5 Best Ping Pong Robots: Pros, Cons, Reviews

Want to play table tennis but lack a partner or one that is on your level? It’s an issue many table tennis players face. But in the modern era, there’s a simple solution!

Get a table tennis robot!

Table tennis robots are mechanical devices that replace an opponent. Most are programmable and allow you to alter the spin, speed, trajectory, and placement of the ball. You can pick them up at various price points, and we made it our mission to set out and find the best ones on the market.

During this search, three of the best ping pong robots were:

• Best overall: Newgy Robo-Pong 2055
• Premium pick: Power Pong Omega W/Tablet
• Budget choice: IPONG Trainer Motion

However, there are a few more you’ll want to read about to ensure you don’t purchase the wrong model. Below you’ll find table tennis robot reviews and I’ll also provide a buyer’s guide at the end to help you identify the key features to look out for.

Why Trust Us

At Table Tennis Spot, we take great pride in producing the best table tennis guides for our readers. I have over 10 years of experience playing table tennis and have had the opportunity to compete in national competitions.

To decide on the best table tennis robots, I looked at all available models and carefully studied the features of each, identifying which excelled and which didn’t.

The main qualities I looked for include:

• Programmable drills
• Spin, speed, and placement adjustability.
• Ball volume control
• The presence of a recycling system
• Cost

Ping Pong Robot Reviews

Newgy Robo-Pong 2055 — Our Favorite

Specifications

• Capacity: 120+
• Cost: $$$
• Ball per minute: 1-170
• Balls included: 48

Pros

• 64 pre-programmed drills
• Custom drills
• Randomization feature
• Net recycling system
• Capable of all types of spin

Cons

• Cannot adjust the amount of spin

While the likes of the Power Pong Omega will top many lists, the Newgy Robo-Pong 2055 is the best table tennis robot in our eyes. We chose this robot, in particular, because we feel it fits the needs of most players while remaining affordable.

It’s capable of all types of spin, which helps you get comprehensive training. What’s more, it comes with 64 pre-programmed drills. This means you simply need only set the ping pong machine up and you can get training right away.

And for those who want to take a more hands-on approach, you can create custom drills. The only drawback is that while all types of spin are on the table, you can’t change the amount of spin — this may deter more skilled players

On the bright side, it does include a randomization feature. This means you can have the robot fire balls at you in a random pattern, thereby partially overcoming the biggest flaw of most table tennis robots, their predictability. All things considered, this is a super robot for intermediate and advanced players.

Power Pong Omega W/Tablet — Premium Pick

Specifications

• Capacity: Not listed
• Cost: $$$$$
• Ball per minute: 5-120
• Balls included: 100 3-star balls

Pros

• 40 pre-programmed drills
• Conveniently control drills with the tablet
• Capable of complex spin, speed, and placement
• Randomization feature
• Can mirror drills
• Create and store drills — unlimited memory capacity
• Net recycling system
• Includes carrying bag
• 3-year warranty

Cons

• Expensive
• Might be a little overwhelming for beginners

If you’re looking for the best ping pong robot in terms of features, the Power Pong Omega has to be in the conversation. This robot is simply jam-packed full of features. It’s a waste for a beginner, but for an advanced player looking for highly targeted training, it’s a great asset.

The Power Pong Omega gives you full control over drill creation. Its three-wheel head allows you to carefully adjust spin levels, of which there are five to seven, depending on the spin type. There are also 25-speed settings to choose from, which again demonstrates its precision.

Interestingly, its maximum speed is 120 balls per minute which falls below the Newgy Robo-Pong 2050, which can fire 170 balls per minute. However, I doubt you’ll need more than 120 balls per minute. Keeping up with such a pace is next to impossible for extended periods.

The Power Pong Omega has 40 pre-programmed drills, but you’ll likely want to make your own. You can do so using their software. The memory capacity is endless as the robot has 6GB of storage, but it is expandable via Micro SD. You can also conveniently control the robot using the accompanying tablet.

