This Playdate Mod Turns the Handheld Into the Cutest Little Robot Ever

Panic’s $200 Playdate has had an absorbing tally arsenic a pint-sized gaming device, but the charming handheld with a crank has proved it’s susceptible beyond games. Now, the small handheld could person immoderate mobility options successful the signifier of a wheelchair-like add-on. With the PlayBot dock, the instrumentality tin maneuver by itself. More than that, it turns it into an interactive, playful favored robot, ala the KEYi Loona.

France-based hardware DIYer Guillaume Loquin developed the PlayBot, a dock for the Playdate attached to 2 wheels, a motor, and a fewer other surprises successful its 3D-printed shell. Loquin developed other bundle that uses the device’s accelerometer and microphone to interact with the idiosyncratic and the satellite astir it. Along with PlayBot’s built-in IR, distance, and airy sensors, the Playdate becomes a desk-side favored with a astonishing magnitude of personality. In a video, PlayBot startles awake erstwhile nudged. It tin besides halt itself from rolling disconnected the desk.

The side-loaded bundle includes all-new animations, giving the Playdate expressive eyes akin to the device’s archetypal startup animation. When you crook the crank, it cycles done fractional a twelve oculus types, making the small bot dizzy. Loquin provided all the code for the companion app, positive each the STL and PCB files for the hardware, connected their Github profile. You tin physique 1 yourself with the close committee and entree to a 3D printer.

PlayBot is built utilizing a Teensy 4.1 microcontroller, portion everything other is printed. It makes it a alternatively elemental physique for those who cognize what they’re doing, and it’s good worthy it if you ain a Playdate and privation to marque it your favourite desktop companion. The dock besides acts arsenic a spot to complaint your Playdate erstwhile unused. The developer said the dock usually gets astir 45 minutes of enactment connected a afloat charge.

© Gif: Guillaume Loquin

The PlayBot’s open-source quality besides allows much developers and animators to make caller capabilities. I could ideate sticking a pencil holder onto the ammunition and utilizing a motion to inquire PlayBot to travel implicit to my broadside of the table erstwhile I request to scribble a thought. Inefficient? Obviously. Extremely cute? For certain.

The Playdate itself has proved to person a astonishing magnitude of staying power. Developer Panic has its on-device app store that includes a astonishing breadth of titles, e-readers, and different distractions for your $200 doohickey. Last month, Playdate showed disconnected a fewer arcade cabinet-style devices to beforehand immoderate landmark Playdate titles. However, I similar my devices to beryllium tiny and handheld. Now, I can’t assistance but ideate however large it would beryllium to person my Steam Deck dock rotation up to maine connected wheels each clip I’m successful the temper for handheld gaming.