OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Seen a few robots on the market. Great for practicing at home. They have small ones on the table or bigger standalones that are more expensive. Thoughts on brands? I’ve checked out a few of the websites.

Er, please read through some of the earlier threads. This ground (about whether a robot is worth the investment) has been covered extensively over the last few years..

Lots of opinions about the various different robots, too.

Iskandar

I have owned 3 robots over the years. I really like my last purchase, the https://tennirobo.com/ and would recommend this as it is great value for money compared to some more expensive robots. I have had no issues at all in 6 months of use and it can do any spin, speed and serve combination you can think off. You can even set it up to do a serve with double pro level of spin that your coach will only get 1 in 10 in.

I suggest you purchase a robot were you can see the robot head direction before the balls is shot out to give you information on where the ball is going. This is more realistic in training anticipation. Some robots use a deflector plate and this does not give you any info to where the ball is going. You can only watch the ball.

I went and looked at the tennirobo website. It looks like a head attached to a Rubbermaid trash can.. Also no prices - you have to submit a form, and then I suppose they will email you the price. As far as I can tell they're made in Spain (the contact phone number has the Spain country code). But the people in the video seem to be speaking a Slavic language (no idea what it is). The big thing that seems to be missing is a net and a ball recycler.





Note the cue light that comes on right before the ball is ejected. One major problem with robots in general, I think, especially those capable of producing different spins in succession, is that there aren't any of the visual clues you get from a human ball feeder or an opponent as to what spin is coming. Yes, you could rig up colored lights, etc. to signal the incoming spin, but it's different compared to watching the opponent's bat and ball contact. Another problem with robots in general (even really expensive robots like the Amicus) is that all the balls come from one direction. The robot itself can't move around.

Iskandar

We are from Ukraine
A recycling net would be a good option, but it is also a restriction, because:
- with a recycling net, the robot is always at the center of the table. Less realistic...
- you can't move the robot far from the table, can't tune its height in a wide range, can't imitate balls "under the table" (like do defenders sometimes). Thus - less realistic balls again
- just a case from my experience with TenniRobo. When you are playing with a coach and you have only one table, your coach may play with you 40-60 balls, then quickly place TenniRobo near the table and you are playing the same exercise with the robot, while the coach is coercing your movement. Thus, without a recycling net, you are able to switch between the coach and the robot just in a few seconds - it makes your training much more productive. If you don't have own table and play in any club, much more easy to bring the robot to the club and don't spend time for setup.
In any words, without recycling net you have much more freedom - but of course, it's only your choice what is more convenient for you


I do agree with you, it's true. But any robot - it's not a real partner for the game. It is a machine, which helps you to train some elements and movements. And for this purpose, it is a great choice

_________________
https://www.tennirobo.com/