This article was last modified on 11 December 2016.Most people do not need all the features of a Mindstorms kit or cannot afford to pay a high price for it. Do you want to know what are the best alternatives of the LEGO Mindstorms kits? In the first part of this post, I will explore the basics of a Mindstorms kit. The features that make users to love the imagination kit for all ages. In the second part, I will explore the best alternatives of Mindstorms EV3 and NXT. Probably the best three books to learn more about Mindstorms EV3:The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Discovery Book (Full Color): A Beginner’s Guide to Building and Programming RobotsThe Art of LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Programming (Full Color)LEGO EV3 Robotics: A Guide for EducatorsMost Important Features of the Lego Mindstorms KitsThe instinct of building things using plastic bricks is the key of Lego. The Mindstorms kits engage the users to build creative toys by allowing the mind to explore and do what it wants.As an ultimate construction toy, the Lego integrates into the Mindstorms series a long list of features.
In the following, I explore 12 of the most important features of the Mindstorms kits.The Mindstorms kits encourage people to think and hack robots;These are the ultimate DIY kits which are based on the instinct of building things;All of the Lego kits are built with a remarkable quality;Its popularity is at a high level because they eliminate a lot of problems, concerns about materials, and its resistance to various external forces;The DIY Mindstorms kits introduce people in programming in a fun and intuitive way;All the programmable kits can be programed via computer;The Lego products are surrounded by a large community with a great spirit of sharing;All the products are very well documented;Any of the Lego kits can be bought from all over the world;The Lego products are accommodated to the global markets and for multiple languages;They pay attention to so much detail to the manufacturing process so that is very difficult to find a broken Lego piece;The Lego bricks can be assembled and connected in many ways, and all the pieces can be reused to build new things;
Best Lego AlternativesAny of Mindstorms kits allow the users to explore countless machines, creatures, and structures by combining modular pieces and intelligent bricks. In this part, I explore the best modular kits with similar characteristics with Mindstorms series.I hope that these modular kits will inspire you to get creative and create unique projects by combining microcontrollers, motors, sensors and servo motors.CubeletsThe Cubelets kit is designed to introduce you into robotics with modular and reactive Cubelet cubes. Anyone can use Cubelets and start build robots able to respond to different stimulations.ATOMSThe ATOMS kit contains a series of sensors, power supply and action blocks ready to build and play an endless combination of fun robots.Fischertechnik Robo TXBuilt in Germany, the Robo TX is a high quality construction kit with 470 components to build industrial robotic models.Building Robot Construction KitThis affordable kit is engineered to build and play robotic creatures.
The kit contains a wide range of components including sensors, LEDs, a gripper, and a lot of mechanical parts. In addition, the kit is Arduino compatible.MakeblockThe Makeblock kit is designed to serve as a flexible system to build a wide range of robots.Monster KitThe Monster kit is created to build really amazing robots. With a long list of components including sensors, gearmotors, servos, and controllers, you can build autonomous robots able to detect objects and navigate without human intervention.ROBOTIS OLLO Explorer KitOLLO Explorer is targeted for beginners without any electronics and programming skills. It could be used as an educational tool to play and learn about robots. The kit includes all the components required to build a walking or running robot.BioloidFlexibility is the key of the Bioloid kit. This robot kit has a modular structure that allows anyone to build a wide range of robots.Super KitEngineered around VEX Controller, Super Kit is one of the most advanced modular robotic kits that can be programmed using an LCD or via computer and a graphical programming software.
The package includes all components to build autonomous robot able to navigate and detect objects.Wonder Workshop Dash RobotDash Robot is a modular kit engineered to produce satisfaction while builds kinematic robots able to run without wires and makes learning to code fun for kids.11 in 1 Programmable Robot Kit11 in 1 Programmable Robot Kit is designed for a new generation of kids who wants to learn robotics, electronics and Arduino programming.Since their introduction in 1978, LEGO minifigures, also known as “minifigs,” have become arguably the most iconic aspect of the popular toys. These anthropomorphized pieces of plastic are a hot collector’s item, and with high demand comes high prices. These are a few of the priciest minifigs on the market today. Photo courtesy eBay user vsrg This exclusive minifig featured a red baseball cap, a printed Red Sox logo on the front, and a LEGO logo on the back. It was given away to kids attending a BoSox game in the summer of 1999.
