ROBOTS DREAMS

Santa Must Have Delivered A Lot Of Robots (Video)

Christmas has come and gone, but from the number of video clips showing up on popular video sharing sites like YouTube and Google Video, Santa's sleigh must have been totally overloaded with the popular Roboreptile robots from WowWee. A quick search on YouTube turned up numerous videos including one that featured a baby teething on the robot, another one where it scares the heck out of a cat and dog, yet another with it trying to climb on top of a floor vacuum, and lots of others.

Our favorite video of the bunch (see below), at least so far, has the robot exploring an office area, attempting to mate with a door, getting its head stuck between a door and the door jam, and then attacking a computer like there's no tomorrow.

RoboReporter Contest Prize: A Free Discovery Chromashift Roboreptile Robot

To kick off the new RoboReporter robot news website, Robert, the site publisher, is staging a contest and the Discovery Channel's online store has put up a Chromashift Roboreptile robot that will go to the contest winner. The RoboReporter concept is very simple and straight forward. If you like Digg, then you're probably going to love this new site. Registration is free and open to all comers. Registered participants submit new robotics related news stories, which are then 'voted-on' by other readers. The more popular stories quickly find their way to the top of the pile.

According to the RoboReporter contest rules, the Chromashift Roboreptile robot will go to the member that submits the highest number of valid posts during the month of November. You do have to reside in either the US or Canada - which unfortunately leaves us out of the competition.

So, don't just sit there. Get your browser over to the RoboReporter website, read the rules, register, and then start submitting pointers to new and exciting robot developments. They don't have to be about the Roboreptile or even a Robosapien - any robot related news story will be considered. Who knows? You might be lucky enough to take home a brand new Roboreptile robot.

Robosapien RSMedia Hits Store Shelves in Oz

Australia is great place to roll out new technology. The people really seem to enjoy and appreciate the latest and greatest gadgets, they are used to paying a little more for imported technology, and they don't hesitate to give feedback about what they like and what they don't. Best of all - it's fairly remote and isolated, so if a new product unexpectedly falls flat on its face, the damage is minimal.

WowWee seems to be consistently using Australia as the test market for their latest robots. On Tuesday (October 10th), they introduced the new Robosapien RSMedia in Sydney complete with a host of well known Australian entertainment and sports personalities. It's going to be interesting to see how well the Oz market warms to the new robot, and how it impacts the introduction schedule for other countries.

Robosapien RSMedia Website Goes Live

 
Although the new Robosapien RSMedia robot designed by Mark Tilden won't hit store shelves until sometime in January, 2007, WowWee has already started to build some enthusiasm and awareness around it. Tilden has been showing it off, along with the RoboReptile, to the press in Europe, and a few days ago, the new RSMedia Official Website went live.  

The website is worth a visit, especially if you're a Robosapien fan. In addition to some general overviews and features lists, it also contains the full RSMedia user manual for the robot. We spent about an hour reading through the manual, and all we can say is 'complex'. It runs around 70 pages with table after table after table of listings showing all the button combinations necessary to get the robot to do what you want. Unfortunately the manual doesn't address a lot of our open questions - it probably shouldn't - so we'll have to wait until we can test and review the robot first hand.

RoboReptile Robot Uncloaked

Some of us just like to play with robots. Others love to build them. Still others seem to live just to tear them apart and see what makes them tick. The new RoboReptile robot from WowWee only recently hit store shelves in a small number of countries, but dedicated fans not only ran out to buy a few, some of them have completely disassembled their new treasures, and have professionally documented what they found.

RoboReptile Invasion Delayed A Bit

Apparently the report that the new RoboReptile would be released 'world wide' this week was a little premature. The official release schedule that was recently posted on the RoboReptile website shows the new robot already available in Singapore and Taiwan. The New Zealand debut listed is June 26th, followed by Australia in early July, then several (but not all) European countries sometime in September. No mention is made of the UK, France, or US market release dates. [Thanks Carl]

RoboReptile Has Australian Roots

Creative artists and inventors find inspiration all around them, and robot designers are no different. According to a story just published in "The Sunday Mail", Mark Tilden, the creator of some of the world's best selling robots like the Robosapien and Roboraptor, found his inspiration for the new RoboReptile while watching television.

RoboPet Finally Makes It To Japan

RoboPet, the robot canine partner of the Robosapien, is finally being released to the market here in Japan. Almost a year after it’s inital release in the US, the RoboPet will be offered by Toys “R” Us-Japan in its retail stores and online shop starting July 13th. The target price is 6,999 yen. [via RobotWatch (Japanese)]

Robopet Bloopers (Video)

We sometimes get compliments on the quality of our robot videos, and that usually makes us chuckle a bit. If people only knew some of the horrific or totally stupid mistakes we make. . .

