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littleBits is opening its first retail location in NYC this month
If you've been itchin' for a chance to take littleBits' collection of electronic blocks for a spin before handing over funds, you'll soon get a chance. Well, so long as you're planning a trip to NYC. The company is opening its first retail shop on July 31st on West Broadway in SoHo, giving eager DIYers a chance to take a closer look during the week. littleBits is taking a different approach to the buying experience as well. Sure, you'll be able to test drive the pieces and kits before making a purchase, but you'll also be given the option of buying what you've made or leaving it for someone else to fiddle with. It sounds like you'll be charged for what you use rather than having to splurge for an entire kit. In addition to being able to create your own gadgets, there's a photo booth so you can remember your time as an inventor, too. There's no exact date for how long the location will remain open, but it's scheduled to stay through the holidays.
littleBits' synth kit plays nice with analog gear and audio software
littleBits and Korg first teamed up on a kit for aspiring musicians back in 2013, and now the duo is at it again. This time around, the two companies collaborated on MIDI, CV and USB I/O modules, adding to the existing Lego-like DIY audio collection. With the MIDI module, you can control the Synth Kit from a compatible instrument (like Korg's MS-20 mini), or use a littleBits setup to wrangle sounds from gear and software, too. Connecting the USB I/O module adds a way to capture your homemade instrument with recording software (DAW). And as you might expect, it'll allow littleBits controllers, sequencers and effects to tweak any audio coming from a computer.
The delightful (and dangerous) world of DIY kits
We can't always work alongside a pro to see what makes things tick, and that's where do-it-yourself projects come in handy. They're the entertaining alternative to learning a new skill. In this week's Rewind, we've tracked down a series of kits that were released over the years, which have sought to inform us in fields like electronics, music and the secrets of the scientific world. Read on to see some of the incredible (and occasionally dangerous) DIY projects that have been shared with curious minds.
Create your own smart home with littleBits' house-friendly kit
Ever since littleBits' snap-together circuits got the ability to speak to the internet, they were crying out to be used for home-automation. Today, littleBits itself is making that a dead cert, by launching a "Smart Home Kit." The pack contains 14 magnetic "bits" to get your inventions started, including five new tools (MP3 player, Threshold, Number, Temperature Sensor, and IR transmitter). Theoretically, that internet-connected iguana enclosure you were after, or that DIY smart-toaster are now just a $250 spend away --the price of the new kit, available starting tomorrow. If you're stuck for inspiration (or, y'know, don't own an iguana), the bundle comes with a poster containing 14 ideas to try out, and a new AC switch means you can connect directly to the mains. Still stuck for ideas? There are some videos after the break, snap to it.
NYC MoMA adds five maker devices to its permanent collection
If you've ever been to a Maker Faire, you know its as much of an art show as a technology showcase. Builders debut everything from robotic bands to educational circuitry kits at these events, and the NYC Museum of Modern Art is about to immortalize five maker products into its permanent collection. Early next year, the Arduino, Ototo, Makey Makey, Colour Chaser and a DIY Gamer Kit will be on display in the MoMA's design galleries, serving as representatives of the maker culture to the museum's visitors. MoMA is excited about the new additions, but it's not the first time technology has found its way into the museum's collection: in 2011 both Botanicalls and Little Bits found its way into MoMA's galleries. Check out the announcement at the source link below. [Image credit: NYC MoMA]
Littlebits' Halloween kits make old-school decorations more techy
So you want to make your Halloween just a little more geeky, but you're not quite ready to port Tetris to a pumpkin -- maybe LittleBits is more your speed? The modular prototyping platform has created a series of themed kits that should make augmenting holiday easy. There are three in all: a sound-activated jack-o-lantern light, a "creepy portrait" that moves when someone walks by and Halloween "stick figure costume." All of them are cute, but they're also a little less than what they seem.
LittleBits' BitLab wants to be the app store of hardware components
Thinking about building something out of LittleBits' library of interconnecting circuit boards? Until today, your creativity has been artificially limited -- LittleBits uses a proprietary magnetic connector for each of its snap-on components, without any ability to add objects to your project that fall outside of the company's offered modules. Today that changes: Today LittleBits announced a new program that allows customers to prototype, design, manufacture and sell their own LittleBit components. It's called Bitlab, and the company hopes that it will become an "App Store for hardware."
Can littleBits' Lego-like kits democratize DIY engineering?
What happens when you look to get more out of your engineering knowledge? For littleBits CEO Ayah Bdeir, that meant making electronics and programming accessible to everyone, regardless of skill level. The company's Lego-like smart toys can be used to build any number of things: from a simple blinking LED to a custom-built synthesizer or smart thermostat. And, as we found out, the company plans for its DIY modules to get even smarter. With those endless possibilities in mind, we caught up with the littleBits' founder to chat "making" made easy, why gender has no role in tech and the future, DIY-connected household.
