Earlier this morning, Sphero announced a new Star Wars themed toy based off the BB-8 Droid from the upcoming The Force Awakens movie. Sphero is a robotic ball that you control remotely and is quite a lot of fun. Indeed, the company already has a Windows and Windows Phone 8.1 app for their Sphero 2.0 toy.
Windows Central reviewed the Sphero 2.0 app and the toy in the past coming away rather impressed.
Sphero 2.0 review for Windows and Windows Phone 8.1
However, the BB-8 version is on a different level and evidently requires a different app. Indeed, our sister site Android Central wrote about the new app and Sphero BB-8 Droid, noting:
"The BB-8 app includes several control methods, including voice controls tuned to the owner, sentry mode between pre-determined areas, and even autonomous behavior if you just want the droid to roam around and play. Sphero describes BB-8 as having an adaptive personality and claims its behavior will change based on interaction with you. A line you'll see repeated in marketing material is how this droid is more than a toy, it's your companion."
Android and iOS were guaranteed compatibility, but what about Windows Phone users? Evidently, they are not forgotten. In response to the question, the Sphero team informed Orion L. not to worry:
"We are working on a Windows phone App! Timeline TBD."
So that's the good news. The bad news is it is not clear when the app will land and if they are making it a universal Windows 10 app (which they should).
The Sphero BB-8 Droid is launching tomorrow, September 4 aka Force Friday to the tune of $149. The Windows Phone app, however, is not yet ready so that it will be behind the curve. Luckily, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is not due until December giving Orbotix some breathing room before the holiday season.
Needless to say, we're excited and hope Orbotix follows through with a Windows Phone app. Stay tuned. In the meantime, you can read more about Sphero BB-8 on the official site.
Source: Twitter; Thanks, Orion, for the tip!
