The Sphero BB-8 Droid, a new toy from Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, has grown in popularity ever since it was released.
Users are given the ability to use their smartphones to control the movements of the robot, though this is only the most basic feature of the toy.
One of the BB-8 Droid's features is that it can recognize its users' voice and react to commands. However, upon the release of the toy, the feature was not readily available for Android smartphone users, despite the voice command feature being one of the most prominently advertised ones.
Sphero, however, has now included the voice command capability for the BB-8 Droid in Android smartphones through an update on the official BB-8 app.
The update takes the BB-8 app to version 1.0.1, and in addition to adding voice command support for Android users, the app upgrade also adds tweaks to the user interface, fixes to connection issues and compatibility for several other devices.
To activate the feature, users can go to the settings of the official BB-8 app for Android and go into the options, where the Voice Commands option can be activated. Upon activating the feature, users can begin to issue a variety of voice commands to the toy, including making it move forward and backward and enter patrol mode. Users can also say the famous Star Wars line of "It's a trap!" by Admiral Ackbar to cause the BB-8 Droid to move away quickly.
Sphero's BB-8 Droid is an update to the robotic ball that the company has previously released. With the toy now updated to the likeness of the BB-8, a droid first seen in trailers for Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens and has become much loved by Star Wars fans, the robotic ball has gained immense popularity.
Controlling the BB-8 Droid, similar to Sphero's robotic ball, is tricky at first, but users will soon get the hang of it.
The official app of the robot also comes with several pre-programmed moves, and the toy is capable of beams a message by the user into a hologram through augmented reality on the screen of the device.
There are many other things that the $149 Sphero BB-8 Droid can do, and now Android users can also do voice commands for the robot.
