This post is sponsored by Spin Master
Parents looking for a hands-on way to encourage their tween and teens towards STEM learning will love that Meccano M.A.X. incorporates building and the trend of artificial intelligence with the lifelong skill of programming into one very cool robot. With a vision of building a better tomorrow by empowering and inspiring the next generation of Makers, the Meccano brand tasks older kids with challenging build process that requires focus and determination but is well worth the hours spent when they finally see M.A.X. come to life.
After putting M.A.X. together and downloading the software to his brain, he becomes a charming robot that responds to your voice, comes ready to react to a list of voice commands, and allows you to program Learned Intelligent Movement (LIM). Additionally, Meccano M.A.X. has a free app for iOS and Android devices that can be downloaded so you can program M.A.X. with your smart device to create custom programs, animations, and more with the drag and drop interface.
Building Meccano M.A.X.
Tweens and teens who love to build will be excited to open M.A.X.’s box to find real nuts and bolts, metal pieces, robotics components, and tools that require them to use engineering skills to build a 12” working robot. Meccano approximates that it will take ages 10+ between 1-3 hours to build M.A.X. but it could take even the most experienced builders longer to assemble their robot.
While the sheer number of parts may be intimidating to some kids and parents alike, we recommend organizing them from the start. Thomas began by clearing the kitchen table and pulling out bowls and small dishes that are essential to his building process. He cut open the many bags of parts, sorted them into various bowls, and put other parts on the cookie sheets so it would be easy to clear our kitchen table for meals without disturbing the arrangement of his pieces too much. Then he flipped open Meccano M.A.X.’s instruction book and got started.
The 66 steps of the robot build are outlined in 21 pages of easy-to-follow diagrams. Each step clearly shows builders what parts are needed and where each piece goes. The parts were easier to find because Thomas had sorted them into bowls.
Meccano M.A.X. is a great project for parents to work on with their older kids since the build promotes family bonding as well as hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, spatial awareness, problem-solving skills, and imagination. It’s also a perfect activity for Independent tweens or teens to tackle it on their own but if you find that they’ve been sitting too long or are getting frustrated, encourage them to take a break and come back to it later in the day or on another day. Putting M.A.X. together is not an easy task but is well worth the time spent when assembled.
Interacting with Meccano M.A.X.
Building Meccano M.A.X. is only half the fun because once your robot is fully assembled, there’s so much M.A.X. can do! Continue reading the instruction book after the build is completed and follow the subsequent steps to charge M.A.X. and download the software from Meccano.com since he requires the software for his brain to properly work.
Once M.A.X.’s brain is loaded with software and properly charged, the fun begins! Power him on, make sure the switch on the back of the electronics panel is flipped to “robot” rather than “drone,” and say hello. It’s rewarding to see M.A.X.’s face light up and hear him talk to you for the very first time!
After performing a hardware test, M.A.X. was ready to interact with using voice commands. He asked Thomas a series of questions to get to know him and was ready to play. M.A.X. can be used to play single or multi-player trivia games via his built-in gaming platform, make music thanks to the DJ mode, and even tell jokes. Built-in infrared sensors help M.A.X. get to know his environment and as kids interact with M.A.X., he will continue to learn. Meccano recommends that users play and interact with M.A.X. as often as possible so he can build a well-rounded knowledge base.
In addition to the built-in gaming platform, tweens and teens can download the free Meccano app for iOS and Android devices to create custom programs, animations, and more through an easy to use drag and drop environment. There’s even a place to install your phone behind M.A.X.’s light up face to enjoy even more ways to interact with your robot friend.
Similar to the previous comment, please change the disclosure from Meccano to Spin Master in both the text overlay of the video (beginning and end) as well as the description.
Meccano M.A.X. Summary
Meccano M.A.X. is a captivating hands-on STEM learning experience that fully engages tweens and teens through a challenging build that provides the satisfaction of building a robot that uses artificial intelligence to respond to their voices. The building process teaches kids practical skills they will use for life including improving hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, spatial awareness, problem-solving skills, and using your imagination. While M.A.X.’s downloadable software has plenty of interactive activities for kids to do with their new robot, Meccano’s free app provides the opportunity for kids to create custom programs for M.A.X. to further extend their learning of coding.
