6.15 /// Has Lego Gone Too High Tech?

A Lego brick with a battery, sensors and a speaker sounds like something from the future, yet it is already turning up in real sets. I dig into the Lego Smart Brick and the strange push and pull it creates: Lego says “screen free play”, but the brick can generate sound effects and character voices that kids used to invent for themselves.

I talk through why Lego has always mattered to me as more than a building system. It is a creativity engine: you build, you break, you rebuild, then you add the story with your own sound effects, voices and make believe. That is where imaginative play lives, and it is why I’m torn. On one hand, the Smart Brick is a brilliant piece of design that makes a physical toy feel interactive without a tablet. On the other, it might remove some of the messy, joyful work that helps children practise storytelling and creative thinking.

I also get Technical: what the Smart Brick seems to contain, how wireless charging fits in, and how the system can detect movement and colours to trigger different sounds. Using the Star Wars X Wing example, we look at why this feels like “magic” and why it will tempt adults as much as kids. Then I zoom out to the bigger parenting and play question: should toys include more technology, or should Lego stay proudly simple?

If you enjoy thoughtful takes on toys, childhood, and where play is heading, subscribe, share the show with a friend, and leave a review. What do you think: does smart Lego boost imagination or replace it?

Transcript

Welcome And The Big Question

Stephen 0:05

Hello, welcome to Infinite Pradle. Um, kind of mimic the theme tune. Uh anyway, today I'm gonna be talking about something I really really love, and that's Lego. I'm going to say in something maybe controversial. Have Lego ruined the play feature of Lego? Let's get into that. Hello, welcome to Infinite Prattle. Uh, thank you very much for coming back. Uh if you drop us a subscribe and a like, that'd be ace. Um I'm Steven, I'm the host, I'm the creator of Infinite Prattle, and originally Steven Speak. Um I changed the name because I preferred Infinite Prattle, even though I really liked Stepenspeak, actually. So if you if you go back and look at earlier episodes, you'll notice there's a name change in season 5, I think it is. Four, season four. Anyway, enough about that. But this is Infinite Prattle, and uh today I'm gonna be talking about the Lego Smart Brick. So Lego have released recently some new Lego sets with a new play feature, and I do that in inverted commas for the people watching the video, and now for the people listening, because I've just described what I did. Ah, audio description. Uh by the way, for the people listening only, remember you can watch my face on YouTube. Uh Infinite Prattle uh is now a channel. It has been for a while, but now I have actual video podcasts. Anyway. Um yeah, so the Lego Smart Breaker is a new piece of technology that's been included with certain Lego sets. I think exclusively really starting with Star Wars sets, because that's where the money's at, and everyone loves Star Wars. I don't mind Star Wars, I'm more of a Star Trek guy. You know. Um, but yeah. And I don't know, I think I'm in two minds about it. Um for me, Lego is all about being able to take someone apart, put it back together infinitely, so I suppose. Uh change how something looks. Like you can look at the Lego design of a product, and then if you don't want to follow the full instructions, you can might be build it how they say, and then you could maybe change it, you could add extra bricks, take bricks away, change the colours. Um, and that's the beauty of Lego, and and using your imagination. And I think using your imagination is key here because I kind of in part love what the Lego group are doing, and I think they're a very innovative and forward-thinking company, uh, as well as as far as kind of like interaction and play features and education for children in some sense, I would say. I I loved Lego as a child, really enjoyed um the build and the creative nature of it, but I also loved just the imagination of creating your own things. And as I said on a previous episode, uh in this series, if I remember, I'll I'll put a link somewhere in in the video description or in the description of the episode. I think it was a few episodes back anyway, uh, where I revisit Using My Imagination, and I I I had a vivid imagination as a child, even playing with Lego, and I would like make the sound effects and do the swooshing noises and do the voices myself, and you know, went went full in on it, really, went full in. Like I was a child, like I I had no like kind of feel of embarrassment, that's what my brain wanted to do. Um, and this Lego brick kind of does some of that for the child. Now I I'm not saying that the child still can't have an imagination, and on the box of I think it's on all the all the art from around the world, it has a symbol on the box, and it basically says screen free play. So, what Lego is saying is get your child away from a screen, get them playing with Lego, which I think's great. I think it's great. Get them with a physical object, you know, building something, using their imagination, it's something tactile they can physically