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SainSmart 4WD Drive Mobile Robot Platform for Robot Arduino UNO MEGA2560 R3 Duemilanove (Black)

2.7 out of 5 stars 14 ratings
Currently unavailable.
We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock.

Product details

  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • Package Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 11.1 x 6.6 x 2.5 inches; 1.55 Pounds
  • Date First Available ‏ : ‎ July 28, 2012
  • Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ ARTEMIS
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B008Q47VKE
  • Customer Reviews:
    2.7 out of 5 stars 14 ratings

Customer reviews

2.7 out of 5 stars
14 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers report that the robot platform's motors are too weak and struggle to turn on hard floors. Moreover, the product comes with no instructions in the box, and customers find the anchoring system unsatisfactory. While some customers consider it a nice chassis for the price, others find it pretty worthless.

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Value for moneyMotor strengthInstructionsAnchoring
5 customers mention "Value for money"2 positive3 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the robot platform's value for money, with some finding it a nice chassis for the price while others consider it pretty worthless.

"...The documentation blows, its barely even english and is pretty worthless considering it includes instructions for how to install led's and..." Read more

"Pros - reasonably cheap, plenty of room and mounting holes. Cons - There were no instructions in the box...." Read more

"...Come on Sainsmart, this is just junk." Read more

"This is a nice little chassis for the price. The DC motors are a little weak using the included battery holder...." Read more

5 customers mention "Motor strength"0 positive5 negative

Customers report that the motors are too weak and struggle to turn on hard floors.

"...They'll drive forward and reverse but struggle to turn on hard floors, and absolutely will not turn on carpet. -..." Read more

"...The wheels require a lot of force to get onto the axles...." Read more

"This is a nice little chassis for the price. The DC motors are a little weak using the included battery holder...." Read more

"...The motors were so weak it wouldn't even move the robot on carpet, hardwood was okay but still not impressive...." Read more

4 customers mention "Instructions"0 positive4 negative

Customers report that the robot platform comes without instructions in the box.

"...The documentation blows, its barely even english and is pretty worthless considering it includes instructions for how to install led's and..." Read more

"...Cons - There were no instructions in the box. Took a bit of hunting around to find a pdf version on the internet...." Read more

"...Instructions are not included but are easily accessible from the SainSmart website." Read more

"There is no manual. The motors are far too weak...." Read more

3 customers mention "Anchoring"0 positive3 negative

Customers have mixed experiences with the robot platform's anchoring system, with one customer reporting issues with the mounting for the Arduino and another noting that the case wouldn't bolt together properly.

"...Also the mounting for the arduino is not ideal, no riser or screws just holes...." Read more

"...the holes until the head of the screw hits the plate, meaning no anchoring whatsoever...." Read more

"The case wouldn't bolt together unless I put tape on it to hold it together and 2 of the motors were faster than the other two so it always turned..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • julz1069
    1.0 out of 5 stars Pretty crappy
    Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    First of all, each of the 4 motors had bent up connectors and the provided wires were too small to connect and were too short to reach a top mounted arduino. The documentation blows, its barely even english and is pretty worthless considering it includes instructions for how to install led's and ultrasonic sensor that isn't included BUT they didn't bother to tell you the frequency's for the motors. Also the mounting for the arduino is not ideal, no riser or screws just holes.

    I'm sure the next step will be getting some legitimate motors and hoping they fit the wheels.

    Don't buy this.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Travis H
    2.0 out of 5 stars You get what you pay for.
    Reviewed in the United States on August 21, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    It's a great looking chassis, and it has plenty of mounting points, including some that align with the arduino.

    But:
    - The motors are far too weak. They'll drive forward and reverse but struggle to turn on hard floors, and absolutely will not turn on carpet.
    - The wheels don't fit quite right on the drive shafts, so you'll get a wobble.

    For $50 I didn't expect much, and the laser cut metal chassis was probably worth that, but the motors are absolute trash.
    16 people found this helpful
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  • GJP
    3.0 out of 5 stars No instructions in box - Wheels are average
    Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Pros - reasonably cheap, plenty of room and mounting holes.

