GoChess Mini - AI Electronic Chess Board Game, Light Up Chess Set for Adults & Kids for All Skill Levels with Online Play App - Perfect as a Gift for Smart Board Games Lovers

I got this board yesterday, and my kids and I played 3 hours of chess last night, just enjoying the new board! So, what makes a chess set good? (Particularly, what makes an electronic chess set good?)Look and feel:The board looks every bit as good as the pictures. The pieces are gorgeously modern, and the board has a nice contrast to it. It's easy to tell where things are. The Queen and Bishop ARE a little "samey", so you have to pay attention. Still, it's a great set. The size is perfect. It's a "mini" board, but tournament boards are massive. This board is over a foot in either direction, and the pieces are a nice height (pawns are about 1.5inches tall, the King is a little under 3 inches). So this is not a mini board as in a travel board or tiny set. It's a respectable size. The pieces are plastic but they don't feel it. They have a very heavy weight and holding them you'd swear they were metal, they feel extremely premium. They have felt bottoms so setting them onto the board doesn't feel like it will scratch the board surface. Honestly, if this were a completely non-electronic set, I would still be fairly pleased with the set just on how it feels.The Electronics:But this isn't a non-electronic set, and I didn't buy it just for the looks. The board connected with my Android phone perfectly fine and very easily. The app has a lot of options. I DO wish that like the Chessnut Go's new app, this board allowed you to play Maia directly (a new neural engine chess bot), but you can challenge Maia via the app by connecting to LiChess and challenging one of the three Maia bots to a game.Overall, the built-in engine to the app uses a 32 level difficulty setting, and it seems to be a pretty good spread of challenge - I can beat lower levels pretty easily, and it makes blunders and falls into traps often enough. However, on the later levels, I'm getting smoked. So I think there's plenty of room at least at my skill level.Where the board REALLY shines is OTB play with someone else. I got this board in part because I love playing my kids, but I am pretty far beyond them, especially my 8 year old. So... I'm using this board to help teach them chess. You can set in the app a rough ELO for the app assist during face-to-face games, and that controls the move suggestions (pink circles). For a lower ELO, the suggestions are less helpful, and for the higher levels (ok, technically, mid-levels, don't judge), it helps my kids play to my level. It's a great leveling tool, but my only caveat is that you can't enable it for one side only, so if my kids want ELO1800 suggestions, that means I get them too.The board lights themselves are gorgeous and obvious. You could play this in almost any lighting and you won't have trouble seeing the LED circles. The board will list out moves that you can make, along with moves you should not make (blunders in red), moves you should make (suggestions in pink) and moves that are OK (a sort of teal color). The app allows you individually to turn these off, so if you wanted to just see blunders to help you spot them, or just suggested moves, you can customize your experience.The app and board are fairly fast and responsive. I don't know that I'd use this for bullet chess (3 minutes for instance). But for a 5 minute game with the AI, I didn't have any trouble with waiting on moves or taking too much time.My ONE major complaint here is with the app: you MUST leave the app open, on screen, and the screen turned on, to use the lighting on the board. Even pulling down the notification bar to see a text will turn off the board LEDS until the app is back on screen. It would be fantastic if the app could be minimized or the screen turned off, and still keep the board connected and the game running, but I get why that's necessary.All in all, final thoughts, the board looks gorgeous, feels premium, the LEDs are both easy to read and really helpful, the app overall works great and has a lot of customization that will allow anyone from an 8 year old beginner to a grandmaster (thanks to LiChess and Chess.com) to enjoy this board. Worth every penny!

As a chess player, I had high expectations for the GoChess Mini, and I must say it doesn’t disappoint. The compact design is impressive, providing a fully functional smart board without sacrificing quality or precision.One of the standout features is the seamless connection with the GoChess app. The LED lights are a subtle but powerful addition, making it easy to follow moves, explore openings, and enhance gameplay. Although I was initially concerned about the smaller size compared to traditional tournament boards, the GoChess Mini proved to be practical and highly portable—perfect for analysis sessions or travel games.The app’s integration with online platforms and Lichess allows playing against strong opponents worldwide, including AI simulations at different levels.The option to save and study games is something I hope they’ll expand further—having a way to import or export PGNs directly to the board would be ideal for advanced study. But overall, it’s clear that this product was designed with both beginners and experienced players in mind, making it a great tool for sharpening chess skills.Update a few months later: My kids took a few chess lessons at our local library and are now using the board to play (with AI hints). I challenged them to figure out why the AI is advising them to make a move and before they pick up a piece, where they think the AI will want them to move it to. It's been a great learning tool for them. Still very happy with my purchase!

I'm a chess enthusiast and own several smart chess boards, and GoChess has easily become my top choice. The design (packaging, board, and pieces) is sleek, modern, and oozes quality. The connectivity, sensors, and lights work flawlessly. The play modes include everything I need, including online play through Lichess and Chess.com. Lastly, the price is affordable and very competitive compared to other brands which offer less.

First I will say this is a well made chess set. The dissapointment is how it uses apps. No wifi so it has to be connected to a phone via Bluetooth to play online. The app in a clunky overlay allows you to use two different chess apps that it uses under it own app. Ideally I wish it would connect via wifi and I use the phone to connect to a game once the game has begun I wish I could not use the phone. Again this is not the case. To see where you opponent moved you have to use the app and then the game app underneath.If I have to use Bluetooth and have to have my phone connected at all times while playing at a minimum I would expect a native phone app that can play chess in a easy to use way. This app would be shared to whoever you want to play with for example my friend in another state. To be clear you should have your own chess app that can play with others and if you want to do chess.com for example make it integrated not a clunky screen share overlay.I give this three stars for build quality of the unit as it is great for the price but minus two stars for clunky and frustrating app that is required.***I will write their customer service was excellent. After this review they contacted me and not only worked with me but made me feel that they are listening and continue to enhance the product. If the app does improve I will be sure to come back and update this review.

The media could not be loaded. I received this item a month ago, and the delivery was very quick. However, the board feels overly plastic and more like a child's toy. It's flimsy and bends up and down with just a light touch. I regret this purchase not only because of the poor quality but also due to the disappointing gameplay experience. I just discovered it lacks piece recognition. At this price point, I could have chosen much better options on the market.