touch. Love it, love it, love it. I think it's great, I think it's great. However, they include this smart brick, which from a technology standpoint I think is amazing, like how it interacts, but they're saying get away from your tablet and use our bricks, use your imagination, but then they're also kind of like taking the imagination away from the child by including the brick, because the brick will create sound effects, will create things for the child. And I'm thinking, does that take away from something? Because when I was a kid, I did all that myself. Like, I knew what the sound effect of something was, or if I didn't, I just had to make it up. I had to use my imagination to think, what what would this plane sound like, what would this ship sound like, what would its weapon system sound like, what would this character's voice sound like? Um and mimicry and and and interaction like that, I think, is really key for development. I think it it kind of I don't know what it would develop, but I feel like it develops something, maybe a creative side, um, like thinking outside the box, kind of like lateral thinking, and it kind of challenges you to think about how something operates. Um I'm not sure whether Lego I kind of see what Lego are trying to do, but I'm not sure whether Lego is also taking away from the child as well. But in in the world of commerce and trying to push new new things and new ideas, is it is it the balance we need in today's society because children love technology. Trying to rip an iPad out of a child's hand or any other electronic tablet, I may say, um, out of someone's hand is is hard. Like I I know friends and family that have got children and like iPad timers become a thing. Um like managing that, I mean it was the same when I was a child, when I had a mega drive, I had my um my my Sega Mega Drive. Um it it was it was very much of a thing that mum said, right, you can have two hours. Um but I think video games and stuff like that weren't seen as so much of an issue because a lot of time was spent outside still, uh, and that was still kind of the focus on play. Like if it's a rainy day, I was probably allowed to play on Mega Drive more. Um and if if it if it was a sunny day, I probably was banned from playing on it because my mum wanted me to be outside in the sunshine, and that's that's only a good thing. I think at the time as a child you hate that, don't you? You like why are you restricting me? Why are you banning me from something? But as you grow as an adult, you kind of realise that no, I needed that outside time, needed that sense of discovery, sense of imagination, you know, learning that jumping off a wall is gonna hurt, um, you know, just learning about nature. I don't I love nature anyway, so I was I was quite happy to go outside. Maybe not to go and play football, but I used to love just poking around the garden, trying to discover bugs. I was I was very much that child, really. And uh playing with Lego and drawing and sketching, and that that's how I was. And this Lego brick, by the way, an amazing piece of technology, how they've managed to squeeze it in into a block. And I will be buying one of the sets just to say that I've got one and to see what it's like, and to to have that kind of interactive, like tangible interaction with with something like that. And I do think it's really, really clever what they've done, but it does worry me that adding technology into such a simple toy kind of defeats the object of the simple toy. So the Lego Smart Brick is a two by four brick, so it's it's like the traditional looking block that that Lego are famous for. I think it was actually their symbol for a while on their logo, and so it's four studs long and two studs wide. So really, really, really, really universal kind of image of that of that company. And what they've done with it, they've managed to pack a little battery into it, wireless charging, microphone. It's not as scary as you think, don't worry. Um accelerometers, uh, a speaker, um, a synthesizer, I believe, as well, a microscope synthesizer, and the the inductive system also charges the other items to power it to get a signal. So I was watching Jerry Rig Everything this morning, and this outcome with this episode, as I was thinking about doing an episode like this for a while, and after seeing Jerry Rig Everything's video, he did a teardown video. People don't know what he is. Uh he's a chap, and he basically just um rips things apart to see how durable they are, what they're made of, and then sees if you can form back together and they work. And the episode I watched this morning, I think it was quite a new episode. He had um a an X-Wing Star Wars set with this new spark brick in and a few um a few minifigs inside. There's a Luke Skywalker, Princess Leah, and like a generic stormtrooper, I think, and and a another little chap, like a ground crew kind of thing for the X-Wing. It was quite a nice little set. Apparently it's about 90 dollars, so probably about 90 pounds in the UK or thereabouts. I would I would assume is normally, weirdly enough, the dollar transition doesn't pass through exchange rates for Lego, just the dollar figure normally becomes the pound figure, which is extremely annoying, Lego. Please change that. Um and it