Meccano M.A.X. is best for ages 10-14 and retails for $149.99 but is currently available through Amazon for $99.99.
For more information about Meccano M.A.X.:
- Visit Meccano.com
- Subscribe to the Meccano YouTube channel
Win Your Own Meccano M.A.X.
My fabulous friends at Meccano want to gift your family with your very own Meccano M.A.X. robot worth $149.99! Enter using the Rafflecopter form below and good luck!
Spin Master compensated me for this post, creating the accompanying videos on my YouTube, and hosting a giveaway but all opinions are my own and are based on personal experience. Amazon affiliate links are included in this post.
I think my son would love that you can interact with using voice commands.
looks like a fun project to build & program
My boys would love that he tell jokes.
My daughter would love since she is just getting into the stem program at her school this would really help her learn more with on hands..
I like that he can download the software to make the robot’s brain work.
I think the satisfaction of actually building something like this herself, rather than buying a pre-built robot toy, would be the most rewarding.
I like the building part of the process. Lots of devices have voice command but getting this next set of kids hands on building devices is something I miss from my early custom computer build experiences.
I think the building would be her favorite. Then having it come to life.
We homeschool so STEM is a huge part of our day. We do lots of science experiments
I know the biggest aspect they would like the most i it is interactive. How cool is that? Unbelievable technology and so fun looking too.
I think the challenge and process of building it would be what they like the most.
For sure the voice command will be a hit!
The light up face!
They would like the way the robot’s brain work. This would be thrilled to play with.
https://techsavvymama.com/2017/11/saving-money-on-amazon.html#comment-231862
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Not sure if one of the comments you want here is one that pertains as it has to do with the bike? I would want to get the Product TitleHyper 16″ Nitro Circus Motobike Kids’ Bike.
Again,not sure if thats what you want, I took the entry, if you want me to change it holler at me!
Visit Walmart.com and leave a comment sharing which 20″ Nitro Circus bike you’d prefer to win. was the question…. 4th entry down first blog question. The link takes you here:
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The fact that it has AI.
My kids will like it’s light up face, built in gaming system and the sensors through which it learns about it’s environment.
I think my son would really love that the robot can talk to him. That sounds so cool.
My son would like that he tell jokes.
https://twitter.com/tannawings/status/936399768489811969 redone retweet couldnt fix on form .
my son would love building it
My son would like the voice command.
I think that the aspect of assembling the robot yourself is the coolest part.
One way of encouraging STEM learning in the home is actually to encourage it. Let kids explore, let them dig deeper. Hands on, and having fun. Science and other stem doesnt have to be boring, bring it to life.
I think they would enjoy actually getting to put something this cool together.
I believe the fact that it is so interactive. I think this is. Dry important.
The kids would like to learn and I think they’d love to start at an early age. Technology so important would be neat to see them do it.
They would like the multi-player trivia games.
My daughter would love the ability to create custom programs!
My daughter has been asking for him! I know that she would love that he tells jokes, plays games and learns from you. I love that his personality grows with you the more you play with him. He is a really cool little guy!
I know he would love the programming part of it!
My kids would love to build this robot. Love that light up face.
We try to buy more and more STEM toys and games. We also do DIY STEM projects at home.
I would love Hyper 20″ Nitro Circus BMX Kids’ Bike, Matte Black
My boys love building stuff and this is awesome!
I like that it helps with problem solving and will help her with programming
My son would love that it has voice commands.
My son would love that he can interact with the robot by voice commands!!! And also he would love building it.T
My daughter would love that it tells jokes.
My son would love interacting with it, he would like everything about it!
I know my tween boys would just love the DJ mode and building the robot! This would be so fun for them to do!
I have toys my boys can engage with that encourage unstructured creative play, like a huge bin of Legos, wooden blocks, craft supplies, These toys are excellent for my boys as they are fostering creativity as well as educating them in geometry, engineering and soooo much more. Plus, they love diving deep into stem learning!
This is something my son would absolutely love. He loves to build things and then the added bonus of it being interactive is awesome.