by Almost 25 years ago, Sony’s robot dog Aibo was a worldwide sensation, and this year a new robot dog aims to bring a spark of individuality to the idea.
Unveiled at the annual Las Vegas tech trade show CES (Consumer Electronics Show), the Dog-E was designed to develop a distinctive personality for its owner.
Designed by robot toy maker WowWee, the $80 Dog-E is controlled by an app and the pup develops its own personality through what WowWee describes as the “push” process.
The “press” process is triggered by interactions with the pet, such as by hitting it on the head.
This means that every dog has its own personality – some like to rest, others are always hungry, some are shy and some are “feisty”.
The annual tech show also saw a growing trend for ‘pet tech’ in the form of a fitness tracker for dogs from Bird Buddy, the artificial intelligence bird feeder that identifies birds that come to feed, and a fitness tracker for dogs from French start-up Invoxia.
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The Dog-E has lifelike movements, sound sensors to hear sounds, touch sensors on the head, nose and sides of its body, and a POV (continuity of sight) tail that displays icons and messages to communicate.
Sydney Wiseman, Vice President of Brand Development and Creative Strategy at WowWee, said, “We are excited to announce the launch of the MINTiD Dog-E, which is once again revolutionizing the toy for robots category by combining great, cutting-edge technology with social convenience.
“With Dog-E, we’re reimagining robot dogs, thinking of the joy a child – or toddler!, would feel when they have a ‘MINTID’ just for them!”
The Dog-E companion app allows multiple members of a family to create and save their individual profiles on a single Dog-E and seamlessly switch between each person using the app.
There are up to one million possible variations within each Dog-E.
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Users can train Dog-E to learn its name, program movements and teach it tricks like giving kisses, singing songs, and responding to claps.
Robot dogs have been a staple of the toy market since 1999, when Sony launched its pioneering Aibo robot.
Launched with a worldwide wave of excitement, the first batch of 3,000 sold out in just 20 minutes, even though it cost $2,000 each.
To watch; Cool and weird gadgets of CES 2023
