Kano PC
kano.me
£299
We’ve had the pleasure of reviewing several products from Kano in the past – headphones, a mouse, a webcam, a keyboard...Basically, every accessory a computer needs. Now, at last, we’ve tried the computer itself.
Although some of us are still waiting for our letters from Hogwarts, if you think about it, us muggles can perform some pretty incredible magic. With a touch of a button, we can have a face to face conversation with a friend on the other side of the world, we can switch off the lights just by speaking the right words… I even recently reviewed a self-stirring spoon just like Mrs. Weasley’s! Maybe we can’t perform the Levicorpus on people that annoy us, but we don’t have to deal with dragons either, so swings and roundabouts.
With so many young faces glued to various devices you may despair at the thought of what maybe happening to their minds, however there is so much potential to inspire creativity and curiosity with this modern world, the Kano Computer Kit Complete allows children from the age of 6 to build their own laptop and learn to code. The Kano is powered by Raspberry Pi 3 and Kano OS and comes with all the apps and programs you need, including a DIY Speaker, a 3,000 mAh lithium battery, four USB ports, keyboard with 15m wireless radio frequency and 40h battery life,
The new Pixel Kit from Kano allows you to make and code its 16x8 LED Grid and 128 RGB LED light into a mini disco, as well as build your own games, animations and art work. Suitable from ages 6+, when you open the box, you will find buttons, three USB ports, a board, joystick, stickers and more. The instructional story books will walk you through building the Pixel Kit - you will learn as you make, and when it is finished, it can be connected to your computer and the Kano App, so turn on the lights and start coding.
The Motion Sensor Kit, new from Kano, is their simplest coding kit. Suitable for ages 6+, both big and small hands can earn how to code and make hand-controlled apps with this kit. Compatible with both Mac & PC, it is easy to use and set up; simply open the box, take out the bits, connect the sensor, sucker and cable, then follow the book to learn how to control it. Before you begin, you will also need to download the Kano app onto your computer.