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Someone turned Lego Mario into a controller for 'Super Mario Bros.'
A self-professed hardware hacker found a way to make a Lego Mario figure work as a controller for Super Mario Bros.
Disney and Lego are making a new 'Star Wars Holiday Special'
The November 17th, 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special is infamously awful and “not awful in a good way,” the late Carrie Fisher once told Yahoo. In fact, it was so cheesy and awkward that George Lucas disowned it, saying he’d smash every single copy if he could. You might be surprised, then, to hear that Disney+ is making a new Star Wars Holiday Special — but since it’s teaming up with Lego, the idea makes a lot more sense.
Recommended Reading: The world of Lego interface panel design
The week's noteworthy writing on technology and more.
Lego's buildable NES console comes with a 'playable' game
Following yesterday’s tantalizing tweet, Lego has officially unveiled its brick-based replica of the iconic Nintendo Entertainment System (which just so happens to turn 37 tomorrow). The kit also comes with a special 'Action Brick' that can be scanned by the Lego Mario that comes with the upcoming Starter Course play set. Of course, any NES wouldn't be complete without a rectangular controller and cartridge.
Lego is teasing a buildable NES console set
The first Lego / Super Mario Bros. mashup will be on sale in just a few weeks, but Lego is already teasing the next collaboration it has in the works with Nintendo. A tweet on the official Lego Twitter account shows off a mostly-unidentifiable set in silhouette, but a series of photos from VJGamer says the set will be a full-size replica of the original NES, complete with a controller, cartridge and even a TV you can build that has Super Mario Bros. set on its screen. To be clear, this set is entirely brick-built and is sadly not a functioning NES, though the photos show a crank on the TV that’ll put Mario on the TV screen into motion.
Lego Super Mario is a charming attempt at real-life ‘Mario Maker’
Lego Super Mario replicates not only the visual splendor of the Mushroom Kingdom, but what it’s like to play through levels with a controller or handheld console.
The first Lego Super Mario sets launch on August 1st
Lego and Nintendo are ready to share a few more details about their unusual Mario-themed collaboration. The aptly-named Lego Super Mario will launch on August 1st with three sets called Adventures with Mario Starter Course — which serves as the foundation for the entire product line — Piranha Plant Power Slide Expansion Set and Bowser’s Castle Boss Battle Expansion Set. You can pre-order the Starter Course now for $59.99/€59.99 — the same price as most Nintendo-made games at launch — from Lego’s online store and select retailers.
Lego's new sets put 'Super Mario Maker' in the real world
Lego and Nintendo feel like a perfect match. The pair's first official partnership is more than a basic licensed set, though. The aptly-named Lego Super Mario will come with a chunky version of the plumber -- one that's larger than a standard Lego minifigure -- with a couple of switches on his back and some digital displays that represent his eyes, mouth, and a chest area just above his blue overalls. You'll then be able to build and play through classic levels from the Mushroom Kingdom that feature Goombas, Piranha Plants and question blocks. Somehow, Mario will know what they are and react accordingly when you mock-jump and stomp on them.
Using Lego therapy for autism
There is no cure for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which affects one out of every 59 children in the United States. One of its most common effects is difficulty with social interaction and everything it entails, like living independently and holding down a job. Children on the spectrum may avoid eye contact, have difficulty reading people's emotions via nonverbal signals and struggle to express their own emotions verbally.
Alexa-powered Lego challenge winners include a game system and waffle iron
Amazon and Lego have unveiled the winners of their Alexa-focused Mindstorms challenge, and they're as clever and oddball as you'd hope. The grand prize winner is Jason Allemann's Game Station, a project that uses Alexa for a five-game console -- you can play the likes of Simon, trivia or Race to the Top while Alexa issues commands, plays music and checks answers. It's straightforward, but shows that the voice assistant can provide the 'glue' for a gaming system. This is also lucrative for Alleman, who gets $20,000 in Amazon gift cards, Lego models and a trip to Lego's headquarters in Denmark.
A Lego version of the International Space Station is coming February 1st
Thanks to a new set from Lego, you'll soon be able to give the International Space Station (ISS) the place of honor it deserves in your home. The 864-piece model will set you back $70 when the company releases it on February 1st.
AI-powered Lego sorter knows the shape of every brick
For some people, rummaging through a bunch of Lego bricks is part of the fun. But if you've got an enormous collection or take on complicated builds, you probably have a system for sorting your pieces. Your solution probably doesn't involve AI, though. YouTube user Daniel West combined his love for Lego with his engineering skills to build a universal Lego sorter that uses a neural network to identify, classify and organize the plastic pieces more efficiently than a human could.
