Dino Sphere Gift Option

Before I share my opinion of this product, I would like to comment on many of the low-star reviews and also provide you with some extra information. The most important concept you have to understand is this "toy" is ALIVE, and life can be finicky sometimes. These brilliant little eukaryotes originate from large bodies of salt water (other species of dinoflagellate are able to live in fresh water, but that's just a nifty fact), therefor they are not exposed to quick changes in temperature or salinity. However in a small habitat like the glass sphere, or the pouch they initially arrive in, the temperature can dramatically change within a short period of time. So if you let the delivery sit on your front door for a couple days, or your apartment has no AC during the summer, you can expect these little guys might die. The same goes with cold weather as well. So make sure you provide these guys the right temperature to live in. I don't think I have to go over trying to fill the rest of the sphere up with aquarium salt water, then giving it a 1 star review because they died in a week. But just in case.. yeah... don't do that... the difference in salinity and pH will kill them.Let's discuss sunlight too. Not only do they need it to live, but it is required by this species to produce the mesmerizing blue light. These guys use sunlight for ATP synthesis, which is used as an energy storage system of sorts, and drives the light emission you see at night. So they need enough of a "recharge" during the day, therefor provide them with the right amount of sunlight! If you store them in a room with no windows, they won't get enough. Also, even though they are alive when you receive them you will not see light until they go through a couple day-night cycles. Don't panic, wait a couple days and you will see it! Make sure they are in the dark at night too, not by a lamp or anything. The light they emit is a beautiful light blue with a hint of green... it really is mesmerizing to watch. It is worth noting that you should disturb them at least once during the day to ensure all plankton get enough sunlight!THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO KNOW... it is NOT like a lightbulb. The light emision only lasts a second or two, and under continuous moving or swirling the light will ONLY LAST A MINUTE or so. The plankton are TINY, you can't expect them to hold enough energy to produce light all night long. So don't read any of the bad reviews that talk about how "dumb" or disappointing the whole thing is...So my opinion? I love it. Really is an awesome concept, I have one on my desk at home. I've had the sphere for almost a month now and the light it produces has continued to grow more intense as more of the little plankton are made. Feeding is easy, just use the little bottle it comes with every week or so (if you want constant growth feed it weekly, but I've heard from people who feed them every other week or even up to once a month) and they will continue to emit light. As I've said above, don't expect light on the first night, and don't expect a magical light bulb. Also, YOU ONLY RECEIVE THE GLASS SPHERE IF PURCHASED ON AMAZON, it states so in the description. You get a code to type in on their website and they will send you the dinoflagellates. I liked this thing so much that I got the dinosaur for my buddy's birthday, but I purchased it on their website this time to have all the materials sent at the same time. The only issue I have with this product is the food you need to give them is kind of expensive, especially if you feed them weekly. Once again, you can look at the price of the food BEFORE BUYING to see if you are okay with it. It shouldn't be such a shocker when you go to buy more food. Still 5/5 stars, 3 thumbs up, 110%/90%, I recommend it highly! I also recommend that you purchase it from their website instead (sorry amazon) so you won't have to deal with the whole code thing, but also because they have A LOT more information on the species and how to maintain them.

Sphere arrived with one tiny sheet of instructions, whereas Dino shape ones get a whole booklet. I had to download a full set of instructions, but only after my son set it up and had so many questions about what to expect, how much to feed it, what on-going care should be, etc.It appears as if the company mails you a sphere and then separately sends you Dino food (refill bag) and Dinos, so you don't receive an actual kit, so to speak, as you would if you ordered the Dino shape.So if you buy this, download the instructions (ahead of time, since timing is important when they arrive), and then watch YouTube videos, which also help. That being said, they grew well and after 2 weeks, the appearance is quite nice. Although the glowing doesn't last more than a few seconds after the shaking stops. My son had hoped that the glow would last a long time.

I ordered this for my boyfriend's daughter and we never could get the dinos to illuminate. We followed the special care instructions carefully, and even waited ot out for around two weeks before giving up. Biopop emailed me for a satisfaction check up and I told them about the issues I was having. Within three emails, they gave me a code for a refill pack for free. I was really bummed and unhappy at first but they reached out to me and found a solution very quickly. Overall very pleased.

Update below!After you order the product you have to order the plankton or whatever glows. . Yeah it doesn't glow total waste of $60 and disappointing gift I gave some oneI contacted customer service and they were very helpful and sent out replacement liquid. This time it works well and looks cool. Still don't think it's worth the price but it was a much cooler gift now and got the wow factor I was looking for.

We received our BioPop last month and LOVE it! My 10 and 11 year old sons look forward to spend time with it every night before bed. They swirl it, tap it, tip it - and are always in awe of the glow... they can't believe it is ALIVE! We leave it on their night stand and if they wake up in the night - they can reach for the BioPop and be comforted (and distracted!)It was really hot out (upper 80's) when we received ours and it survived! No problems at all!I recommended for people who are not living coastal to learn about Bioluminescence first! It will deepen the amazement that you can have it live in a glass ball in your house!Great Product!

It's pricey for what it is, but it's brighter than I thought it might be. It's way cool, but probably not worth it for most people. It needs weekly care, and also requires regular purchases of nutrients, so if you want a cool paperweight that requires no care, this isn't it.

These little guys are fragile but super cool. Bought as a gift for my sister and she LOVES it. She's an adult but I'd recommend it for kids too.They are pretty sweet when they light up - takes a few days for them to get active and bright, but the blue water looks nice in the daylight as well.Sits on her desk and makes a nice conversation piece from what she's mentioned. Low maintenance feeding makes them easy to keep around as long as it's not a sauna in your office or apartment.

Having personally experience bioluminescents I was super excited to get these as a gift for my husband and was disappointed. First, when your order arrived it doesn’t have them in it, it’s just the sphere with a certificate to offer the organisms. So you have to wait another week to get those. Once you get them all set up the light they produce is very dark and you have to keep swirling the sphere to get them to light. As soon as you stop moving it, the light stops. Lastly you have to keep ordering food for them to live to it’s not a one time purchase.