What you don’t need, another teenager around the house with an attitude.
JUDGING by the promotional material, he sounds like the average ned after a night out on the tiles. Robosapien, the latest robotic toy which experts are predicting will become the must-have item for children, can "pick up, throw, kick, dance, fight, perform kung-fu, fart, belch, rap and much more". Receiving its official launch next week at the Gadget Shop, the official stockists of the product, the robotic human is billed as being the first affordable humanoid robot based on the science of applied biomorphic robotics, which sounds great, but leaves few any the wiser as to its capabilities.
Apparently, it means the machine’s movements mimic those of humans, helping to back up the claims of the marketers, who say that it is "loaded with attitude and intelligence". The toy is the result of two years’ work by Dr Mark Tilden, a robotics physicist who has worked with NASA and has also developed robotic technologies for other US government agencies. Dr Tilden said at the toy’s launch in the US: "He’s fun because of his built-in quirks and uses grunts to convey his feelings. Each time he wakes up he’ll yawn, stretch and say ‘uh-huh’, and then he’s ready to go." Robosapien contains seven motors that let him walk, run, perform "high-fives" and 180-degree turns, and to listen and react to what’s happening around him. Promoters claim the real appeal comes in his ability to perform moves programmed by his owner. However, at 35.5cm tall, and costing a conservative $80 (£45) in the US, his ability to help about the home will be limited. |