Anyone own a Sony AIBO?

jccbinjccbin
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I've been considering buying Sony's robot dog, the AIBO, for a while now. http://www.us.aibo.com/



I travel alot, which means I don't have time for a live animal at home, but the AIBO might be fun.



Anyone here have one/played with one?
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 33
    roborobo Posts: 469member
    No, however i doubt an Aibo would be much of a replacement for a real animal. It's a neat toy though.
  • Reply 2 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    I'd love to have a live canine, but I'm home less than 10 hours a day. A live animal deserves more time than a few minutes a day



    With an AIBO, I could spend "quality" time with it when my schedule allowed - since I could turn it on or off at my convenience.



    Obviously it is not a real "personality" like a real dog, but I have been quite amazed at some of the videos I've seen - intricate interaction with owners, including pouting when not getting it's way, taking itself to the charger and plugging in when low on energy, understanding up to 75 voice commands - not to mention all the software personalities that are available pre-built.



    You can even get a software set where the 'bot "wakes" up as a newborn and you get to raise him/her/it through 50 days of character traits.
  • Reply 3 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    Ok, I talked myself into it.



    I just ordered a Cyber Blue Sony Aibo 210A, Energy station, recognition software, Memory Stick reader/writer, and an extra battery.



    Total damage: $1,700.



    We'll find out in a few days if this was a screwup or great fun!



    Edit: Model Number correction.
  • Reply 4 of 33
    der kopfder kopf Posts: 2,275member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jccbin

    Total damage: $1,700.



  • