Just like last year, Sphero’s Star Wars BB-8 droid is poised to be the hottest gift of this holiday season.
The Force Band wearable the company teased at CES this year, along with a new war torn special edition of BB-8, now have a solid September 30th, 2016 release date.
During a hands-on preview of the Force Band, I was able to take full advantage of “The Force” in order to push BB-8 forward, pull the droid backwards, and spin its blue light directional indicator by twisting my wrist.
During my brief hands-on time with the Force Band, controlling BB-8 is surprisingly responsive, though don’t expect pinpoint accuracy when navigating with the Force Band.
The band itself, while constructed of plastic, feels surprisingly solid, though it’s bulky and compared to most wearables, feels rather large on my wrist.
In an attempt to expand the Force Band’s use beyond just BB-8, Sphero is also introducing a new Force Awareness mode where the wearable vibrates every few minutes pinging the wearer to hunt down digital ‘Holocrons’ by moving their arm through the air.
While a silly diversion from the Force Band’s true purpose of controlling BB-8, hunting for Holocrons is reminiscent of looking for Pocket Monsters in Pokemon Go.
The Special Edition version of BB-8, which includes the Force Band is set to release on September 30th for $249.99. The Force Band on its own is priced at $99.99.
We’ll have more hands-on impressions of Sphero’s new Force Band and its revamped BB-8 in the coming weeks.
