Sphero has just announced Specdrums at CES 2019. The Specdrums is a music-focused product for kids, which also incorporates the STEAM learning method.

No matter if the kid is already artistically-inclined or just a beginner, the Specdrums will meet them at their skill level when it comes to moving and tapping to create rhythm and sound. The product encourages kids to improve their critical reasoning, language, and motor skills through the art of music. It's also great for discovering an artistic form of coding using just their imagination.

The Specdrums are available right now on sphero.com and start shipping the week of January 15, and they'll be available at select retailers in Spring 2019. Specdrums retail for $64.99 for one-ring and $99.99 for two rings. The features of the Specdrums include the following:

• Customizable sounds that allow users to explore over 100 instrument types and their unique sounds
• App-enabled silicone rings that are highly durable and also come with motion and light sensors that turn color into sound
• A multi-color playpad to tap the rings on
• Full Bluetooth capability to connect, play, and learn
• Compatible with all apps that integrate Bluetooth MIDI

Specdrums were originally developed with educators in mind, but this product helps children transition from the classroom to the home. Sphero's ultimate goal is to reach even more classrooms across the world in order to help teachers engage students effectively through hands-on music and STEAM tools.

Sphero, the maker of all those adorable rolling robots (BB-8 being one of our favorites), has unveiled its latest licensed droid from the Star Wars universe. R2-Q5, the dark astromech droid that served the Galactic Empire on the second Death Star is rolling its way into our hearts (and possibly trying to destroy the other droids we own) this holiday season. According to a blog post from Best Buy, there's only one place you'll be able to get this limited time exclusive toy.

R2-Q5 is outfitted with the same technology as the recently released R2-D2. It's got better sensors to "hear" and react to you with, blinking lights on board, a speaker (something the first-generation BB-8 is sorely lacking), and Bluetooth connectivity so you can use your smart phone to control it. Like all of the Star Wars droids, R2-Q5 interacts with the movies while you're watching them.

The newly redesigned Sphero Star Wars app features an augmented reality game so you can pretend R2-Q5 is right on the second Death Star, fixing gadgets and spying on Stormtroopers. R2-Q5 also interacts with the other droids. So, maybe you should keep them separated or there might be a laser beam fight when you're not looking.

R2-Q5 joins BB-8, R2-D2, and BB-9E in Sphero's Star Wars droids lineup. It costs $200 and is available for preorder right now, but only at Best Buy. The posted release date is December 31, but that might just be a placeholder for an as-yet-to-be-determined official launch. I can't imagine this won't be available before Christmas.

See at Best Buy

BB-8 by Sphero is the droid every iPhone and iPad owner has been looking for.

BB-8 is on sale, the teaser trailer for Rogue One is out, and The Force Awakens is available on iTunes: What better time to revisit our review of everyone's favorite little ball droid, BB-8? It's "the closest thing to a droid companion Serenity has wanted since she was six." Does it hold up to its promise? READ (or watch) ON.

The droid deets

BB-8 is, of course, the leading droid in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. And thanks to iOS robotics company Sphero, you can have your very own miniature BB-8 rolling around your home. Sphero's BB-8 is about the size and heft of a softball, sporting a magnetized truffle-sized head. Like the Apple Watch, BB-8 uses inductive charging on a smart little stand that doubles as a nice little display for the droid when he's not on patrol.

Patrol time

You may think I'm joking about "patrol", but no: Activate Patrol mode on the companion app, and BB-8 can explore all on his lonesome—no manual joystick controls required. I set him exploring the basement, where he awoke to find a most fiercesome creature. (You can see all the fun between cat and droid in the video up above.)

I really enjoyed watching BB-8 drive around on patrol, in part for all the walls, feet, guitars, and tripods he accidentally smashed into while mapping his terrain. The droid has no internal sensors letting him know where edges and walls are, so he has to figure it out by feel alone—and that means smashing into a lot of objects.

Those objects get represented as tiny Stormtrooper heads in a digital "terrain" map that BB-8 makes while out on patrol. I'm not sure if those maps get saved as individual locations for BB-8 to refer back to—he doesn't seem any smarter about my office than when he first rolled around, though he does continue to prefer under the couch as a hiding place when he smashes into something.

