Finished Program or Follow Step By Step Programming Instructions. Hmmm.. if you are a 10 year old and can have the instant gratification of not having to spend time programming your robot why bother learning? I strongly suggest this option be hidden in future releases of the software, so kids will spend the time learning what I think is an excellent intro to programming. For me the programming justified the price of the kit. It makes it much more than a typical Lego set. So far I have kept the Finished Program option away from my son and he has enjoyed the programming, but if he sees he can just run the completed program before he gets the programming "bug" I fear it will be "Game Over". Please fix this Lego! Make a parent mode that can open the finished program (it can be handy) or just bury the option in a menu. Otherwise it's a great set. If you buy one and need a storage box (and you will) I recommend to Plano 5231 organizer. I use them for both NXT2 and EV3 kits. One of these and a label maker and all your pieces are organized in a durable, compact box. The EV3 book by Daniele Benedettelli is also good if you want to learn more about the EV3 without staring at the computer screen. Some great additional projects as well.

At first glance, the price was a bit more than I wanted to spend on my son's Christmas gift, so I decided to check out other robotics kits. All I found was babyish "my first robot" sets that did nothing more than any motorized Lego set could and had no possibilities for "free play," or $900 kits that require soldering and a PhD. It was the only in-between I could find, so I went for it. My son has Asperger Syndrome and his ability to create is astounding. He recently solved a puzzle (at school) that no one had solved in nine years! If you can swing it, this set is incredible. In just a few short days he's come up with all kinds of working "robots," my favorite being a scorpion than shot a ball out of his tail every ten seconds. The programming is simple (and easily compatible with OS X), it's almost drag and drop. It allows for him to make what's in his head come to life. My proud parent mind is sure it's part of his path to MIT. :) He's almost 12 and needs zero supervision, no frustration, no tears. For a child that has difficulty communicating and befriending peers, this is an amazing gift. The neighborhood kids are so impressed, they're all asking for his advice on Legos and other building projects. It's educational and definitely a plus for self-esteem. I've actually choked up a few times watching him. Thanks Lego and Amazon.

Boy I wish I had this kind of toy when I was a kid. My 9 years old daughter LOVES it!!! It is just so full of fun and you can create so many different projects. Also come with a iphone/ipad apps which allow you to use as a remote control too. It's also a great tool for kids to learn programming. I really feel that EVERY student should have one set of LEGO Mindstorms. This is a toy that would change the world. Highly highly recommend it... We probably will be buying a 2nd set soon as I'm loving it too!! Go Go Lego! My only suggestions to LEGO are: 1. The EV3 Brick (CPU) is sort of heavy. Just like Macbook Air and iPad Air, if later one you could release an "air" (smaller and lighter) version of the EV3 Brick, that would be truly awesome!! I bet that some one could probably even use the new brick to create a "smart" Quadcoper or something like that!! 2. The font on the EV3 Brick is a bit too small, especially if you are designing this for kids of age 9 to 15. If most of the "control" UI can be moved to iPad or iPhone (and don't forget Android) platform, I think that would be better. 3. It would be awesome to continue to further develop the Lego Digital Designer with a better "Lego Mindstorms Mode" for better simulation!! I think that would be truly awesome! Again I highly recommend EV3!!

This is an awesome set and a big hit with the kids. The 6 y.o. has a little bit of trouble getting parts together and apart, but loves to be involved and had a blast driving the robot around. Instructions are well laid out and easy to follow. If you haven't worked with Lego Technic sets before I would suggest starting with the Track3r instruction booklet that comes with the set. It includes a life-size picture of the part the first time you encounter some of the pieces that are similar so you can start getting used to identifying which are which. The PDF instructions you can download from the Lego website (even those for the Track3r) don't include this feature. The kids' attention spans weren't quite up to building an entire kit in one sitting, but if it takes longer to build all the variants then they won't get bored as quickly, right? My only complaint with this set is actually tied to Amazon themselves. I found an open-box special (sold by Amazon) for forty dollars less but chose to skip any potential issues and go with a brand new set (also sold by Amazon) at full price. The box I received and been previously opened and some parts shows a small amount of wear. All parts were there and work as they should, but I am disappointed that I paid full price and still got an open-box (not so) special.