Sphero R2-D2 Is 100% The Droid You Are Looking For
Sphero’s new interactive R2-D2 replica promises to break new beeping ground like no booping Star Wars toy before.
We’ve sung the praises of numerous products paying homage to the galaxy’s boldest Astromech, but they all lacked a certain sense of personality this particular little guy exhibits in spades. It speaks to Artoo’s heart as huge and vast as Tatooine that he would store our lunches, chill our beverages, charge our wireless devices and wrangle our garbage. Still, he has never felt as much like a true-blue (and white with a dash of silver) companion as this. Sphero specializes in droids programmed for the most responsive play possible, and from his faithfully recreated motion to his spontaneous replies to whatever is happening around him, C-3PO’s better half is no exception.
For that, we can largely thank Sphero’s free iOS and Android app. This device-based hub enables Artoo’s every flourish of personality as he transitions between his tripod and bipod stances, rolls in any direction and lets loose with his inimitably sassy emotive waddle, all while spouting film-authentic beeps and boops from his integrated speaker and flashing his fully functional front and rear LED lights. If your protocol droid feels an itch for adventure, give it a friendly scratch by guiding him through holographic simulations of numerous classic Star Wars vessels’ recreated environments.
Our favorite activity, though? Lining Artoo up with fellow Sphero droids BB-8 and BB-9E to watch the intrepid trio react in real time to their favorite cinematic moments, thanks to the app’s Watch With Me feature. You haven’t truly enjoyed the immortal intergalactic saga until you’ve watched it alongside three chattering robot pals.
