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28 of 31 found the following review helpful:
Eh, Not Bad, Not GreatFeb 08, 2010
By goonius
The Hexbug Ant isn't a bad miniaturized robotic creature; once you get one that works, that is. Our first one went backwards, but refused to go forward, so got stuck a great deal. Fortunately I ordered from one of the sellers currently offering this toy through Amazon, Fat Brain Toys, and they have fantastic customer service, so another was dispatched immediately and arrived pretty quickly. The second one worked as advertised.
The properly-working Ant has front and rear sensors that alert it anytime it encounters an obstacle, reversing its direction so it will keep going. There is a little switch on the rear of the Ant to switch it on, and once on it is in constant motion until you manage to catch it; it is quite fast. The Ant is powered by six rapidly spinning three-prong wheels; three on either side as you'd expect from an arthropod. The leg/wheels are joined up to one another by small gears, and the one huge annoyance with the Ant is that the leg/wheels and accompanying gears like to pick up every little bit of dust and pet hair on your floor. Ultimately a little dust bunny is all it takes to bring this little creature to a halt. You then have to pick it up, switch it off, disentangle the pet hair and fluff that it picked up from - say - underneath the dresser, and give it another go. I thought I had a clean house until I invited this little critter into it, and I'm rather insulted by all the fluff he's finding under our furniture. Where does he keep finding all these dust bunnies? I vacuumed like two days ago...
Of course, an easy fix for this would be using some blocks to set up an obstacle course for it, not allowing it to find all the hidden dust bunnies under furniture, or maybe you're fortunate enough to own a Roomba or something that gets all those hard to reach places that the Ant finds and gets gunked up in.
If you can keep the Ant from critiquing your housekeeping skills by getting locked up every time it ducks under a piece of furniture, it's a pretty cute little toy, especially for the price. I like the transparent casing and the overall style of it. The speed is pretty entertaining, and I can see the cat getting a kick out of it... and then dealing it the final blow with a big puffy hairball.
I don't know that I'd buy it again, all things considered. If I'd known about the pet hair/dust bunny issue I might have sprung for a pricier slow-mover like the crab who also seems to have better clearance from the ground.
12 of 13 found the following review helpful:
A nice robotic toy for a starter.Dec 27, 2009
By Nuknuk
This toy bug robotic ant runs fast. Catching it is a challenge, so be careful where you let it go. Uses two button batteries. The switch is at the back. Unlike the Hex nano, the ant can run on carpets. It has six legs or wheels (whichever you want to call them).
Compared to the nano, the ant cannot flip back to its feet if it happens to flip upside down. It also is more likely to get entangled on wires or strings.
A nice robotic toy for a starter.
7 of 7 found the following review helpful:
 Fast, Attention-Grabbing ToyJul 23, 2010
By phx_kc
"KC"
Bought this as a gift for a 5 year-old nephew. He loved it. Goes super-fast, changes direction easily at the slightest obstacle, and was simple to use right out of the box. Not sure on durability, but for the price, even if it only lasts a week, it was money well spent.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
My kids love it!Jun 25, 2010
By Becky Johnson
"Ms. Becky"
I have a 5 and 6 year old who absolutely love these things! They seem pretty sturdy too. I highly recommend.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
A LOT OF FUNMar 19, 2010
By Margaux Paschke
We purchased these at a store for my son as a reward for a good report card. He wanted yet more Bagukan but we saw these and thought it would be a better purchase. This toy bug turned out even better then expected!
Other toys are popular but once purchased, can have a very short life span. This one looked like fun and something that could last a while. My son was not thrilled with this toy until we took it out and turned it on (small switch on the back of the bugs). Man this thing scurries fast! It gets into everything and those dust bunnies under the sofa, etc. will muck up the gears. Be prepared to move furniture or crawl under things to retrieve them as they sometimes get stuck. They are sturdy enough to survive an attack from our dog who also loves to chase after it.
Right now, my son and husband argue over who gets to set off the bug after they set up obstacle courses for it. The bug works well on tile, hardwood floor, and carpet. It even manages to go over slight bumps if it has enough of a head start. My son is saving up his allowance to buy more. The One Individual Nano Hexbug Robot with Online Code - Colors May Vary are another huge favorite. Just note that these bugs are too big for the Nano HexBug habitat. The HexBug comes with batteries and they last for a long time but when it does come time to replace them be careful when reassembling. The legs come off when the back is opened to replace batteries (easily done) and you need to make sure the gears touch on the legs (the leg with a gear on each side goes in the middle slot).
My son is now thrilled with this toy and plays with it all the time. They cost more then Bagukan but worth it in my book. The Nano bugs are even cheaper and provide just as much fun.
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