Robots

Palro Robot by Fujisoft: So Cute But What Does It Do?

Filed under: Gadgets

A big question is: Does the public care what it does? It seems that the products designed by the robot industry are caught somewhere between being a very expensive toy and useless. Ever since Rosie was introduced on the Jetsons in the 1960s there has been a collective fantasy that a real housekeeper robot will miraculously emerge on the scene to help busy people manage their lives. Who wouldn't be interested in a helping hand who could cook, walk the dog and in general help out around the house? The Roomba vacuum, which can help with cleaning up some extra pet hair, doesn't count! Video chatting has become a simple reality; where is our "Rosie"?

At the moment The Japan Pulse reports that the newest robot to hit the market is the Palro Robot by Fujisoft. Showcased recently in Japan this cute humanoid stands a little over a foot tall and performs a variety of tasks. Included in this robot's repertoire is the ability to interact with household appliances such as televisions and cameras, act on voice commands, read out weather and news reports and of course the ever useful ability to dance. For those of you technology geeks who want to know the specifics here they are: Palro comes with a 1.6GHz CPU Intel Atom CPU, 1 GB of RAM, 4 GB of flash memory, a 3 MP camera, Wi-Fi, 802.11 b/g/n, 3 megapixel webcam and a lithium ion battery.

The company plans to sell the robots starting on March 15, 2010 with the main market being research institutions but plans to sell it to the rest of soon after for a hefty price tag of 298,000 Yen which is over $3,000 US dollars for each humanoid pal! For those of you with some cash to burn Palro seems like an excellent luxury toy but I'm waiting for my "Rosie"!

Check out video of Palro in action after the jump.

Tags: cute, fujisoft, Japan, palro, Robots, technology, toys

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Ballroom Dancing Robot

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Gadgets

Ballroom dancing is gaining popularity with amazing speed thanks to shows like Dancing with the Stars, so a competition that once only interested a small portion of the public is now prime-time viewing. But doing something is a lot more fun than watching others do it, so dance lessons and competitions are becoming more popular, as well. One of the biggest obstacles that a dancer faces is finding the right partner and, at least for men, that search just got a little easier thanks to Ballroom Dancing Robots. The robots are battery powered and can sense and anticipate their partners' movements. They reportedly move with a fair amount of agility, too. Each one will sell for about $300,000, and you can download a video clip of them here.

[via Born Rich]

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Tags: android, ballroom dancing, balroom dance, dance, dancer, dancing, dancing robot, robot, robots

World's First Specialty Robot Store

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Gadgets

In October, a robot museum with the world's first robot store will open in Nagoya, Japan. The shop will carry hundreds of robots, robot equipment and accessories. Perhaps the most interesting part of the venture is that the target audience of the store is actually "men in their 40s and others who grew up watching anime that featured robots," an undermarketed-to group that must have a fair amount of disposable income. The store's first specialty item will be the 39-cm high Nuvo robot, which is small, light and humanoid and sells $7,000 each.

[via Engadget]

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Tags: japan, nuvo, robot, robot store, robots, specialty store

Your Own R2-D2

by Anne Metz (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Gadgets

First there was the Japanese robot dog. Then there was the robot cat. Now there is a voice-activated robot R2-D2, the lovable little droid from Star Wars.

R2-D2 is a motorized replica of the original spirited bot, which can respond to more than 40 voice-activated commands. Using an infra-red sensor, 'D2 can roll around your house, search for intruders, play tag, answer simple 'yes' or 'no' questions, and dance to the famous cantina music from Star Wars. He may not be able to help save the universe, but he can still blink his lights, swivel his dome top and blast those memorable happy robot sounds. Standing 15 inches tall, R2-D2 weighs in at 6 pounds.

Now that popular culture's most beloved android friend has been memorialized in the form of a workable replica, I have to wonder which robot will come next? Personally, I'm hoping for Rosie -- the Jetson's helpful maid robot, the perfectly-programmed-hausfrau who leglessly rolled about, dusting and tidying wherever she went. Ah, dare to dream, I guess. Price: $119.95.

Tags: andoids, Jetsons, R2-D2, robots, Star Wars, StarWars