Karl | Sept. 17, 2024

John | Sept. 3, 2023

Beyond Satisfaction

For POV staff kit

After not wanting to pay for an expensive LED Staff I had to thought to build my own and after a casual google search was able to find this project. Soon I knew I had to have it. I hadn't soldered since high school. Never worked with microprocessors or LEDS. About as green as it gets. So I borrowed a soldering iron from a friend and collected all the materials. The documentation was so clear and concise there was no trepidation and I had a blast building it in a single afternoon. But alas in the testing stage it wouldn't switch on. After looking at some of the other reviews I had gotten the jist that Alexander must be a pretty cool dude. What. An. Understatement. This guy is the BEST. I reached out via email and he was able to get back to me quickly and we spent the next few days emailing back and forth troubleshooting the issue. A lapse in my attention to detail had led to me aligning the LED's incorrectly. Alexander got me sorted out and 48 hours later I was up and running! Whenever I've talked to someone about the project I cant stop myself from telling them how awesome my experience has been. And of course the final product is just incredible. Looks sleek and functions magnificently. Now my wife wants her own and I'm considering buying one to build with my 14 y/o niece. I just couldn't recommend this kit more.

Response from Island Robotics | Sept. 4, 2023

Thank you! glad you made it work in the end!!!

Lukas | Oct. 7, 2021

Outstanding design for demonstrating logic gates

For LogicBits

I have bought and tested a number of options for demonstrating logic gate combinations for education in a hands-on manner and this design is easily the best I have seen so far.
pros:
- relatively inexpensive solution
- big and easily readable components
- all inputs and outputs visualized with LEDs on every single component
- completed circuits can easily be arranged to match the diagrams and/or make the layouts as clear as possible
- The magnets allow semi-permanent arrangements on whiteboards and other metallic surfaces. I recommend using portable magnetic whiteboards to store and carry completed circuits.

minor nitpicks:
- There are not enough cables included with the set to build the more interesting circuits, but since standard and inexpensive servo cables are used this is a minor problem. To get more cables just buy several sets or buy cables from somewhere else. I especially recommend more varied lengths of cables to make building more complicated circuits easier and to allow for clearer layouts.
- Shorts can occur on bare metal surfaces by pushing the exposed pins on the underside into contact with it. Just use coated white- or blackboards to prevent this.
- The connections are not completely idiot-proof in that it is possible to connect the plugs the wrong way around or shifted by one pin which can cause a short. This has happened to me by accident on a couple of occasions but the logic bits seem unaffected so far and still work fine. Still, I would not recommend this kit for very young kids.

Response from Island Robotics | Oct. 7, 2021

Thanks for your review!

Yes, I probably should include more cables - this is an easy fix, will get some 20cm servo cables to add them to the mix.

For fool-proofing the connectors - indeed it is somewhat of a challenge. I had thought of using some polarized/latching connectors (JST SH?), the main concern is how to do that without making the kit much more expensive - there are over 40 connectors in the kit, so it adds up quickly. If you have any suggestions, I'd appreciate them!

Best,
Alexander

Benson | May 8, 2021

Brian | April 7, 2021