looks like a lovely little set, quite dear, but you know you've got this new technology in it, and the little Lego um smart brick comes in and it's wireless you charge it. This little yellow wireless charger, which is pretty sweet in itself. Um, and apparently on that channel they said that for every two hours of charging, you get about 45 minutes of playtime out of the brick. But basically, what the brick does is it has a oh it has an IR sensor and a um a pr a prism to read colours. So, what it basically does is it can touch a touch sense, it can touch another minifigure or Lego piece with with that technology in, and that Lego piece will basically take an inductive charge. This is this is all from Jerry Rug Everything, so if it's wrong, blame him. Um comment on his video, not mine. Uh and apparently it takes an inductive charge off that brick, and that brick then tells the smart brick what to do, and because the smart brick has its own synthesizer, all it does is take that data and create the sound it's been told to create, which is quite a clever way of doing it. So the brick's not pre-programmed, the brick is just a vessel, it's kind of like a music the brick is like a musical instrument, and these other bricks are the people who can play music. That's how I think of it. So um if you press Princess Leia next to it, it knows that's Princess Leia, and it will make a voice for her. Um and then tied to the accelerometers and what it's next to, it will even make different sounds. So if you put Luke Skywalker in the X Wing and you start flying around, the brick senses loop Skywalkers in the ship, and then if you turn the ship upside down, you hear Luke Skywalker go like that kind of thing. In a Lego voice kind of thing. Uh really, really cool, and then if you hold different colours to it, so in that in that set, there's like a refueler. So if you hold this little refueling nozzle, which has a blue end on it, when it receives when it sees the blue, because it knows it's in that ship, it knows if it sees blue, it makes a refueling sound. Really, really clever. I think if it sees red, it is a little red spanner or a little red hammer, and that's the maintenance sound. So if you hold it against this, it does a maintenance sound, and if you push the brick forward, another brick must be of a different colour and it makes laser cannon noises. Like, super, super cool. And as a kid, definitely would have wanted this play feature, which kind of brings me back to is it taken away from children's imagination? Because I would have done all them things anyway as a child. I would have not needed a brick, smart or not, to tell me that make a refueling sound, and I would have made my own up. I wouldn't have needed a brick to go shh shh shh shh or whatever it bloody does. I would have made my refueling sound. Like I knew what the X-Wing's weapons sound like, I would have tried to recreate that myself. Is it cool that it does it for you? Hell yeah! It's in a brick this big, it's like an inch and a half long, if that and it's got all this tech in it, and it interacts with all these other this these other bricks. Hence the reason I want to buy one as an adult, because it fascinates me. But I still come back to it. It's taking the mag it's taking the magic out of having a set or a toy and doing that yourself. Um I mean thinking about like the the the the the user calls set for this really the the user call set for this is basically I think children I think there's two reasons. I think children might be embarrassed nowadays to kind of use imagination in this way and say it out loud. I think kids grow up very quickly, they're they're adapted at technology very early on, and I think there might be some sort of embarrassment as well to kind of make them noises. I don't know, maybe this is this is me spitballing, I don't know. Like I think times have changed where children try to act act more adult, and I think in that sense, I feel it might have put some restrictions on how they feel they can act. I'm I might be absolutely talking out my ring piece there. Um sorry, couldn't think of anything nicer to say, and and secondly, just the technology thing, kids are so fundamentally drawn to any technology nowadays, like phones, laptops, tablets, um, you know, AI, just anything related to the the the interact with it so much from such a young age now, um, that adding some technology into Lego for them might be amazing. And I think me as a as a as a five, six year old kid back in the late 80s, if that had come out then, it would have blown my little mind. Would I have wanted it? Yes, I want my Lego ships to make noises. Did it bother me that I had to do it myself? No, it the the technology wasn't there. Is it needed? I feel like not, but it's still a cool thing. And I think what I come back to is commercial commercialism, really. Lego found something that they think they can apply, use modern technology, knowing that the market base will be there for adults and children alike to have some of these features in their Lego Lego sets. Um I think they've just grabbed on it, and I think they've they've kind of they've come I think they've come at it from a good intention. I think that I think, don't get me wrong, I think they're trying to remove technology from