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All About LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT

LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT was one of our earliest programmable bricks. The software isn’t being updated anymore, but we’re still here to help with any troubleshooting questions.  

Software downloads 

The LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT software was last updated in 2013, when we launched its successor, the EV3. Since then, the NXT software hasn’t been officially supported, so we can’t guarantee it’ll work on newer systems. 
 
The good news is that the  EV3 Lab Software still works with the NXT Intelligent Brick and components (though Bluetooth isn’t supported and the NXT firmware can’t be updated or reset through the app). 
 
If you’d like to download the NXT software, you can use the link below to get the final version (v2.1f6). The Home edition is no longer available. 
 
Education Edition 
 
System requirements: 

  • 512MB of RAM minimum (1GB recommended) 

  • 700MB of available hard-disk space 

  • XGA display (1024x768) 

  • 1 available USB port 

  • CD-ROM drive 

Clicking noise troubleshooting 

If your LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Intelligent Brick is making a clicking sound, won’t turn on and isn’t being detected by the NXT software, it may have lost power during a firmware update. Don’t worry though! Most of the time, you can solve the problem by following the steps below:

  1. Make sure your NXT Intelligent Brick is at least 50% charged.

  1. Disconnect your NXT Intelligent Brick from the computer. Then turn it over and find the 12 circular connection holes (6 above the battery and 6 below). Inside the top-left tube, you’ll see a small silver button. Use a paper clip to press and hold this button for about 20 seconds.

  1. Open the NXT software on your computer and reconnect your NXT Intelligent Brick using the USB cable.

  1. Select ‘Tools’ in the NXT software and then choose ‘Firmware Update’.

  1. Select the latest firmware file (1.31) and click ‘Download’. This process usually takes 15-20 seconds. You’ll see green progress bars as the file downloads and a message will confirm when the update is complete.