Keep in mind that review and the first video are for the v2 Sphero, not the one being sold here (which the company markets as Sphero Original.)
I have the 2.0 version. I got it for free, or I would have felt pretty dumb for paying the $130 list price. I do like it, but not $130 worth, and not even $50 worth. Maybe $30 worth.
Sphero is cool and kind of fun, and it’s endearingly animated, making me feel almost like it’s alive. But there’s just not that much to DO with it, unless you’re really creative and want to orchestrate elaborate pranks or other activities.
I took Sphero to my mother-in-law’s house for Thanksgiving and tried it out with her dogs. One was terrified of it, and the other two just ignored it. The kinfolk kind of laughed about the whole concept and thought it was neat, but I noticed that no one asked to try it out. And after a few minutes, no one was even paying attention to it.
Bottom line is that it IS a neat device, but to make it worthwhile, you’re going to have to spend some time figuring out something to do with it.
Developer: “Hey! Look what we can do!”
Manufacturer: “We can make it for you!”
Marketing: “Americans will buy anything technology based.”
Stores: “We hope this sells.”
Consumer: “Why did I buy this?”
The enthusiasm toward this product seems to dwindle as you do down the list.
The one awesome thing about this is that they don’t claim it will do anything for you and become a danger… like the laptop steering wheel desk.
Mixed Reality as opposed to Augmented Reality?
There’s an unofficial SDK for Windows Phone 8 at GitHub - lewisbenge/Sphero-WinPhone8-SDK: Windows Phone 8 SDK for Sphero robotic ball..
Very expensive pet toy… I’ll stick with the old standby, the laser pointer.
Why not?
That would make it 10x more expensive im sure.
Just like everything, the bulk of development is in iOS and Android. Why not write your own apps for WP, like this guy?
The last time these were on Woot I bought one for my nephew’s 13th birthday in mid-November, he took it with him for the family Thanksgiving get together and all the kids loved it. My sister says that my nephew plays with it constantly and has added all kinds of apps - so maybe you just need to target the right user.
Wonder if I can use this in the pool league?
Bluetooth Class 1 can reach 100m/300ft in theory.
I thought these things had sensors or something that relayed info back to the smartphone? (So as long as it, and your phone, had power you could always “see” what was around it.)
It’s a nifty pet or baby toy to get them to move about, but a bit less powerful than an R/C car. (Remember those? With the long antenna you could tie a rabbit’s foot to?)
I placed my order on 12-5-13, and as of today, I still haven’t got it yet. I check on the shipping status, it said ready to ship, but it’s been like that for past 5 days, and I email them three times and not even one repsotnd at all. Will I ever see this before Christmas…
I can see a tracking number but it doesn’t look right. We’re checking with the vendor to see what’s up.
I’m in the same boat - ordered on 12/6, got an automated order shipment message just now with a tracking number that shows the box was delivered two states away.
So either a bad address or a bad tracking number. And bad Woot! customer service as I’ve emailed them twice now for status and gotten not a peep in reply.
We’re very sorry this issue hasn’t resolved yet.
As ThunderThighs posted earlier, we alerted Woot Staff to the issue and they’re working on a resolution.
We greatly appreciate your patience during this matter and we will update all of you as soon as we hear back.
I just got an email that says the Sphero has shipped with this tracking number - 565992570xxxxxx.
Tracking this shipment shows it delivered to an address in Webster City, Iowa. Once again, this is not even close to my location in Ohio.
Can you let me know what’s going on - and if I should give up on this for Christmas delivery?
Thanks,
Cam
Argggh. Let me see what I can find out.
Any new info? This seems to be the only place to connect with a person!
I still have not gotten anything other than an automated response to my three support@woot messages 
Really poor showing on the service side of things.
Thanks for your efforts to help on this side,
Cam