LittleBits' latest module lets you connect your creations to the internet
The magnetic, interconnecting circuit boards that make up LittleBits' library of electronic modules make it easy to build all sorts of neat (and noisy) devices with almost no technical knowledge at all -- but if you want to create something that connects to the cloud, you're out of luck. Well, you were: today LittleBits is announcing the Cloud Bit, a new module that, as company CEO and founder Ayah Bdeir puts it, allows builders to "just add internet" to almost anything. Bdeir tells me that it's gives the average person an easy and open way to contribute to the Internet of Things without wasting time prototyping devices from scratch. She also says that the module is a landmark in changing the perception of LittleBits from toy, to tool.
New littleBits modules make the Synth Kit more powerful and versatile
Click 'em together, make some noise. Littlebits are like Lego for music nerds (like us). That's fun and all, but currently, once you've built your mini-modular synth creation, there isn't really much else you can do with it. That won't be the case for much longer though, as three new modules are coming along to spice things up. We are raising the ceiling of complexity of what you can do with littleBits, adding wireless control, programmability, and now audio control to allow you to make sophisticated electronics in a fraction of the time and cost, allowing for whole new experiences. -- Ayah Bdeir (Founder, littleBits) A new MIDI block lets you hook into music making software like Ableton or Logic, while the CV block means you can connect your littleBits to older/analog gear. If you just want to play with sound, a USB I/O module will let you pipe the littleBits' audio directly into your PC. No word on price, but expect to see them come to market in time for the (now noisier) holidays.
LittleBits' Arduino module puts the focus on programming, not wiring
Getting your feet wet with programmable hardware can be tricky; even if you're comfortable with coding, you may not want to break out the soldering iron just to build a usable device. LittleBits is aware of just how intimidating these make-it-yourself gadgets can be, so it has just launched its first software-programmable module, the Arduino at Heart. As the name implies, it's an Arduino core (the same as the Leonardo) designed to fit into LittleBits' simple, building block approach to circuit boards. If you want to attach a light, motor or sensor to the Arduino board, you just snap it on -- you can spend more of your time coding rather than dealing with wiring and other hardware hassles.
Build your own space station with LittleBits' NASA-approved kit
Many kids want to become astronauts, but getting them to embrace day-to-day space science is tougher -- it's not as exciting as setting foot on Mars. NASA is all too aware of this challenge, so it has teamed up with LittleBits to create the Space Kit, a build-it-yourself bundle that should make these routine experiments a little more exciting. The pack includes parts and lessons that teach junior Neil Armstrongs and Sally Rides about atmospheric readings, light waves and other aspects of NASA's work without requiring engineering or programming skills. Young ones can even build tiny vehicles of their own, including the International Space Station, a satellite and a planetary rover. The $189 kit won't necessarily lead to a career among the stars, but it could be a good way to spark some curiosity.
Weekly Roundup: Nexus 5 review, Peripheral Vision with Ayah Bdeir, Steam Controller hands-on and more!
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Expand NY workshops roundup: 3D Systems, littleBits, Leap Motion and more!
The stage at Expand acted as a platform for conversations between many people involved in the future of technology -- but there was a lot more that attendees were able to enjoy. Some of our nifty workshop sessions had 3D Systems show off its new Sense scanner; littleBits gave a demo of the Synth Kit; Leap Motion talked about its SDK and the implementation of it on 3D web apps; and Raspberry Pi revealed the results of the Make-Off contest. These are only a few of the workshops from our event in New York City, so head past the break to check out the full list -- we've got a video for each one.