It’s unknown how many were produced for the promotion, nor how many survive today, but when they appear on eBay, they regularly sell to die-hard fans of Beantown baseball. A related Red Sox promotion from the same year was a 1” x 2” Duplo brick with the Red Sox and LEGO logos printed on each side. Today, this tiny little brick will fetch $100 if it’s in good shape. As one of the biggest genre entertainment conventions in the world, it’s no surprise that LEGO pulls out all the stops for San Diego Comic-Con. In 2012, they offered a series of four superhero minifigs—each with a limited production run of only 1000 pieces—as a special giveaway. The heroes, DC Comics’ Shazam and Bizarro, and Marvel Comics’ Venom and Phoenix, were displayed on specially-marked cards that resembled comic book covers, along with a small brick to help the figure stand. Naturally, you’ll only get top dollar on the resale market if you kept the brick and card. (Buy Phoenix at Amazon.)
Photo courtesy LEGO WIkia user Clone gunner commander jedi The enigmatic bounty hunter Boba Fett is one of the most popular characters in the Star Wars universe, and he’s also one of the most popular minifigs. Fett was first seen in LEGO form in 2000 as part of the Slave I playset and has been featured in multiple sets since. However, the Fett found in 2003’s Cloud City playset is one of the most collectible. The figure was an update to the initial model and is one of the few minifigs with printed designs on the arms and legs. Photo courtesy LEGO Wikia User LEGOGEORGE One of the most fun promotions LEGO has offered has been the “Build-A-Bilbo” event at 2012’s San Diego Comic-Con to tie in with the release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. After first stopping by the LEGO booth to pick up a specially-tagged burlap pouch, a piece of minifigure hair, and a map of “ComicCondor,” you then followed the map to other Hobbit-related booths to collect various parts of the figure.
If you completed your quest, you’d have ... a Bilbo minifig exactly like the one released later in a Hobbit LEGO set. But, if you kept that burlap sack and the map of ComicCondor, suddenly that everyday minifig is worth a whole lot more. Photo courtesy eBay user replaybricks If you were lucky enough to be in New York City’s Times Square in late May last year, you were able to see a life-sized X-Wing fighter made entirely out of LEGO bricks. To celebrate, the nearby Toys 'R Us window offered an exclusive Yoda minifig with the purchase of an X-Wing playset. Unlike most Yoda minifigs, this one was limited to only 1000 pieces, and instead of his usual Jedi robes, this diminutive Master is wearing an iconic “I Love New York” shirt. In Yoda-speak it’s “New York I Love.” See Also: 19 Awesome Little Details in Special Edition LEGO Sets In 2011, lucky Comic-Con attendees could win the very first minifig of DC Comics’ Green Lantern. The figure was presented on a card made to look like a copy of the fictional San Diego Brick newspaper, with the headline “Super Heroes Unite!” emblazoned across the top.
Obviously if you want to get top dollar for your Green Lantern minifig on eBay now, you’d better have that card. At the same Con, Batman minifigs were also given away on a similar newspaper presentation. Although it wasn’t the first time the Dark Knight had been seen in LEGO form (he’s been a staple character since 2006), it was an updated version of the figure with a more detailed print of his costume. Photo courtesy Flickr user ftbt To celebrate their new line of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle playsets, LEGO offered an exclusive “Dark Leonardo” (some call him “Shadow Leo”) minifig at New York’s Comic-Con in 2012. The figure, completely black and gray except for his brown turtle shell and famous blue mask, came with a special NYCC skateboard for surfing through the sewers of the Big Apple. Not many of the approximately 500 Dark Leonardo figures have hit the market just yet, but some have sold for as little as $225, while others have topped out at $350. Meanwhile, in another part of the city, people showed up at Rockefeller Center’s LEGO store dressed as their favorite mutant turtle in order to get their hands on an exclusive minifig—the battle-damaged Kraang.
