3Doodler’s getting out ahead of Toy Fair with the release of a whole bunch of new products, including a handful of kits and a pair of pens that mark some big licensing deals for the New York-based startup.
The new devices don’t represent new entirely products, so much as spinoffs of its existing lines, the flagship Create and the Start, a larger and safer version targeted at younger hands.
The Start Robotics Pen Set is the new focus of the latter, featuring an activity guide that takes young users through the process of connecting motors and blocks to create basic robotics. The pen will also be getting an architectural set that features illuminating wires for building iconic, light up buildings. A third Product Design, kit, meanwhile, is targeted at building smaller scale creations like clocks and wrist watches.
“Having started out inventing robots at WobbleWorks, it’s quite a treat to be closing the circle with 3Doodler robot kits,” CEO Max Bogue told Techcrunch. “The increased importance of STEM in education means this is also an awesome time to be doing this – helping kids learn and make.
The company’s using its Create pen to launch a pair of high profile partnerships with CBS and Cartoon Network, bringing branded versions of the device with kits focused on designing different pieces of IP. The Star Trek branded device, which will be available, fittingly through Think Geek, comes with plans for drawing some Original Series designs, like the Enterprise, Spock ears and a phaser.
A PowerPuff Girls Create pen, meanwhile, features stencils with characters from the long running animated series. The company has also partnered with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to create designs based on classic architecture like Illinois’s Farnsworth House.