kids in the sense of we're we're removing you from tablets to sit staring at a screen all day. Um and no matter what, if you play with this Lego set, it might have a bit of technology in it, but you still have to build it and still have to play with it, and still them play features still are interactive physical things. So I commend them for that. Um but could they have promoted their Lego sets in a different way without putting technology in it? Could they have made them more interactive, more appealing without putting tech in it? I don't know. I don't know. They've they've have they pushed the boundaries as far as they go with the fact of play features and franchises and you know get getting these sets um you know endorsed by by companies. Um I don't know, I don't know. F for me, maybe it's my age, it just feels wrong to put electronics in a Lego set. Um I I wouldn't even put lights in mine, like none of mine have lights in. I think they look cool, but I think it also takes away from the Lego sets. I think you should just light your Lego up. Like if you want, just shine a spotlight on it. That's all that's all it needs. Lego shines for me without any of this newfangled technology that they're trying to shove in it. Um yeah, I just I just think it's a bit of a shame that Lego are trying this. But will it be successful and where could it go? That that's the next question. I think it will be I think it will be successful just because of how it works. It it it does seem a bit like magic. Um and it is cool. It is cool. Um I think the acid test will be how quickly kids will get bored of the fixed sounds that they can get whether these Lego bricks become interchangeable, so if you buy a Star Wars set and the brick knows it's in the Star Wars set, if you introduce another tile from a different set, what happens then? Because that could be the that could be the future that really nails it. The fact that basically the little block is just only receiving data to say make this noise. So if you introduce a a tile from another set that thinks it's making a noise for another set, but you introduce it to another set, what noise will it make? Will it make a random noise? So is this something like you can really experiment with? Because I think if you can do that, that could be a cool play feature, and people will buy all the sets to get these other blood these other bricks. Will they release some bricks on their own as additions to sets as like a kind of secondary um revenue source? You've bought this set, and now we're gonna release extra bricks for it with new chips in that make different sounds, um, because you're getting a bit of aftermarket sales then, uh almost like downloadable content that we have in games nowadays. Um I kind of hope they don't do that, because it's just extra money, isn't it? But it that could be something where they get a bit of longevity out of it. Um but parents at the end of the day are gonna be the ones that that seal the deal for people. These sets aren't gonna be cheap, they're gonna be dearer, they come with a piece of technology in them, and the parents are the ones doing the buying at the end of the day. Uh, unless the adult market, the the the alfal market, as they say, adult adult fans of Lego really grasp onto these as well. I'm not sure how many of them will. If they if they hold the same kind of opinion as I do, it may be a bit of a bomb, but I'm not sure what the initial sales of it are, so we shall see. I mean I want one still, and I've got this like dubious kind of commenting kind of feeling about them. Uh, and I still do want one of the Lego sets, so maybe there will be a hit. It is Lego after all. Um, what do you think? Do you think toys should have technology in? Because Lego isn't the only one putting technology in toys. We've had we've had dolls and and and action men with technology in them previously. Um is it something that should be included to assist a child's imagination? You know, is is that a thing? Can a child be enhanced by having these things? With with does it help them develop an imagination? I don't know. Maybe I'm completely wrong in my kind of assumption of like how children's play like develops a child. Like for me, I I never had it. Think I turned out okay, maybe. Um, would it have helped me if I had a Lego smart break in my Lego? Hmm. That's an interesting point. Oh, I think it's interesting anyway. Um, thank you very much for listening. I think I'll I think I'll end it there. Um if I get one of the smart brick sets, I'll probably do a vlog on it. So um on my YouTube, I I I release vlogs every so often, I've got a couple in the pipeline, so there'll be a couple going up in the next couple of weeks. Uh, and if I do get a Lego smart brick set, I think I'll definitely do like a show and tell making of it and and kind of demonstrate it on a vlog. Because I think that'd be cool. And uh maybe my opinion will change by then. Maybe I'll I'll have fell in love with it and think it's the bee's knees. Who knows? Uh until then, uh look after yourselves and remember to keep on prattling.

SPEAKER_00 21:26

Thanks for listening to Infinite Prattle with your host Steven. Follow me on the social networks at InfinitePrattle and don't forget to subscribe.

Stephen 21:40

Thanks very much.