LittleBits and Korg team up on Synth Kit modular DIY instrument, we go hands-on
Here's a pro tip: if you want to make this editor smile, hand me something that makes a bunch of noise. There are few things more satisfying than pressing some buttons and turning a few knobs to generate an avalanche of digital sound. And if what makes that noise is something you built yourself, all the better. LittleBits has been encouraging kids (and childish adults) to build their own electronic doodads and projects for some time now. And some of those creations even had the capability to make noise. But, the new Synth Kit released in collaboration with Korg is dedicated to DIY audio cacophony. Inside the gold and black packaging is a pile of snap-together components that will let you build the analog synthesizer of your dreams... so long as your dreams is a simplified MS-20. The box holds a pair of oscillators, envelope and filter units, a keyboard, a four-step sequencer, a random noise generator, a two-channel mixer (and a splitter so you can create two independent audio sources), a delay effect and, of course, a power source and a speaker. It's more or less a deconstructed version of Korg's clasic MS-20. Just like previous Little Bits kits, all the pieces are color coded: blue for power, pink for input, green for output and orange for wires. Each component has magnets on either side that snap together only in one direction, preventing you from assembling a circuit in the wrong way and potentially damaging the components. While the number of parts is fairly limited, they're all pretty flexible. The keyboard, for instance has two modes (hold and press), as does the noise generator and the sequencer. Even the oscillators can be switched between square and saw waves. That means those 12 bits in the box can actually generate quite a wide variety of sounds, from deep bass rattles and percussive ticks to swooping synth dives and arpeggiated leads. It's quite simple to get started designing your own instruments, and you'll probably even learn a bit about synthesizer design along the way. Of course, you can combine it with other LittleBits kits and add light sensors or displays to your homebrewed synth. Founder Ayah Bdeir likes to claim that it's the easiest to use modular synthesizer with this sort of power. And she's probably right. While nobody is going to mistake you for the next Daft Punk, you can still create an impressive set of sounds. Some of which might even prove usable in actual music.
Peripheral Vision 011: Ayah Bdeir on the importance of knowing how your electronics work
"I didn't set out originally to start a company," explains Ayah Bdeir. "I was trying to solve a problem." She's seated in the solution, a sunny office space in downtown Manhattan. A portable dividing screen provides some semblance of privacy, separating us from a space packed to the gills with makers and engineers tinkering with LittleBits' newest products. The company is in the pre-holiday push, bringing 20 new modules to market, additions that bring the total number of available Bits to 60. In amongst the explosion of microcontrollers like Arduino and RaspberryPi, Bdeir's company offers something different: utter simplicity. LittleBits are targeted firmly as those with the desire to create, but largely lacking the technical expertise to do so - people curious about how their smartphones work, but with no idea where to begin looking. "I realized that electronics govern our lives and people don't understand them," Bdeir continues. "There are all of these tools available to hobbyists and tech enthusiasts, but what if you don't want to go through the step learning curve? We have to speak to the wider crowd, people who are not necessarily sold on the idea that they have to know how to wire a circuit or make something move." Bdeir will be appearing this weekend at Engadget Expand in New York City.
littleBits hands-on: LEGO blocks for future electrical engineers
We haven't checked in with littleBits in quite some time and, honestly, it was a bit of a surprise to find the electronic tinker toys hiding in a quiet corner of the floor at Toy Fair this year. The property has grown quite a bit in the past few years. For one, it's no longer a "project" but an actual shipping product. And in the last year founder Ayah Bdeir has turned it from a great concept into an actual company with serious investors. For those of you unfamiliar with littleBits, the goal is to do for electronics what LEGO did for structural engineering. The small color coded "blocks" snap together with magnets allowing even a novice to create a functioning circuit in seconds. The magnets will only connect in one orientation, preventing you from pushing current through a component in the wrong direction and ruining it. Ayah's inspiration is not just LEGO, but object oriented programing languages that simplify building code, allowing developers to focus on the more creative aspects of software making. By doing some of the heavy logical lifting for you, littleBits hopes that potential electrical engineers and prototypers can focus on the goal rather than the minutia of laying out a breadboard or soldering resistors in place. The latest version of the platform, v0.3, debuted just a couple of months ago and not only brings new pieces to the littleBits universe, but also adds legs to the blocks for improved stability when piecing together your projects. Currently there are four kits available: the three piece Teaser kit for $29, the seven piece Holiday kit for $49, the 10 piece Starter kit for $89 and the 14 piece Extended kit for $149. (You can also buy individual Bits for between $10 and $35.) If you're in need of inspiration there are a number of projects for you peruse on the site and the company is even considering packaging them up as pre-planned kits. Though, unlike other electronics project bundles (such as the ubiquitous BrushBot), the magnetic pieces can easily be disassembled and re-purposed if you tire of your creation. While the concept has its roots in brands like Snap Circuits, littleBits definitely provides more freedom than those single purpose offerings. For more, check out the video after the break.
littleBits are like Legos for circuit boards
Here's a fun, not-completely-original, but still-pretty-neat idea: littleBits. Tiny, pre-assembled circuit boards that create a library of mix-and-match electronic components for building that next amazing wonder widget. Oh, and they're open source. The "blocks" snap together via magnets, and there's an ever-growing selection of modules to choose from. The project is still in its infancy, but we're expecting to see some good work from Joe Hacker Guy on the DIY scene, or anybody else too afraid to pick up a soldering iron, once these arrive at some sort of retail availability. An intro video is after the break.