Roboreptile Robot Photos and Video Surface in France

The folks over at evolutionshops.com in France must have an inside track to Mark Tilden and the WowWee Robotics organization because they keep turning up new photos, videos, and seem to actually have been playing with a few of the newest robots like the Roboreptile.

RoboReptile Looks Like An Awesome Robot

The French blog, “Robosapien le blog” just posted a great new photo of the RoboReptile, scheduled to hit the store shelves early this summer.

Designer Dogs - Robopet Rainbows

Leave it to the ever fashion conscious French to start promoting Robopet robots in a striking selection of colors - Rose, Aqua Marine, Salmon, Fuschia. Very nice, but we're going to wait for them to release Le Camo Robopet to match our handbag...

[via Robosapien le blog (French)]

Chat with the Robot

One of the reasons we like robots so much is that they present us with endless opportunities to learn and create new things, and have a tremendous amount of fun doing it. One of our friends, and premier robot hacker from ‘the land downunder’, Sprocket2cog, must feel the same way because he’s just rolled out the alpha version of sapienCHAT.

On The Boards: Robosapien Humor

The Robosapien online forums (there are quite a few of them now) tend to be meeting places for dedicated robot hackers to hang out and exchange their latest projects, successes and failures, and share technical information about circuit, sensor, and motor hacks. Recently however, some of the posters have been showing a real sense of humor and creativity.

Rainbow Robots!

Tired by your mono-tone, plain vanilla robot? Have an uncontrollable urge to paint your Robopet to match your car, or your room? How about a three-tone, vivid Roboraptor? Or a . . .

Robert Does It Again! (Video)

First Robert Oschler wowed all of us by developing the Robosapien Dance Machine software that gave users the ability to control their Robosapien robot from their PC, and create action (dance) sequences. Then he raised the ante by adding voice recognition control. Now he’s in the process of expanding it yet again – this time to control all of the WowWee Robotics robots – and he’s allowed us to share a video with you that really shows off what his system can do.

CNN CES Video Coverage Includes LEGO NXT and Roboreptile

CNN’s Renay San Miguel was at the CES show in Las Vegas last week, and one of his video segments included a short peek at both the new LEGO NXT system, and the WowWee Robotics Roboreptile in action.

More CES Photos Of The WowWee Robots

Attendees at the CES show have started to upload some of their photos to the flickr.com website. Scanning through the recently uploaded photos we found several photos of the P.E.A.Bot and Roboreptile (see list of links after the break.)

Takes One To Control One!

Pavel Petrovic and Richard Balogh have managed to figure out how to control a Robopet using IR signals they send from – are you ready for this? – a LEGO Mindstorms RCX roving robot! With a little encouragement and nudging from Robot Robert Roschler, the designer of the Robosapien Dance Machine, they not only managed to crack the code, they’re sharing it openly on their website.

More On The New Robosapien Trio

One nice thing about the CES show is that exhibitors get bombarded over and over again by the press, analysts, and curious customers. So, as the show wears on, the exhibitors wear down, and sooner or later they let more and more information slip. . .

More On The WowWee Sneak Preview

Mark Tilden, the inventor of the Robosapien, has a long standing relationship with Solarbotics, and is in regular contact with the staff there. He recently shared some information with Knitsu about the next generation robots that were sneak previewed at the CES show.

WowWee or WowWhat?

CES – the Consumer Electronics Show has turned into the premier PR event of the year. Be there, or be square. You’re either there with something new and amazing to announce, or the press assumes that your company is rapidly fading away. So it wasn’t surprising to hear that Wowwee Robotics was giving a ‘sneak preview’ at the show – though the robot designs that were previewed seem really puzzling. . .

Mark Tilden On The Gadget Show

Mark Tilden, the father of the Robosapien, Robosapien V2, Roboraptor, and Robopet was interviewed by The Gadget Show - a great technology television program broadcast in the UK. But viewers outside of the UK weren't able to watch, but dedicated Robosapien fans  never let a little problem like that stand in their way. . .

The Best Robosapien V2 Videos So Far! (Video)

Scott sent in what have to be the absolute best Robosapien V2 videos we’ve seen so far. He really puts the robot through it’s paces, and also includes one clip featuring interaction between the V2 and his Robopet.

My Puppy Has No Knees! (Video)

He doesn't have any ankles either. No, my puppy isn't handicapped. He was designed that way. He's a Robopet.

Sometimes we get so entranced by fascinating robotic technology that we completely overlook the obvious. For example, my amazing Robopet walks, jumps, sits up and begs, and sometimes takes a nose dive off the table top. Is it any wonder that I didn't notice his lack of knees, ankles, and other joints?

