PiDog

Pidog just seems so happy, wagging his tail and doing superman and howling and trotting tricks. I watched the assembly videos and used the paper assembly instructions too - the two together complemented each other, and the only problems were where I failed to follow the instructions, which nevertheless were really good. You do need patience and good dexterity to build it - some parts are quite small and the screws and nuts for servos can be challenging. You want to think about building it as a fun challenge, like a puzzle, not as a chore full of difficulties, and you'll have a good time. It's not a simple build - there are about 70 steps, but all the parts are there and clearly labeled. The documentation is really well done - from the hardware build to how to install & run the software. The canned example programs are fun and pidog is perky and does fun stuff. It has so many sensors and behaviors. Support is good. There's a forum for asking questions and you get an answer in a day. I dropped Pidog and broke a neck servo, and also the speaker failed so no sound initially. Sunfounder shipped me replacement parts which arrived in about 2 weeks. I've run all the examples, and I'm working through the section where you create your own programs based on the source code they give you, and I find the function examples documentation clear. I suspect there's an API doc in there somewhere but haven't found it yet. It is not a software programming course, but rather a vehicle for trying python programming in a robot. Depending on your skill level with software you may spend more or less time trying to understand and re-create the sample code they give you. I'm an experienced roboticist and I was prepared to struggle and the whole experience turned out to be pleasantly problem-free. There will be learning experiences for those not so advanced - but that's why you choose a kit like this. But be careful not to give it so someone who doesn't have the right mind-set.

Completely agree with the other reviews, this is a clever design showcasing how a variety of sensors and the SunFounder's robot hat can be combined to achieve complex actions and behaviors, in this case mimicking the behavior of a dog! The examples you see on the video are real, the ear scratching, the howling, including the superdog pose when getting picked up. It is educational to be shown examples of how all these are achieved with a capable board, a bunch of sensors, and programming. Sensor readings, servos and motor controls are very easy to work with via Python. The instructions are very clear, and the website has plenty and very good examples showing every aspects of using the board to build what you want, including autoboot into listening mode so it can be always on. I have yet to try the ChatGPT integration, but I have worked with OpenAI APIs before so I am confident it will work. I can imagine prompting additional puppy actions triggers and verbal dialog / action capabilities into PiDog, making it a perfect STEM toy and kids companion. PiDog is sheer fun, but the hardware that comes with it has a lot of potential uses. It is definitely worth getting if you are like me who want to experiment building robots, but just want to focus on the level of events and actions, and don't want to spend time on the low-level hardware integration, interrupts, register readings side of things! I am excited to experiment building things I had in mind for a long time but was limited by not knowing how to work with sensors. Now I am no longer blocked! One more thing to highlight is their responsive and helpful customer service. My speaker failed on arrival, and after some troubleshooting back and forth with their patience customer service, including showing them videos of my testing, I was given a replacement board for free and everything now works.

Don't worry about reviews that say it is complicated to build. It's not, but it will take a bit of your time. Take it slow, look carefully at the pictures, and double-check things before continuing. Anyone that wants to play with this thing will likely have the patience to put it together. Just know that it takes a few hours, and then you're done! The motors are strong, the platform is well balanced, and the features are awesome. It comes with a lot of cool demo programs written in Python, and there is a remote-control app for your smartphone that will do everything you might want, if you're not interested in programming it yourself. But if you want to experiment with robotics, programming, or just plane hacking, this is an incredibly useful platform to learn on! Not to mention - it's so darned cute! The "eyes" are actually ultrasonic range finders. The "nose" is a video camera. The "tail" wags like a real doggy. And it can growl, bark, pant, whine and bark. It's even got voice-recognition! (A little finicky, but works if you speak clearly.) This is the most fun I've had in robotics in years. You'll love your new doggie almost as much as your furry friend! (Don't tell them that...)

This was awesome to build, already having fun programming my own AI pet robot. Tho some people said it doesn't work with a Pi5, it worked for me just fine. It definitly worth the money, it served me to understand how all of the sensor systems could connect. Btw, only problem I had was with a script that came with it, the one to test balance, tested it and broke 4 leg servos, so be aware when testing this premade scripts. Recomended.

This is a fun project for those of you that are interested in robotics and are just getting your feet wet. The robot is surprisingly capable considering the low price. 12 servos and multiple sensors make it a complete package. The instructions were very good (if not a little fragmented) and all the parts were included with even a few spares. The video tutorial implies that you go straight to Step Two when installing the software. Do not skip Step One: update your system.

Ce kit est juste super comme les autres produits de sunfounder. Contenu de la boite avec des pieces en plus, packaging, documentation, vidéos, exemples. Des heures de plaisir en perspective en programmation et l'intégration du pidog avec chatGPT est juste géniale.

Ich nutze den PiDog mit einem Raspberry Pi und hatte leider von Anfang an Probleme mit dem IMU-Modul (Beschleunigungssensor). Der Gyro funktionierte, aber der Accelerometer lieferte keine gültigen Werte – Balance- und Pick-Up-Funktionen waren dadurch nicht nutzbar. Was ich wirklich hervorheben möchte: Der Support von SunFounder war absolut vorbildlich. Nach einer kurzen, aber sehr sachlichen Fehlerbeschreibung und ein paar gezielten Tests wurde schnell klar, dass es sich um ein defektes IMU-Modul handelte. Mir wurde ohne Diskussionen ein Ersatzmodul zugesendet. Nach dem Austausch funktioniert nun alles einwandfrei – IMU, Balance-Test, Beispiele, alles genau so, wie es soll. Gerade bei komplexeren Projekten mit Hardware + Software ist guter Support extrem wichtig, und hier wurde ich wirklich positiv überrascht. Freundlich, kompetent und lösungsorientiert. 👉 Klare Empfehlung – sowohl für den PiDog selbst als auch für den Hersteller.

Levering uitstekend (ondanks het slechte weer) Het product is ook prima, een aanrader voor de liefhebber!

A great educational kit to learn a bit about robotics and programming in Python and AI The kit is well put together with quality parts and clear instructions As for all the tiny fixings, there are ample spares to avoid any stress if you happen to lose or drop something The only caution is that this is the V1 kit for which the Raspberry Pi must be a Pi 4 or earlier If you want to use the Pi-5 then you must order the V2 kit which is currently only available directly from SunFounder and not from Amazon The V2 kit contains improved sensors and servos and has a lower power consumption to extend the life of a charged battery