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.
On the heels of Force Friday II and ahead of the upcoming Star Wars: The Last Jedi film, Sphero aims to once again bring droid technology from the Star Wars films to a galaxy much closer to you. Actually, make that a Best Buy near you.
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.