Robert's Robopet Takes Direction (Video)

Given the initial difficulty we had getting our Robopet to behave, we've been watching the progress that Robert has been making with his voice control extensions to the Robosapien Dance Machine project. Although the mods aren't quite ready for public release quite yet, he has posted a fantastic video that clearly illustrates what it will be able to do.

Beyond Here There Be Dragons (Video)

One of the Robopet 'features' is edge detection. In fact, the power switch in his belly has three settings - off, on with edge detection, and on without edge detection. But . . .

Teaching A New Dog New Tricks (Video)

At first it was a little difficult getting used to the Robopet remote control, and getting my new robot to behave and do what I wanted him to. But, after quite a bit of practice, and patience, I seem to be able to get him to do what I want him to - most of the time.

Sit, Shake, Howl - Training Your Robopet

Okay - so you unwrapped your robot pet, fed it a half a dozen batteries or more, and now you're trying desperately to get it under control by punching buttons on its remote control. But, wait a darned minute! This is a robot dog, and dogs are supposed to listen to and behave commands from their master's voice - right?

Blogging the robot - a question in ethical behavior

As blogs become more and more popular they tend to raise interesting issues. How is a blog similar to other media – like newspapers and television, and how is it different. Should someone who publishes a blog with a limited readership be held to the same standards as a large newspaper or magazine empire?

Stupid RoboPet Tricks (Video)

Our Robopet has been here for a week already, and it’s about time for us to get down to some serious analysis. So, we carted our brand new toy off to the laboratory, setup the video camera, and put it through its paces.

RoboArmy On The Move! Enlist Now!

The RoboArmy’s on the move! We’ve already got outposts on three continents (is Oz a continent or just a big island? I forget), and the forces are massing. The RoboArmy even has it’s own dedicated SWAT team of deep RoboHackers.

 

Zapped By A Raptor

How fast can a raptor run?

Apparently the answer is at the speed of light, or pretty darn close to it! That was demonstrated to us this Friday afternoon when a raptorlicious idea zipped from the US to Japan, out on to the internet, down to Australia, back out on to the internet, and back to Japan to hit us full in the face!

Robopet Mod: Adding a 2nd IR Detector by Ken Finch

This is the second exciting Robopet modification contributed by Ken Finch, an avid robot fan and experimenter from Canada. This time Ken explains how he added a second IR detector to his Robopet so that it could be controlled from almost any direction.

Robopet Mod: LED Mode Indicator by Ken Finch

This is the first in a series of two really useful and exciting Robopet modifications contributed by Ken Finch, an avid robot fan and experimenter from Canada.

A Robot and His Dog (Video)

The Robosapien V2 press articles have talked about the robot being able to command and control both the Robopet and Roboraptor, but what does he make them do? Fetch the newspaper? Attack the mailman?

What Happens When Roboraptors and Robopets Start to Breed?

Grant, who recently left Solarbotics and landed the job of a lifetime working for WowWee Robotics in Hong Kong, posted a great photo of the 'RaptorPet' on his BEAM page.

Not Just Boy's Toys

We tend to automatically think of robots like the Robosapien and Robopet as “boy’s toys”, but that gender stereotyping doesn’t match reality. A recent article in the Sydney Morning Herald does an excellent job of humorously poking holes in the idea that robots and technology in general are primarily a male domain.

Most Wanted List

The FBI has their list of Most Wanted criminal suspects, Interpol keeps a similar list, so, why not have a Most Wanted robots list?

#1	#2	#3	#4
Robosapien V2, the latest gang member, is reported to tower over and intimidate his enemies. He has been known to toss objects around when provoked, and practices kung fu type moves with ease.	Robopet does all the undercover work for the robo-gang. Often masquerading as a loveable pet, he can quickly shift his personality from huggable to hostile, frequently lifting his leg on unsuspecting victims.	Roboraptor is the robo-gang enforcer, always on the alert with a keen ear for any tell tale sound or movement, ready to pounce. Although he has a beautiful smile, it masks a set of predator's teeth.	Robosapien, the founder of the robo-gang and defacto robo-Godfather, has a very unusual,  commanding way of walking. He often goes dancing. Beware, his trademark High-5 greeting can instantly turn into a karate chop.

Robosapien V2 at Amazon

For some unknown reason - at least unknown to me - the Robosapien V2 is appearing on the Amazon website for pre-order in the 'Electronics' category while all the other Robosapien products are listed under toys. This may have something to do with the third party channels, like Toys 'R Us that use Amazon to reach a broader customer base.

Robopet Review - PC Magazine

I have a life-long habit of doing things backwards. When it comes to buying the latest and greatest electronic gadget, I definitely go about it backwards. I rush out to buy what turns me on, what really appeals to me. Then, afterwards, I start reading the articles and reviews of the product - sometimes to my great regret.