Rubik's Cube Brain Teaser Puzzle with Helpful Hints

• Challenge your thinking muscle with this classic brainteaser game
• Align 54 squares so that the colors match up on all 9 sides
• 43 quintillion possible combinations, but only 1 is correct
• Solution hints booklet included
• For 1 or more players

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CUBE

Every invention has an official birth date. For the Cube this date is 1974 when the first working prototype came into being and a patent application was drafted. The place was Budapest, the capital of Hungary. The inventor's name is now a household word. At the time, Erno Rubik was a lecturer in the Department of Interior Design at the Academy of Applied Arts and Crafts in Budapest.

Although 1974 marks the inauguration of the Cube, the processes that led to the invention began a few years earlier, nor was the identity of the inventor a fortuitous accident. Erno Rubik had a passionate interest in geometry, in the study of 3D forms, in construction and in exploring the hidden possibilities of combinations of forms and material in theory and in practice.

In the course of his teaching, Erno Rubik preferred to communicate his ideas by the use of actual models, made from paper, cardboard, wood or plastic, challenging his students to experiment by manipulating clearly constructed and easily interpreted forms. It was the realization that even the simplest elements, cleverly duplicated and manipulated, yield an abundance of multiple forms that was the first step on the long road that led finally to the Cube. . Erno had applied for a Hungarian patent for the Magic Cube in 1975, the first test batches were notproduced until late 1977.

Although possibly the most original of all invented puzzles, the Cube was not created in a vacuum. Its classical antecedents are great puzzles in their own right. The Tangram, originating from ancient China, merely consists of 5 triangles, a square and a parallelogram, simple elements that yield a multitude of interesting figures. The Pentomino, invented by Solomon W Golomb, has 12 different elements, each one made up of five squares joined together, displaying all the possible configurations of the five combined squares. Pentomino poses the fascinating geometric problem
 

Customer Reviews:

Very very very very good puzzzle

even though im not a 'guienuss' (i probably spelled that wrong. ^.^ whoops) it was a very fun toy. i had even more fun by taking it apart and putting it back in the correct order. tehe.

2008-08-03

Got this for my dad.

My dad learned to solve this some 20 years ago, and has taught tons of people, including me how to solve them. Unfortunately, he keeps giving them away to the people he teaches, or he forgets them places. Amazon is a great place to get them, as they can be sold for insane prices in local stores.

Makes a great gift.

2008-07-31

Great concept flawed by mass production market practices

The rubiks cube is as timeless as can be. I great workout for the brain and requires high eye-hand coordination skills.

The only problem I have is the quality. The cubes have paper stickers on them for the various colors. The joint mechanism isn't very smooth.

And this is for an original product.

I would gladly pay double the price or even more if they brought out a Rubiks Cube Classic model which mimicked the original ones.

Those were great!

2008-07-27

it lasted me about 2 months

i bought this cube around February and it lasted me about a month. the stickers started to peel within 3 days. but hell it's rubik's any real cuber knows that that is going to happen. just get some cubesmith stickers to replace them. i learned to solve on this one and it broke when my time was around 1:30. if you want to continue cubing then i would recommend getting a DIY cube. all in all i thought it was great just not that durable

2008-05-11

Rubik's Cube Brain Teaser Puzzle with Helpful Hints

I bought this toy for my two girls who are 10 & 8. We have had soooo much fun I highly recomend this as a gift. Rather than trying to solve it (give me a break) I have compitions with the girls to see who can sove one side first. Construction is good and it seems to be the same as I had in the 80's.... Lots of fun! P.S. local toy store has it for $[...]. Thank you AMAZON!

2008-05-09