i-SOBOT Hands-On Review

Updates:
• 150,000 i-SOBOTs now destined for the US!
• i-SOBOT available NOW at Neiman-Marcus Online
• Eneloop batteries will require a pre-charge in this product
• We clarified our pros and cons
• waziwazi IE bug hopefully fixed (Thanks Bill!)

Introduction:

Bah! I don't wish to read all this. Just give me the pros and cons!

Pros: Awesome fun Small: 6.5" height! 17 degrees of freedom Easy to operate 2 bands/frequencies Gyro sensor Neat Robo-One style bipedal design Smooth human-like motion Voice command mode Huge number of possible actions Hilarious actions $299

Cons: Infra-red (line-of-sight) Communication Not autonomous Cannot program/control individual servos

Hobby robotics enthusiasts have only recently been able to purchase and tinker with advanced bipedal robots such as Kondo's KHR and Hitec's Robonova. These awesomely cool robots, now a staple of the Robo-One competition, have never been popular with everyday gadget-loving consumers because of their steep cost (~$1000), complicated assembly and difficult programming requirements. A new breed of less expensive, pre-assembled and easy-to-operate robots are catching the eye of the everyday consumer. Robosapien, made by Hong Kong outfit WowWee, was one. The robot, now in its third generation as Robosapien RS, comes with a slew of entertaining features but lacks the human-like motion seen in the $1000 bipedal robots.

Video: i-SOBOT Self Introduction

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Enter i-SOBOT, a new $299 bipedal capable of smoother, more human-like actions thanks to the 17 'joints' it is created with. i-SOBOT has been 3 years in the making in the labs of Tomy Takara, a Japanese toy company. It comes with an entertaining array of abilities: the cute little robot can walk, kick, punch, somersault, utter some 200 words and even act out impersonations of Jack Bauer and Clint Eastwood. Some of the preset actions i-SOBOT performs can be quite hilarious. In one case (video below), poor i-SOBOT tries to make its way to a bathroom complaining of a tummy ache. As you can probably hear in some of the videos, we had tons of laughs and fun playing around with i-SOBOT at Tomy's offices; the robot is certainly fun for both kids and adults.

Video: i-SOBOT needs to go to the bathroom

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Video: i-SOBOT drunk!

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i-SOBOT comes fully assembled and almost ready to run. Pop 3 AA batteries into the controller, and i-SOBOT is ready to entertain in one of four modes (see the features section below). i-SOBOT's brilliance is in its size. The robot packs all these features in a frame smaller than a DVD case. Standing at just 6.5" tall, the little robot has been recognized by Guinness as the world's smallest commercial bipedal robot. I know what you may be thinking. i-SOBOT sounds expensive if you think about the goodies you can purchase for $300 - a 4GB iPhone or a powerful dual-core PC. However, if you compare apples to apples, that is look at other robots in the market, i-SOBOT is priced quite fairly. The Robosapien RS-Media also costs about $300 but is bulky and quite toy-like in appearance while Ugobe's Pleo will debut for well over $300. On the downside, i-SOBOT's remote control uses an infra-red, line-of-sight communication therefore requiring you to point the controller directly at the robot to operate it. We also wish it had some additional sensors and an autonomous mode, but at a price of $300, we think i-SOBOT is quite a unique and brilliant robot. We recommend it and give it 2 thumbs up.

Release Plans:

• Now available online for pre-order at Amazon.com and Toys 'R' Us & Neiman-Marcus Online.
• i-SOBOT will be sold in Sharper Image and Toys 'R' Us stores starting October 31
• Tomy only has 15000 150,000 i-SOBOTs available for the US market
• i-SOBOT will be released in the US first, yes a few weeks before Japan!
• Planned accessories include a drum set and a carrying case
• Tomy Japan is developing an i-SOBOT featuring a camera possibly with both video and photo capabilities. It's not clear whether the robot will have face recognition abilities.

What's in the Box:

• i-SOBOT
• 3 AAA NiMH rechargeable batteries to power i-SOBOT. These Sanyo Eneloop batteries are quite brilliant - they can be used fresh out of the box without the need for an initial charge [Edit: not in the case of i-SOBOT unfortunately]. There's a good review of the batteries on Candle Power Forums.
• 1 Charger: batteries need to be removed from i-SOBOT and charged separately with this charger.
• 1 Controller (Requires 3 AA batteries which are not supplied)
• 1 hexagonal wrench to align parts with servo center positions in case they are misaligned. The folks at Tomy said that none of the i-SOBOT's they've seen required this adjustment so you probably won't need the wrench.

i-SOBOT Features:

• Four modes of operation: remote-control, voice-command, special action and programming mode. The modes are selected via the “Mode” button on the controller. Commands are issued to i-SOBOT simply by pushing a sequence of buttons on the controller. Tomy provides a sheet listing all the commands that can be used for each of the modes (PDF here). Remote-control mode as it implies allows you to move i-SOBOT using the dual joystick and multiple buttons on the controller. In voice-command mode, i-SOBOT reacts to one of 10 voice-commands. In special action mode, i-SOBOT performs entertaining routines like a tropical dance or martial arts. Programming mode isn't as involving as it sounds. In this mode, you can select a sequence of up to 80 actions for i-SOBOT to perform. Tomy has put up interactive demos on its i-SOBOT's official website where you can try out the 4 modes.
Video: remote control mode

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Video: voice-command mode

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Video: i-SOBOT impersonating Jack Bauer in voice-command mode

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• Operates for 45-50 min on a single charge
• 17 servos = 17 degrees of freedom
• 19 Integrated Circuits (IC's): 1 processing IC, 1 audio IC and 1 IC per servo
• Height: 6.5”, Width: 4”, Depth: 2.5”
• Weight: 12 oz. (0.34kg or 0.75lbs) including batteries
• 1 Gyro-sensor
• Built in speaker
• Built in microphone
• Auto sleep feature when batteries are low.

Servo Specifications:

• Height: 0.85”, Width: 1”, Depth: 0.33”
• Rated motor speed: 22.4rpm
• Rated servo speed: 31rpm
• Gear ratio: 723.33

Here's an image showing the position of the servos and position of the gyro-sensor, audio IC and processor. In addition, there is an IC paired with each servo.

Controller Specifications:

• Can switch between 2 frequencies/bands to allow 2 i-SOBOT's to operate independently next to each other (eg. one-on-one soccer)
• 6' (1.8m) range
Video: Two i-SOBOTs in a Jam Session

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• Requires 3 AA batteries (not included)
• Communicates via IR (Infra-red)
• Height: 3.38”, Width: 4”
• Monochrome LCD monitor
• 2 Joysticks, 22 buttons

P = punch, K = kick, G = guard; M1-3 are memory buttons to store programmed sequences of actions. L and R buttons are used in the remote-control mode. 1, 2, 3, 4, A, B and C are used to enter commands. For example, back kick (left leg) is 3-3-K

Wishlist:

• Autonomous abilities.
• Proximity and tactile sensors.
• Bluetooth or RF communication instead of IR

Video: i-SOBOT showing off doing a hand-stand:

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Video: i-SOBOT is tired after the long review:

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Other Website Coverage:

• Robots Rule
• Robots Dreams

Your Views:

Finally, we would love to hear your feedback about this review. Did we miss something? Would you like to see more media in future reviews? We welcome your flames, praises, suggestions, questions via the comments link below or 'Submit a Story' contact form above.