robotindex RoboLink CoDrone EDU
A 54.8g caged quadcopter from Robolink built for real dual-language programming: Blockly for Robolink block coding progressing to genuine Python via the official
robolink.com/codrone-edu →
codrone-edu package. Carries 7+ onboard sensors (accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, front and bottom time-of-flight range sensors, optical flow, dual RGB color sensors) but no camera. Controlled over a proprietary 2.4GHz RF link — not Bluetooth or Wi-Fi — via an included physical Smart Controller with its own telemetry LCD, supporting up to 10 drones flying simultaneously without interference. Marketed for grades 6-10 (ages 12+), used as the official drone in REC Foundation's Aerial Drone Competition.
Image: user-submitted
Specs
Battery
3.7V/530mAh Li-ion, 7-8min flight~60min charge via a dual charger; 2 batteries ship per kit
Weight
54.8gwith battery installed, drone only; well under the FAA's 250g registration threshold — per Robolink's official spec sheet
Dimensions
13.9 × 13.9 × 3.5 cm138.8 × 138.5 × 34.8mm per Robolink's official spec sheet; drone only, excludes the included Smart Controller
Connectivity
Proprietary 2.4GHz RFnot Bluetooth or Wi-Fi — the discontinued 2016-era CoDrone Pro/Lite predecessor used Bluetooth 4.0, a common source of confusion; supports 10 drones flying simultaneously, ~50m line-of-sight range
Sensors
7+, but no cameraaccelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, front + bottom time-of-flight range sensors, optical flow (position hold), dual RGB color sensors, temperature; camera arrives only on the unreleased CoDrone EDU Plus, not this model
Software
Blockly → real Pythonofficial
codrone-edu PyPI package; Scratch and Swift Playgrounds are both explicitly listed as unsupported by Robolink's own compatibility docs, despite being commonly assumedController
Included Smart Controller128x64 telemetry LCD, 4 programmable RGB LEDs, powered by 2 AA batteries or Micro-USB; tablets are explicitly not compatible since the system needs a wired computer connection
Propeller Cage
Full enclosurecolor-coded red/black props for CW/CCW pairing
Calculator Support
TI-Nspire CX IIa Texas Instruments partnership lets students program the drone directly from a graphing calculator
Age/Grade
Grades 6-10 (ages 12+)REC Foundation's Aerial Drone Competition, which uses this drone, spans grades 4-12 more broadly
Indoor Safety
No FAA registration neededunder the 250g threshold, exempt from Remote ID; FAA rules generally don't apply to purely indoor flight, which is how this product is designed to be used
Reference Price
A single CoDrone EDU kit runs $249.00 direct from Robolink, with classroom bundles scaling from a $3,599 12-pack up to a $5,399 18-pack. Professional-development training is sold as a separate add-on, not bundled into these base classroom prices.
Insights
This catalog withholds an Open Source badge because although Robolink publishes the drone's Python SDK and Blockly code publicly (via GitHub and PyPI), none of those repos carries a clear license file — so "source is public" is confirmed but "open-source-licensed" isn't, and the flight-controller firmware itself remains closed. It also connects over a proprietary 2.4GHz RF link rather than Bluetooth, despite Bluetooth being commonly assumed from the earlier, discontinued CoDrone Pro/Lite.
Firmware & Community
RobolinkInc/codrone-edu-python
Robolink's official Python SDK source for CoDrone EDU, also published to PyPI as the codrone-edu package; the specific open-source license covering the repo isn't clearly stated.
Specs and history compiled from Robolink's own product page, technical specification sheet, and compatibility/help documentation, the
codrone-edu PyPI package listing and its linked GitHub repositories, Robolink's Kickstarter campaign pages (2016 and 2022), REC Foundation partnership announcements, a Texas Instruments integration announcement, and independent reviews (The Drone Girl, EDGEucating, STEM Kit Review) plus an REC Foundation best-practices document on classroom drone durability. Several details are flagged as unconfirmed above: the specific open-source license (if any) covering Robolink's public GitHub repos, and the precise legal status of a classroom teacher's FAA recreational-flyer classification versus Part 107 requirements, which wasn't fully resolved in available sources. This entry hasn't yet been cross-linked into the rest of the Classroom & Coding Kits subcategory or synced to the directory listing; that's planned for a later pass.