Create a Bluetooth speaker, theremin, drum machine or anything else you can code.
London-based DIY computing company Kano has launched a Kickstarter campaign for its latest products, three kits that aim to make building electronics and coding for them easy and fun.
The most interesting for music fans is the speaker kit, which contains everything you need to create a tiny Bluetooth speaker. The pack also contains components that turn the device into an instrument, such as a drum pad and gesture sensor.
Rather than running straight out of the box, it uses Kano’s own coding system and series of step-by-step challenges to get different functions out of the device. These include a looper, theremin and simple drum machine.
It also comes with boom tube and knobs in case you want to use it as a regular wireless speaker. The gesture sensor also allows you to use hand proximity to change volume or add distortion.
Kano has created two other kits: a tiny five-megapixel camera with a tripwire sensor and a pixel grid with buttons and joystick that allows you to code simple games or visualise sound waves.
In addition to Kano’s own step-by-step guides, an online platform called Kano World allows users to share their own code with the community.
Each kit costs $99, or you can buy all three for $249. The Kickstarter campaign runs until October 27, and has so far raised $374,000 of the $500,000 Kano needs to make the project happen.
Earlier this year audio giant Bose launched its own DIY speaker, though Kano’s kit looks a lot more versatile.