Everything in our holiday gift guide that you can buy for $50 or less
Depending on your budget and how many people are on your gift list this year, you might only have a modest amount to spend on each person. Even if you instill a cap of fifty bucks, though, you still have plenty of options. In Engadget's 2019 holiday gift guide, we have nearly 50 under $50, with picks running the gamut from toys, to video games, to books and movies, to mobile and gaming accessories. As it happens, today is Black Friday in the US, so chances are, many of the items here will cost you even less than the list price. Happy deal hunting!
The best tech toys and STEM kits
There once was a time when a toy section of the Engadget gift guide would have been a hodge-podge of toys that happened to take batteries, light up and make enough noise to annoy even the most patient of parents. (Yes, that means we probably would have been into the Hess truck.) But times have changed and now that everything is smart -- baby onesies, diapers -- our standards are higher. When it came time to curating our annual holiday toy list, the bar wasn't: Is this electronic? It's now: Is this thing fun? And most importantly, will this thing still be engaging after a kid has played with it for five minutes? We've had the better part of the year to answer this question. Some of the biggest toy makers have been teasing their wares since Toy Fair back in February. Since then, we've been keeping a running list of the things so clever, we might have wanted them ourselves if we were still school-age. From a lightsaber with built-in coaching to app-connected Hot Wheels, we homed in on the toys that don't just throw in tech for tech's sake, but that are actually better because of all the sensors inside.
Build an Alexa Skill that controls Lego sets and win a prize
What if Lego sets could respond to voice commands? That's the premise of a new contest Amazon and Lego launched on Tuesday that asks enthusiasts and developers to use the Alexa Gadgets Toolkit to add voice commands to Lego's Mindstorms sets. All you have to do is create an Alexa skill that takes advantage of the sensors and motors that come with each set.
Lego movie and game bundles are coming to PS4 and Xbox One
It's a bit surprising we haven't seen many publishers and studios package movies with their accompanying games. Warner Bros., for one, is going down that path with a string of Lego properties.
Lego's Imperial Star Destroyer set has 4,700 pieces and is 43 inches long
This magnificent specimen is all your childhood dreams come true: a 43-inch long Imperial Star Destroyer made from Lego. The new 4,700-piece Lego creation is the largest Star Wars-themed set to date and will let you finally recreate the epic opening scene of A New Hope in your living room.
'LEGO Star Wars Battles' is a competitive strategy game for mobile
The upcoming LEGO Star Wars Battles is a real-time competitive jam for mobile. While most LEGO games are tied to a specific platform and based on adventures, this title breaks the mold. Anyone with iOS or Android will be able to battle, in real-time, as Luke Skywalker, Rey, Darth Vader and other familiar characters.
Lego offers instructions for visually impaired builders
All Lego sets come with visual instructions that indicate where builders should place each piece. But such guidance isn't accessible for the blind. The Lego Foundation today announced they are releasing instructions in audio and Braille for a small number of sets through a partnership with the Austrian Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence.
The best robotics kits for beginners
By Signe Brewster This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, Wirecutter and Engadget may earn affiliate commission. Read the full guide to robotics kits for beginners. When we tested robotics kits for beginners, the Lego Boost set won over the toughest critics: kids. And robotics pros, makers, and hobbyists agreed. With its Lego-based design, built-in sensors, and expansive options for creativity, the Boost kit was the most fun to build with. Plus, the tablet app's super-simple programming was the easiest to learn of any of the kits we tried. Since it uses Lego pieces, the Lego Boost set is the most approachable and the easiest to figure out how to put together. It's a well-thought-out kit that a panel of child testers enjoyed as much as we did. The simple programming interface is easy to get started with, and the visual instructions allow non-readers to use and enjoy it, though more advanced programmers might find it limiting. If our main pick is unavailable, the next-best option is the Ubtech Jimu Robot AstroBot Series: Cosmos Kit. The companion smartphone and tablet app that leads you through building and programming is the most organized and simple to learn of any we tried. The clear instructions offer a straightforward introduction to the popular Scratch programming language. The blocklike Jimu building pieces aren't as versatile as Legos, and they feel a little clunky, but they come together to build a capable robot. If you're hungry to do as much as you can with a robotics kit, the Vex IQ Super Kit will satiate your appetite for new skills whereas simpler and less expensive kits may only be an appetizer. You can begin programming this kit with a graphical language or move up to more complex tasks using the C programming language, and the extra sensors—which can detect colors, for instance, or when the robot bumps into something—add possibilities that simple kits lack. The kit is made for educators, and as a result it has some of the most solid pieces and packaging.
