The Ultimate Kit Guide

Component Quality: 5

(5=Highest quality) How nice are the components in terms of materials, design, fit, and other qualities? Well-made circuit boards, computer-cut plastic and metal parts, and other precision components add to the experience.

coke and mentos kit

Diet Coke and Mentos Kit

Make Kit Reviews

Diet Coke and Mentos Kit

$25

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Reviewed: December 1st, 2011

Recreate the Internet sensation in your own backyard! Fresh from their performance at Maker Faire, the guys at EepyBird hand-crafted replica PVC nozzles just like the ones they use themselves. Each kit contains a variety of nozzle cuts to give you the coolest, highest-shooting geysers. They even throw in a pack of Mentos to get […]

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The Dice Kit

The Dice Kit

Make Kit Reviews

The Dice Kit

$20

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Reviewed: November 13th, 2011

This is a fantastic introductory electronics kit that comes with your choice of large red or green LEDs and everything else needed (aside from a soldering iron, solder, and flush cutters) to make one electronic 6-sided die. (The manufacturer says: “The name Dice Kit sounds a great deal better than ‘Die Kit’, so we bent […]

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Mechamo Inchworm

Mechamo Inchworm

Make Kit Reviews

Mechamo Inchworm

$70

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Reviewed: October 26th, 2011

Make a mind-blowing remote controlled “Meka-Inchworm” robot with this fun, no-soldering-required kit. You’ve got to love a machine that moves like a bug! It’s Japanese, but we’ve got English instructions at makezine.com/go/inchworm. MAKE is proud to be the exclusive distributor in North America for these brilliant kits, part of Gakken’s Mechanical Animals Series. Reviewer Tyler Bennett […]

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Lego Mindstorms NXT 2.0

Lego Mindstorms NXT 2.0

Make Kit Reviews

Lego Mindstorms NXT 2.0

$280

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Reviewed: October 25th, 2011

This latest version of Lego’s popular Mindstorms robotics kit includes a new 3-in-1 color and light sensor with LEDs; a new ball shooter; and tank treads. On the software side, an image editor now lets you convert your own images to fit the LCD display, and a sound editor records and converts sound clips, to play […]

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Topobo

Topobo

Make Kit Reviews

Topobo

$149

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My living room looks like Darwin’s laboratory. A three-legged creature writhes on the floor. My daughter pulls off a leg and connects it to its face. My son teaches it to walk. It’s really moving now! This is how you play and learn with Topobo. Topobo is part construction toy, part kinetic memory robot. By […]

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