SAM makes it easy to build connected electronics

Meet SAM, a wireless electronics kit that’s aiming to make it easier for kids or indeed anyone with an idea for a connected project to get building — using a series of Bluetooth connected pieces and a drag and drop software interface for linking the hardware together. And also easier to integrate connected objects with other digital apps and services, like social networks or email — so you could, for instance, build a real-world connected object using SAM that notifies you when you get an email from a particular contact. Or link your small business’ Facebook like button to an LED interface that flashes every time you get a new like. Kids today are getting pretty spoiled for choice when it comes to cutting their teeth learning to code and/or hacking around with bits of hardware designed for the purpose of play. Only this weekend Kano shipped its first batch of coding kits, which combine the Raspberry Pi microcomputer with a software layer atop Linux specially designed for learning coding. There’s also electronics hobby kits like LittleBits. And various modular robotics projects, likeMOSS and Cubelets.