Best way to learn programming and electronics through robots

My 14 y.o and I are having fun with the Xbee Rover and learning how to program through Arduino.

Moving forward, I’d be grateful for recommendations about sticking with the Rover and Arduino platform and adding to the Rover- camera, sensors, maybe even robotic arms, vs. whether there is a better long range platform for my son and I to learn programming and electronics?

I’ve seen the EZ-robot website and their Robot Controller software that looks very powerful. I think Linksprite has a similar system. But it seems as though using these might detract from learning how to write code or learn electronics.

thanks very much for any input.
Jordan

You can actually get quite far with the DFRobotShop Rover with sensors etc. Changing the platform might make it larger and have the ability to carry an arm. You might consider the following:

]Lynxmotion Aluminum A4WD1 Rover Kit/:m]
]Lynxmotion AL5A 4 Degrees of Freedom Robotic Arm Combo Kit (with electronics)/:m]
]Lynxmotion BotBoarduino Shield-Compatible Robot Controller/:m]
]Sabertooth Dual 12A 6V-24V R / C Regenerative Motor Driver/:m]
]+ Batteries and charger/:m]

Also note that there are upgrades to the DFRobotShop Rover as well.

The DFRobotShop Rover can handle almost all long-range communication methods that you would implement on a larger platform, but as you may have noticed, it’s not the fastest out there. The best long-range communication methods we offer are XBee (XBee pro series can transmit up to 10km).