$8 – $16Relaunched January 2021 at a $7.99 suggested price per fish. Amazon's two-pack lists at $15.99, and fish tank playsets cost more (October 2026 check). First released in 2012.
AvailableNot programmablePalm-sizedWater-activatedColor changeAges 3+
≤ 1 weekShipping: 1–5 days (unconfirmed). Sold at Walmart, Target and on Amazon in the US. Specific color packs come and go, so one listing may show as unavailable while others are in stock. Walmart ↗
Remote control: Not possible. It switches on when dropped in water and has no wireless link.
Overview
A toy fish that starts swimming the moment it touches water, steering in up to five directions and diving as deep as 6 ft, then switches off when lifted out. The 2021 relaunch added scales that change color in water. ZURU says the original 2012 version sold over 15 million units in its first year, which makes it one of the best-selling robot toys ever. It has no controls or programming, so it is a moving pet or prank toy rather than a robot to experiment with.
A cheap bath-tub or fish-bowl toy for young kids, nothing more.
Specifications
| Category | Swimming robots · Robot fish & biomimetic swimmers |
|---|---|
| Released | 2012 |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Availability | Available |
| Sales | Over 15 million units in its first year (2012 original, estimate) aNb Media, citing ZURU ↗ |
| Programmability | No programmability |
| Built-in autonomy | Reactive · Responds to its surroundings without a map, such as avoiding obstacles or following a person |
| LLM support | None · A sealed water-activated toy with no app, SDK or LLM features. |
| Best for | Ages 3+ (maker rating) |
| Vision sensors | No vision sensors |
| Actuators | Other |
| Audio | No audio |
| Compute type | Unknown |
| Remote control | Not programmable |
| Size | Not published (fits between two fingers) |
| Propulsion | Battery-powered wagging tail fin |
| Depth rating | Dives up to 6 ft (about 1.8 m) |
| Tether / comms | None |
| Camera | None |
| Sensors | Water-activated sensors switch it on in water and off when removed |
| Runtime | Not published (2 replaceable LR44 button cells, included, per retail listings) |
| Speed | Not published |
| Compute | Not published |
| SDK | None |
Ratings & reviews
Ratings and reviews load on the live site.
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