Difference with the Radio Shack version of the Ultimate Robot Kit

#1

Is there any difference between the Radio Shack version and the version that sells directly from Makeblock? The Radio Shack version does seem to sell for less. Thank you.

#2

Hello

No difference, the only problem is small parts of the 25mm DC motors may not working, but Makeblock will replace it, if you have this problem.

Thanks

#3

No they won’t.

Although Makeblock claims to be replacing motors, I don’t believe it. I have emailed and posted and emailed and posted and I have had zero response from Makeblock. I have only heard of one person who actually received replacement motors. It makes me wonder about their commitment to supporting their products.

Radio Shack is selling them cheap because RS liquidated the stock as part of their massive store closing.

#4

Has ANYONE actually had their motor’s replaced?

Has ANYONE received a definitive way to test if their motor is good or bad?

Had ANYONE done their own testing to find out exactly what the problem is?

Is it to do with the switching frequency? Or the voltage being used? Or the drivers on the Orion board?

I bought may be a hundred of these motors in kits and as single motors and have not been able to get any response to help me test and identify exactly what the fault is.

This should be nothing to do with the retailer, be it RadioShack or any other seller. These units were stocked as regular stock items by RadioShack and were sold with full manufacturer’s wty.

Makeblock… please do the right thing and get this taken care of.

#5

@jond: I got my motors replaced. According to this forums, several others did too (Makeblock communication is poor, you need to write them again if you didn’t get any response). Check other threads related to these topics.

#6

Apologies to the OP for hijacking the thread.

I have checked the forums. What I found is that there are a lot people that have complained. Very few have publicly indicated that they received replacements. Why is that? I say it’s because they gave up and moved on.

I contend that Makeblock has decided it is to their monetary advantage to ignore those customers and go forward with new projects. After all, what are the old customers gonna do? Sue them? Ha! If anybody is pissed off about the situation, they may want to vent their frustrations on every Makeblock Kickstarter thread to discourage new investors.

#7

No problem JerryRigs. It seems like the only problem is the motors in this otherwise good kit. I’d still like to purchase it but so many people are complaining about the motor problem that it may be safer to wait. Were they ALL bad or just some? I’d still give it a chance if Makeblock made good on replacing the motors PROMPTLY if there was any issue.

#8

After months, I am still trying to communicate. Pioneer has responded couple of times asking that I send additional info, but then nothing. I am inclined to agree that I think Makeblock are trying to walk away from this issue. As far as I can see, it is not even certain what the issue is. Using higher voltage seems to help, but I think it is a motor design issue and compatibility with the driver circuit and PWN frequency. If only there was some decent communication, I am sure this could get resolved.

It is sad to see a great product be marred by such poor customer service. The lost confidence in consumers must be very significant.

#9