BB-8 will lose his tiny little head when he goes too fast into an object: The magnets are strong with this one, but he is not a Jedi yet. Thankfully, it's an easy task to pop his head back on his body.

Drive mode

You can also, of course, drive BB-8 manually, using a circular digital joystick. Driving a sphere is a little odd at first, but BB-8 has a helpful blue taillight to help you orient which side of his little robotic body is "up". In Drive mode, you can even prompt BB-8 to react with yes or no responses, joy, fear, circular and square patrols, and more.

It's in Drive mode where you can trigger BB-8's (admittedly rudimentary) voice commands, too: Say "Hey BB-8" to get the droid's attention before giving it any number of commands—"It's a trap!" being my favorite.

I drove over a variety of surfaces, including carpet, all of which were functional enough; I will say, though, that smooth, flat surfaces seem to work best for BB-8. The only indoor surface where he failed entirely was my couch, with its various divots and creases. Everywhere else, he blipped along like a little speed demon.

Watch with Me

If you happen to own a copy of Star Wars: The Force Awakens on DVD, Blu-Ray, iTunes, or your other format of choice, you can plop BB-8 in his charging stand and open the BB-8 app to have your droid watch — and react! — along with the film. If you enable "pop-ups," BB-8 will occasionally fill your iPhone's screen with information about new characters, or warnings about nefarious First Order troops about to storm the screen. (He's very thoughtful that way.)

As with the rest of the droid's features, this requires you to have Sphero's app on during the entirety of the film, both so BB-8 can "hear" what's going on and react accordingly: You're going to want your iPhone plugged in if you don't want a massive battery drain. And make sure you have your sound enabled on your iPhone, or you won't hear any of BB-8's commentary.

The downside

This droid is probably my all-time favorite Star Wars toy I've ever owned. (Sorry, numerous R2D2 items in my office, but you aren't actual robots.) That said, even with this distinction, BB-8 isn't without a few flaws.

Yep, his little robotic head may connect to his body with magnets, but it also uses little wheels to move around his body—wheels that very, very quickly get clogged up with dirt, hair, and all sorts of unpleasantness.

Your first thought upon getting BB-8 might be "Let's reenact the Force Awakens trailer!" Sadly, while Sphero's little droid is waterproof, it doesn't do so well with dirt and sand—it frequently got stuck in divots and grass patches in my backyard, to the amusement of one of my dogs.

BB-8 has a battery life of about an hour; to keep the fun going for a maximum amount of time, Sphero understandably had to move some features from the robot itself to the iOS app. BB-8's sounds and "holographic videos" all come from the device you're controlling it with, and you can't get any cute little interactions unless you have the app running in the foreground. It's a bit of a bummer—I was kind of hoping that while in the charging cradle, BB-8 would make occasional beeps and boops as I was working. I'm also sad that the microphone for listening is via the iPhone, not BB-8 himself: It prevents you from giving BB-8 any voice commands unless you're actively running the app.

Bottom line

Those nitpicks aside, BB-8 is still the closest thing we've gotten to having a droid companion in our homes—he's adorable, shed-free, and oozes of personality. You can currently find him in half a dozen major outlets online (including Sphero's own store and Amazon) and in person, though I'd hurry: droids this cute don't last long on store shelves.

• Sphero BB-8 - $129.99 - Order now

You might have noticed that a new Star Wars movie was released in theaters this past weekend, complete with a new droid called BB-8. I'm a sucker for cute droids, and decided we should definitely give away the super awesome little BB-8 droid from Sphero to one of our readers! If you haven't already read Serenity's review of the droid, you'll definitely want to check it out, right after you enter to win one for yourself!

And if you're a Star Wars fan jump over to the forums and join in the conversation in our dedicated Star Wars forums!

One lucky winner will receive a BB-8 droid by Sphero. We have two ways to enter! Just log in and leave a comment below, then head over to the forums and leave a comment on this thread in our Sphero BB-8 forum and you'll have earned two entries into the contest. No spoilers please, if you've seen the movie!

The contest is open worldwide so anyone can enter. Please remember that the prize will ship from the US and any charges incurred at customs are the responsibility of the winner. One entry per person please. If we catch you spamming you will be eliminated from the competition. We'll keep this open until the end of the month and announce the winner the first week of January. May the force be with you.