A significant portion of Star Wars fans, especially those charmed by the latest film, have likely browsed online or visited the nearest toy store to purchase the miniature version of the BB-8 droid. However, the enthusiastic Filipino Angelo Casimiro, better known for his YouTube channel TechBuilder, decided to build one from scratch. Difficult? Undoubtedly, but how many can say they have a BB-8 in their homes at full scale?
The Force Awakens managed to deliver what Disney expected, and much more. With a box office about to surpass two billion dollars and excellent reviews from specialized critics, the titan of Buena Vista Street decided to greenlight all upcoming projects in the Star Wars universe. Rogue One will hit theaters next December 16, and a year later we'll see what is supposed to be Episode VIII. At the same time, no one in their right mind could ignore the impact of the merchandising. All barrels point to April 5 as the release date for the home distribution (both Blu-ray and DVD), but there are also the toys, the dolls, and a certain spherical robot that melted hearts.
Yes, I'm talking about BB-8. I'm still waiting for it to appear in the famous happy meal of a certain fast food chain, but anyone who wants their own BB-8 now can buy it online through Sphero. The alternative is to build a clone of BB-8... and that's exactly what TechBuilder did on YouTube and the Instructables portal. The most striking thing about his design is not that it works perfectly, but that he actually used relatively simple components to obtain. The total cost of materials did not exceed $120, meaning his "homemade" version of BB-8 is cheaper than the official toy.
Without going too far, I think the most complex element of the design is Arduino Uno, which costs just over $20, excluding taxes. The video accompanying the tutorial (which you can see above) is 20 minutes long, however, it is essential that all interested parties go and closely explore the instructions on the Instructables page. In summary, an extraordinary work by TechBuilder, and I hope many others follow his example.
