Back at the Star Wars Celebration fan event in April, JJ Abrams, Kathleen Kennedy, and the rest of the Star Wars: The Force Awakens cast shocked the people in attendance when they unveiled a fully working version of BB-8, the soccer ball styled droid from the film's first teaser.
Many believed that the saga's latest robotic companion was a computer generated creation, but low and behold, there he was, rolling across the stage like they were the sands of the planet Jakku.
Now fans can have their own real life BB-8 toy thanks to the technical wizardry of the robotics company Sphero, the same group who developed the technology powering the film's model robot.
The toy version is nowhere near as big (this is one is as big as a baseball) as the one that rolled across the Star Wars celebration stage, but it packs the same physics bending design. Like the film BB-8, the toy makes use of a series of magnets and sensors to keep the droid's 'head' fixed while the ball below it spins.
Users can control BB-8 via an app on their Android or Apple smartphone. The droid can make all manner of different beeps and other noises and even has the ability to display holographic messages on your phone's display. Disney has promised that the BB-8 app will constantly be updated with new content to explore as we get closer to the film's release.
At a hefty $150 dollars, it's by no means a cheap toy, but it's certainly a far cry from the plastic lightsabers and toy blasters of yore. This BB-8 toy is an actual working piece of Star Wars lore, so fans will no doubt come in droves to purchase one.
