Till some time ago, DIY maker projects were tough to undertake in India for young makers. The only access kids and young makers had to kits — the likes of Littlebits and Lego mindstorm — were through Amazon, and they were bloody expensive.
But this has changed over the last two years, and this year may just mark the rise of young makers (as young as six years old!).
The maker movement is gathering momentum with a new breed of startups offering maker spaces and DIY kits sprouting across India. Maker kids are smiling all the way.
Take a look at some of these DIY kits from India.
Electron Blocks
Bangalore-based startup Electron Blocks has developed a modular platform of electronic building blocks, which you can use to create projects that incorporate various types sensors and triggers. The kit comes with a set of blocks, accessories and a project handbook to get you started. I had a go at this kit and it turned out to be quite a fun experience.
Bibox Tern
Bibox Tern is a programming platform for young makers, developed by Bangalore-based company Bibox. The console has a 32-bit processor, a colour display, built-in battery, Bluetooth 4.0 and support for mesh network. There are various interfacing ports in which the accessories that come along can be interfaced and programmed.
GraspIO
GraspIO is a development board that can be programmed using drag and drop functions via a mobile app. The device is Wi-Fi enabled and supports add-ons like sensors, motors, displays, Arduino, camera and SD Cards.
QtPi Robotics
Bangalore startup QtPi has developed a modular build-and-learn robot kit powered by the the Arduino microcontroller board that can control various components and accessories like motors and actuators used in the project build.
Phiro
Phiro is a programmable robot, developed by Chennai and Massachusetts-based startup Robotix. You can programme and command Phiro to accomplish specific tasks using methods like Pocket Code and Scratch. The device is also lego compatible, making it easy to incorporate with other Lego-based build projects.
Electro Bricks
Electro Bricks is another modular electronic building kit, developed by Roboshack Microtronics. It comes with a bunch of sensors and add-ons that can be used to develop circuits for DIY projects.
Titano Bots
Mojo, a programmable robot developed by Titano Bots, comes with sensor add-ons and accessories and connects to a smartphone/PC via Bluetooth. The robot can be programmed using a visual programming language and can be controlled with a mobile app. The product is yet to be launched.
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Disclosure: FactorDaily is owned by SourceCode Media, which counts Accel Partners, Blume Ventures and Vijay Shekhar Sharma among its investors. Accel Partners is an early investor in Flipkart. Vijay Shekhar Sharma is the founder of Paytm. None of FactorDaily’s investors have any influence on its reporting about India’s technology and startup ecosystem.
