What the Tech: A Lego building app to spark creativity

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - If you have kids, there’s a good chance you have Lego blocks all over the house. After all, it’s the best-selling toy of all time.

But even some of the best Lego builders can have trouble figuring out what to create from those bricks.

Consumer technology reporter Jamey Tucker says there’s help through an amazing smartphone app.

I’m not a LEGO builder but the best smartphone app I tried this year is Brickit. It uses the phone’s camera and artificial intelligence to show kids what they can build with the Lego bricks they have on hand. I asked Colin and Cole Alter, and Cora Stout, all big Lego fans, to give it a try, even though the boys don’t play with them a lot.

“I like to consider myself somewhat of a creative person, but I don’t even know where to start with that pile of Legos,” said Colin and Cole’s mom.

It is overwhelming and a little intimidating.

You aim the camera at the pile, and Brickit scans what’s there and identifies each piece. Then it digs through its database of designs to show you photos of what you can build with the bricks you have and what pieces you’ll need.

It gave us 243 ideas to do with the Legos we had.

For some Lego fans, searching for the right piece is part of the fun. But if you just can’t find it in your pile, the Brickit app can find the pieces for you. When you’re done, snap a photo and save it to your profile so you can tear it apart and do something else.

There’s a free version of the Brickit app but for more designs and features, it’s $40 a year. It’s available for iPhones and Android devices and it’s my choice for the coolest App of the Year.

A few more Lego stats

• The company sells more than 75 billion plastic bricks every year.
• There are an estimated 400 billion Lego pieces scattered all over the world at any given time, so watch your step!

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