Butterfly Amicus Prime

Specifications

• Capacity: Not listed
• Cost: $$$$$
• Ball per minute: 5-120 balls per minute
• Balls included: 120 training balls

Pros

• 21 pre-programmed drills
• Conveniently control drills with the tablet
• Capable of complex spin, speed, and placement
• Randomization feature
• Can mirror drills
• Create and store drills — unlimited memory capacity
• Net recycling system
• Includes carrying bag
• 3-year warranty, 5-year parts guarantee

Cons

• Expensive
• Might be a little overwhelming for beginners

A robot often compared with the Power Pong Omega is the Butterfly Amicus Prime, and rightfully so! For all intents and purposes, they are essentially the same robot (except for a few minor differences). I believe they are made in the same factory so they share a near-identical build.

As such, there’s not much in it between these two high-quality robots. According to the specs, Amicus Prime can program up to 10 individual balls. This beats out the Power Pong Omega, which can do 8 (not that it really matters).

Besides this, the Amicus Prime comes with 21 pre-programmed drills to the Power Pong Omega’s 40, and also, the included 120 balls are of the training variety. Power Pong instead includes 100 3-star balls — I’d rather have the latter.

In any case, this is largely nit-picking. What it comes down to ultimately is the price, and the Amicus Prime is just over 100 bucks more expensive, therefore, it just misses out in third place for me, still making it one of the best table tennis robots you can get.

Newgy Robo-Pong 2040+

Specifications

• Capacity: 120+
• Cost: $$$$$
• Ball per minute: 26-94
• Balls included: 48

Pros

• Custom drills
• Net recycling system
• Capable of all types of spin

Cons

• Cannot adjust the amount of spin
• No randomization feature
• No pre-programmed drills

Next up we have the Newgy Robo-Pong 2040+, the previous model to the Robo-Pong 2055. It’s a less advanced robot but still has many features.

For starters, it can send spinning balls your way, and not just backspin — it’s capable of all types of spin. And while you can’t adjust the amount of said spin, you can adjust the head angle to emulate a variety of different shots such as serves and lobs.

The two main areas where it falls to the newer model are its placement options and ball volume. The 2040+ only has 8 oscillator spots to the 2055’s 21, and the ball volume is only adjustable within the 26-94 p/min range. The 2055, by comparison, can adjust from 1 to 170 balls per minute.

Overall, the difference in performance is clear, and for just 100 bucks extra, it’s a no-brainer for most players to purchase the newer model. However, it’s still a good pick-up if you’re an intermediate player.

IPONG Trainer Motion — Budget Choice

Specifications

• Capacity: 100
• Cost: $
• Ball per minute: 30-70
• Balls included: 80

Pros

• Custom drills
• Capable of all types of spin
• Adjust the amount of spin
• Wireless remote
• Bundle includes table tennis robot accessories

Cons

• No net recycling system
• Limited tilt ability
• No sidespin capability
• No pre-programmed drills

The IPONG Trainer Motion may well undercut the price of most other robots on the market by a massive chunk, but it might surprise you that it functions rather well.

One aspect that caught me off-guard was that it has much more spin control than I expected. Sure, you can’t generate sidespin like most quality robots can, but this little robot can adjust the amount of topspin and backspin on the ball. This is a feature both Newgy robots are missing, and they are over three times the price.

In addition, you can also produce float balls with no spin — another feature that is often absent. Of course, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows, though, this spin control is fairly limited, and the Trainer Motion has poor head tilt. You have to use the provided tilt stand to ensure you get the trajectory you are after.

Overall, it’s clear to me that while the Trainer Motion punches above its station, it still can’t compete with Newgy, Butterfly, or Amicus in terms of quality, and it doesn’t need to. This robot is perfect for beginners to intermediate players, and at its price point, no other robot can compete.

