GoCube is a smart Rubik’s Cube that answers a big question

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GoCube is a wild idea. What if a Rubik’s Cube was a smart device? As surprising as it may seem, the answer to that question is a bit more robust than I initially thought.

Allow me to introduce you to one of the craziest smart devices I’ve messed with in a long time.

Particula Tech is the company that created the GoCube. Visiting the site gives you a bit of a spoiler about how a Rubik’s Cube can be smart.

I thought it would have some sort of haptics or lighting to help you solve it faster. It turns out this is more or less a training device.

GoCube teaches you the solution is only a step in the puzzle

I’ve had friends in the past that’ve handed me a Rubik’s Cube and asked me to mess it up as much as I could. After doing that, I’ve also watched these people solve it in minutes or less.

It’s been one of life’s greatest mysteries. How does one do that? It’s pattern recognition and that’s what GoCube’s bread and butter is.

To use the GoCube’s smart features, you install the app on your smartphone or tablet (Android and Apple are both fine).

If you are an absolute novice like me, after calibrating the cube, you get to run some exercises. These exercises teach you what to look for when solving a Rubik’s Cube.

The app more or less walks you through the basics, step by step, of how to solve a Rubik’s Cube.

While I’m the type or person to get a bunch or color on one side and think “Man, I almost got it” it is funny to learn how far off I’ve always been.

The real-time tracking on the app also helps if you mess up, which is a godsend.

While my initial expectation was that the GoCube would give me directions on solving the puzzle itself, I do understand why that would be a bit of a waste—begrudgingly at best.

Once you have demonstrated the basics of solving the cube, you do get to do things like timed solves and speed cubes.

A walkthrough, while maybe briefly entertaining, is the “smart” version of peeling all the stickers off and placing them on the cube the correct way.

Ultimately, GoCube is a unique device

If you have ever wanted to learn how to solve a Rubik’s Cube, the GoCube is an interesting solution for that.

While, technically the concept works without having a smart cube, the ability to track the cube through the app makes it a bit more wieldy than a traditional experience.

One of the neat aspects of having a smart Rubik’s Cube is that like any smart device, it does require a charge. The GoCube has a neat little cradle that the device sits in while charging.

It’s completely functional, and you get to look like an intellectual at the same time when you have it sitting on your desk. That’s a selling point for someone out there.

As an actual Rubik’s Cube, the GoCube is a lot nicer than I expected.

That’s probably because I’ve never really messed around with a “nice” Rubik’s Cube, but after some fidgeting with it and dropping the cube a couple dozen times, it’s held together and not had any errors.

In fact, my 11 year old kid decided he wanted to cheat and dismantle the cube. It was easy to reassemble and isn’t any worse for wear.

In a world where we wear smart rings that do the same things my watch and phone do, it’s refreshing to see a unique application to making a classic “smart”.

It doesn’t overcomplicate the concept, It remains easy to use and functional without the smart aspects.

If you’ve wanted to learn how to solve a Rubik’s Cube or just improve skills, GoCube seems like an absolute slam dunk as a last-minute gift.

Have any thoughts on GoCube? Does it look like your type of toy? Tell us your thoughts in the comments, down below, or via our Twitter or Facebook.