Star Wars BB-8 Toy Will Be Rolling Out This September!

One of the main talking points about the first teaser trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens was a little rolling droid who became identified as BB-8. His brief role (or roll, if you will) in the promo clip instantly gained him legions of adoring fans and the bot even got his own internet meme. Now he’s going to become a toy, thanks to the creators of Sphero.

Those who have seen the trailers for Episode VII will know BB-8 has the head of an astro-mech droid similar to that of R2D2 but has a round spherical body which spins underneath, allowing him to move in any direction while the top part remains in place and is able to turn left and right or do a full 180 degree rotation. This seemingly impossible and complex range of movement prompted many to speculate that BB-8 was a CGI construct and not actually real.

Also See: Star Wars The Force Awakens Second Trailer Brings Us Home

But the makers of Star Wars: The Force Awakens delighted the fans at the recent Star Wars Celebration when they gave BB-8 his first official introduction and the diminutive droid actually showed up on stage to answer that question for himself. He even managed to upstage veteran Star Wars bot Artoo with his arrival in real life.

So with BB-8 confirmed as being an actual thing the next question is inevitably – how can I get one??

Well, tech toy company Orbotix is already on the ball and has teased their BB-8 on a section of their website which shows a silhouette of the robot with the caption ‘This is the droid you’re looking for’. You can also register an email address to receive updates on how and when to get your very own BB-8.

We’ve previously got to play with the original Sphero ball from Orbotix at the Gadget Show Live a few years back and also its follow-up the Ollie. Both of these incredibly innovative toys are remote control gadgets for the smartphone era and we’re guessing that BB-8 will also be used in conjunction with a mobile device, meaning you’ll probably be able to control this droid with your Android. It will likely feature a body based on the classic Sphero and magnetics to balance the head piece, just like the mechanics used for it’s on-screen counterpart.

Also See: Orbotix Sphero – App and Ball is the New Bat and Ball!

Star Wars is one of the most profitable film franchises largely thanks to the amount of merchandising it produces and with a new movie conveniently released just in time for the festive season we see a lot of BB-8s rocking and rolling around the Christmas tree this year!

[Update:]
A product page for the Star Wars BB-8 Robot toy went live briefly on the Fat Brain Toys website but seems to have been pulled – but not before Gizmodo was able to capture a screenshot showing it will be available from September 1st and costing $149.99!