Reviews July 14, 2009

The FroliCat BOLT Automatic Laser Light Review

There aren’t many things more amusing than watching a kitten chase a laser pointer’s dot. Kittties are playful and energetic to begin with, but giving them an impossible to catch “mouse” creates a game which never seems to tire them.

My cat Avah is two years old, and while she no longer has quite the playful moves she used to impress me with, she still shows moments of friskiness when a moth gets in the house or a string is dangling. We’ve played the laser pointer game before with comedic results, so I figured that she would be the perfect test subject for the FroliCat BOLT, an automatic laser light cat toy. FroliCat was kind enough to send me a review unit; Avah was kind enough to get off her cushion and play along…

Gear Diary The FroliCat BOLT Automatic Laser Light Review photo
happy kitteh says “this had better be good…”

The BOLT resembles a shiny plastic bowling pin with an oddly round head; it is composed of smooth white plastic, and it measures about 8.5″ tall x 2.5″ at its base.

The BOLT’s body is made so that it can be held comfortably in hand if you want to use it while manually making patterns on the floor or wall. The base is large and stable so that it can be placed on the floor, a table top, or any other flat surface for random generation of laser patterns when in automatic mode.

The laser is located in the upper portion of the BOLT’s body; when turned on, the laser beam is projected straight up and into the mirror, then out of the head’s opening.

The laser is on a disk that turns, stops, ziggs and zags, creating all sorts of crazy patterns for cats (or dogs!) to chase.

On the back of the BOLT’s head, there is a slider to aim the mirror up or down; this allows beam adjustment.

The button on it’s base turns the BOLT on or off, and it also activates manual or automatic mode.

Automatic Mode

* Press on/off button to turn on
* Set on safe, flat surface such as table or floor, or hold in hand
* BOLT will automatically turn off after 15 minutes
* Press on/off button to turn off before 15 minutes

Manual Mode

* Press on/off button to turn on
* Press on/off button and hold for 3 seconds
* Hold in your hand & aim BOLT wherever you like to create your own laser patterns
* BOLT will automatically turn off after 15 minutes
* Press on/off button to turn off before 15 minutes

The BOLT takes four AA batteries…

…when inserted they help add weight and stability to the base.

When the BOLT is in place and turned on, a red laser beam starts frolicking on whatever surface is first touched. Once your cat notices it, the game is on!

Ok…that’s the hardware. Now, watch the BOLT in action!

Avah lives a rather sedentary lifestyle, and I really appreciate that the BOLT can serve as a workout device to help get her into shape. The only caution is that as with any laser, it is very important to make sure that the beam is never shined directly into the pet’s eyes. For that reason, you should never allow small children to play with the BOLT, nor should you allow a pet to play with it unsupervised. But with supervision, get ready to watch your pet act the fool…

The FroliCat BOLT is available directly from the manufacturer.

MSRP: $19.95

What I Like: You can use it to play one-on-one with your cat, or you can set it up keep your cat occupied without you; great exercise for fat kitties; 15 minute timer means you don’t have to worry about shutting it off when it’s in automatic mode; can be adjusted to work on floor, from table, or in hand

What Needs Improvement: Not that there is really a way to improve this, but adult supervision is always necessary pets are playing with the BOLT; young children should not be allowed to play with it, either

Tags: Pet Tech

PixRemix Review

Make your Own Soda Pop

About Judie Lipsett Stanford

View all posts by Judie Lipsett Stanford

I have had a fascination with all types of gadgets and gizmos since I was a child, beginning with the toy robot that my grandmother gave my brother - which I promptly "relieved him of" in 1973. I have long been captivated by devices that did anything interesting or served a unique purpose - however silly. I can't tell you how everything works – but I am known world-wide for using a product until I have a full understanding of what it does, what its limitations are, and if it excels in any given area...or not.

moofie

I was pretty disappointed that all the artwork on this cat toy implies that the laser beam skitters around all over the place, but that’s not true. The laser head tracks around in a circle (the motor reverses direction and stops randomly for enticing prey behavior). So the path traced on the floor is an ellipse, not the fun random patterns displayed.

I don’t think my cat cares, but I was a little annoyed. I like the fact that it’s a laser toy that uses AAs. Buying coin cells is for the birds.

I guess I’m not TOO disappointed, I just wish the marketing materials weren’t misleading.
Pingback: FroliCat BOLT laser cat toy gets reviewed: run, kittah, run! - SlashGear
Lex

We found out our cat had ‘exercise induced ashthma’ from an evening of laser-induced carpet running. It was fun but I felt guilty.
Pingback: Hebben » FroliCat Bolt: laser-gadget voor verveelde katten
http://www.geardiary.com Judie Lipsett

@moofie – you are right that the laser head tracks in what basically amounts to a circle (albeit with zigs, zags, starts and stops), but don’t forget that it also goes up and down – so there is erratic floor as well as wall action, and they seem pretty random to me. For $20, it’s worth trying and seeing if your cat likes it or not.

Kevin had a comment yesterday that I debated putting in the review, but I’ll slip it in here. He said something along the lines of “just when you start to think that cats are smarter than other house pets, more highly evolved, something like this comes along and you see that they will chase anything.”

Toys like this just show how strong their hunting urge is.

@Lex – that’s awful! How old was your cat? Avah’s only two, but she weighs about 18 pounds. I had to find *something* to get her off her cushion. This seems to be working, and as you saw – she is so lazy that she just lays and watches the laser when she doesn’t feel like chasing it.
Pingback: Brad Linder
Pingback: FroliCat BOLT uses laser to mess with felines : TechVi: Technology matters.
http://www.mobilitysite.com breley

This sure beats the socks off the low-tech reflective table knife or mirror my sister and I as kids used to torment our cats. Of course it only worked when the sun was shining through the window just right.
moofie

Sure, but the up and down motion of the mirror is controlled manually. If you’re going to do that might as well wave it around yourself.

By the way thanks for mentioning the manual mode. I had missed that feature.

My cat Biscuit is good for about three minutes of focused ATTACK MODE and then he gets frustrate and stares at it. The next day, though, fight’s on!
http://www.geardiary.com Judie Lipsett

@moofie – I just want to make sure that I was clear on this point – the manual up and down adjust is for basic aiming, so you can differentiate whether the BOLT is set upon the floor or a table. The BOLT in automatic mode will do up and down motions on its own, but aiming the mirror up or down makes sure that the beam is properly applied to the situation.
Pingback: Todd Jones
moofie

At the risk of belaboring the point, the only automatic motion of the laser head is in a circular path, and the only motion of the projected dot on the floor is in an elliptical path. The direction of travel changes randomly, resulting in a cat-attracting back and forth motion, but it simply doesn’t make the squiggly shapes shown on the company logo, unless you squiggle it yourself.

Again, the cat doesn’t care. I am just being compulsive guy. : )
http://www.geardiary.com Allen Hong

@Judie: awesome video
Pingback: djeeenie
http://www.geardiary.com Michael Anderson

I love this ,…we have two little terriers and they would go insane for this! Well, one of them can’t spot laser dots so he just gets excited and barks …
Pingback: FroliCat BOLT Gadget Helps Cats Lose Weight | Walyou
Pingback: Top 9 Other Interesting Gadgets We Have Missed This Week [ 221109 ] | The Cool Gadgets
Pingback: Judie Lipsett
http://twitter.com/gstaffinfection/status/21986909655924736 Matt Grandstaff

The votes are in! FroliCat's BOLT is Chauncey's Cat Toy of the Year http://bit.ly/dYqNkw
Pingback: FroliCat BOLT | Pawesome :: Power to the Pets