Read More: Best IPONG Table Tennis Robots

 

Why Buy a Ping Pong Robot

Ping pong robots are great training tools as they enable you to repeat the same action again and again. This is crucial for table tennis as it helps you improve your technique and develop sound muscle memory. The precision of robots also means your training can be highly targeted.

You have plenty of control over spin, speed, placement, and volume for many models. This allows you to craft a plethora of training drills to ensure you get a comprehensive session in — all without the requirement of a partner.

Another benefit is that ping pong practice machines don’t make mistakes and they don’t bore as real opponents do. This means you will always receive the ball programmed, and robots can go as long as possible. The same can’t be said for real partners who make mistakes, grow bored, tire, or want to work on their own exercises.

Ping Pong Robot Buyer’s Guide

Always Chose Recycling Robots if Possible

While the ability to change everything related to the ball, be it spin, speed, or trajectory is important, I feel a much more essential feature is ball recycling.

You see, without this, you’re restricted to how many balls the robot can house, and you’ll quickly find you spend more of your time picking up balls off the floor than actually training.

Therefore it is vital to pick a robot with a ball recycling system and to use a catch net to capture most of your balls. This way you can go for far longer rounds of training before the need to reload all of the balls.

Look for Robots With Spin Control

Anyone who knows anything about ping pong knows that the sport is all about spin. If you don’t know how to deal with it you’ll lose to pretty much anyone who somewhat knows what they are doing.

Therefore you need a ping pong ball machine that can throw different types of spin your way. At the very least, both backspin and topspin. However, having sidespin on the table is also beneficial.

The better quality ping pong server machines will go one step further and allow you to adjust the amount of said spin. This is perfect for really pushing yourself and helping you to develop good muscle memory.

Speed and Frequency Settings Are Crucial

Chances are, you won’t want the same frequency and ball speed for all of the drills you undertake, so you need settings to adjust these qualities. Fortunately, almost all robots out there adjust these to some extent, but as I’m sure you will have already guessed, some give you more control than others.

Ball speed, for instance, can vary massively. The king of frequency control is the Newgy Robo-Pong 2055. It can fire balls anywhere from 1 per minute all the way up to 170 per minute!

Seek Custom Drills

Advanced robots will come with pre-programmed drills, which are super handy, but I find simply having the ability to create custom drills and the ability to store these is sufficient.

You don’t need loads of memory. It’s not as if we will be storing hundreds of drills here. Rather, you will want the ability to create perhaps 5-10 drills that help work your footwork and address weaknesses in your game.

Remotes Are Handy But Not Essential

Ping pong robots can be controlled in a variety of ways. The most basic is via a wired control box, and for most people, this is perfectly fine — don’t feel that you need a remote because you don’t. Stop being lazy!

Besides these two methods, some of the more advanced ping pong practice machines are controllable via an App either with your own device or an included tablet.

Read More: Best Newgy Robo-Pong Table Tennis Robots

 

Best Ping Pong Robots — Frequently Asked Questions

Closing Thoughts

So there you have it, table tennis robots are great pieces of kit for improving your training. If you find yourself constantly lacking a partner or someone near your skill level, a robot may be worth the investment.

To recap, we feel that the best ping pong robot for most players is the Newgy Robo-Pong 2055. It may lack top-end features, but we feel it covers the necessities for most players. Its wide ball frequency range of 1-170 balls per minute is very impressive, as is the randomization feature.

If, on the other hand, you want the best robot going, the Power Pong Omega is our recommendation. It’s capable of very complex drills and has many high-end features that other robots don’t, such as the ability to mirror drills and control exercises with a tablet.

And finally, for those at a beginner/intermediate level who are after an affordable table tennis robot, the IPONG Trainer Motion is the best ping pong machine for the job. Despite its low price point, it has many settings to tinker with and even beats out some expensive models when it comes to adjusting the amount of spin on the ball.

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