    Cons - There were no instructions in the box. Took a bit of hunting around to find a pdf version on the internet. The wheels require a lot of force to get onto the axles. Probably a lot more force than the axles/motor can handle without some damage or warping of the plastic.

    Overall not a bad, but not heavy duty.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Matt W.
    4.0 out of 5 stars Nice Chassis for the Price
    Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    This is a nice little chassis for the price. The DC motors are a little weak using the included battery holder. I went with a 9.6v 1600mAh RC battery and the motors work a lot better. Instructions are not included but are easily accessible from the SainSmart website.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • L Mitchell Sr
    5.0 out of 5 stars My custom-built robot project
    Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    05/06/2013 - I am currently designing & assembling my own custom-designed robot which uses the SainSmart 4WD Drive Aluminium Mobile Robot Platform, so I am extremely satisfied with this product. I wonder if they make the same thing in a larger-size frame so that I can put some bigger wheels on it ? Check out my website that shows some photos of what I've finished so far - https://sites.google.com/site/baltimoreroboticssociety/home/my-robot-construction-projects

    Logan Mitchell Sr
    Baltimore Robotics Society's founder - https://sites.google.com/site/baltimoreroboticssociety
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  • Paul A.
    1.0 out of 5 stars Totally useless as-is. The screens that attach the frame parts ...
    Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    Totally useless as-is. The screens that attach the frame parts to each other fall through the holes until the head of the screw hits the plate, meaning no anchoring whatsoever. As soon I noticed this I just stopped building and threw it back in the box.

    I don't care how much it cost, you expect the damn thing to at least go together...something I will have to figure out myself, probably from my box of screws.

    Come on Sainsmart, this is just junk.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Dustin J.
    2.0 out of 5 stars Good design, awful motors!!
    Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    I was eager to get this and build it to be controlled via my xbox controller. However, when i assembled it and started it up it did nothing. The motors were so weak it wouldn't even move the robot on carpet, hardwood was okay but still not impressive. I bought some new motors and it works great. So if you plan on actually using this robot I'd advise getting more powerful motors.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Ali Mustafa
    3.0 out of 5 stars not bad not good
    Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    There is no manual.
    The motors are far too weak. They'll drive forward and reverse but struggle to turn on hard floors, and absolutely will not turn on carpet.
    - The wheels don't fit quite right on the drive shafts, so you'll get a wobble.
    2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Sean Brown
    1.0 out of 5 stars Cheap design requires multitude of user supplied extra fasteners and an engineering background.
    Reviewed in Canada on November 27, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Not a good kit for anyone not in possession of a multitude of proper fasteners and some serious technical knowledge.

    Usually I list the Pros first due to the best foot forward and so forth but this time is a bit different.

    Cons:
    1) No instructions for assembly were included (manufacturer's website contains a very broken English translated copy).
    2) Many screw holes that were supposed to be tapped were wrong size for included screws requiring user supplied hardware (larger, more aggressive or self-tapping screws).
    3) Arduino board mounting is impossible without supplying additional hardware (standoffs and additional screws) and doesn't line up as well as it should.
    4) Paint finish is uneven and poorly applied.
    5) Battery box is of very cheap quality.
    6) Motors have cheap quality terminals that are so thin that I had two break off during assembly. Expect to replace all four, thankfully standard Adafruit 6V hobby motors fit perfectly and were pre terminated with a length of hookup wire.
    7) Wheels are not 100% round causing kit to "limp" under operation.

    Pros:
    1) The wheels are sturdy and have rubber tires despite being not quite round.
    2) The aluminum chassis is also sturdy and somewhat well designed for it's use case.
    3) 90 degree adapters for motors are thoughtfully designed to minimize lost internal space.
    4) Kit is easily assembled and configurable when you have proper hardware.
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  • Dan T.
    4.0 out of 5 stars Satified
    Reviewed in Canada on August 9, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    A little bit smaller than expected but it's OK for my needs.
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