Only 300 Kraang were made, and today they sell pretty regularly for about $100 on eBay. (Buy Kraang at Amazon.) LEGO gave away more superheroic minifigs at last year’s Comic-Con. This time around they had a hooded Green Arrow and black-and-silver Superman modeled after the costume featured in the film Man of Steel. Both figures came inside a rigid plastic case with a background showing a city in peril, and were limited to only 200 pieces each, making them pretty rare today. Similar to their DC Comics counterparts, Spider-Man and Spider-Woman also got the SDCC exclusive treatment last year. Oddly enough, there are more of these figures out there—325 of each—but they actually sell for a slightly higher price. You can’t underestimate the popularity of your friendly neighborhood wallcrawler. See Also: The Time a Giant LEGO Man Washed Up on Dutch Shores Right photo courtesy of Ebay user Primobricks; left photo courtesy Ebay user DarthLuke13 In 2007 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Star Wars, everyone’s favorite protocol droid got a bit of an upgrade.
LEGO randomly added a gold chrome-plated C-3PO minifig to 10,000 Star Wars playsets. The figures were sealed in opaque white plastic bags, but the smart collector left the bag closed and can now sell the contents for hundreds of dollars on eBay sight unseen. The Man of Steel made his minifig debut at New York Comic-Con in 2011 alongside additional copies of the Green Lantern and Batman minifigs from that year’s San Diego Comic-Con. Superman was presented with the same newspaper-style cardboard backing as the other two heroes, but there were only 200 figures available. Because Supes was so scarce, he demands a top price today. At 2013’s San Diego Comic-Con, LEGO employees wandered the Con floor and handed out the figures to random passersby. This Azog minifig is exactly the same as the one included in retail Hobbit playsets, but this one is packaged in a plastic container with a cardboard background that features the Comic-Con logo. See Also: 9 Very Rare (and Very Expensive) Video Game Cartridges
Between April 30 and May 6, 2001, 300 alien minifigs from the short-lived "Life on Mars" line of LEGO toys were sent into orbit on the International Space Station. After returning to Earth, the figures were framed with a certificate of authenticity and handed out to attendees at a special ceremony held by LEGO and NASA, making them a rare collector’s item today. After all, not everyone can say they have a minifig that’s been to space. Photo courtesy LEGO Wikia User Coo-Coo Cartoon At LEGO’s exclusive collectors preview party during Toy Fair 2012, the company handed out 125 special edition minifigs of Marvel Comics’ Iron Man and Captain America. Instead of being modeled after the movie characters that were available in superhero playsets, these minifigs were modeled after the then-current comic book versions of the characters. The Captain America figure has black arms and legs similar to the modified costume worn by Bucky Barnes when he took over as the patriotic crime fighter after the original Cap, Steve Rogers, was killed.
The defining feature of the Iron Man figure is the normal-sized minifig head with a printed-on helmet. In the playsets, the Iron Man figure has an oversized removable mask so you can see Tony Stark’s snarky smirk underneath. The minifigs came packaged together and most collectors refuse to break up the set. So if you want to get your hands on one or the other, you’ll usually have to buy them together. A few wise Toy Fair attendees have even included the badge and promotional flyer for the preview party in their auctions, helping to push the final price between $1500 and $2000. In 2010, recognizing how popular their little figures had become, LEGO introduced a set of 16 collectible minifigs, sealed in opaque plastic bags so no one could tell what figure was inside. The new minifigs included a caveman, a ninja, a robot, and a nurse. Since then, new minifig series are released every year. Series 10, released in 2013, featured an exclusive gold chrome plated figure known as Mr. Gold.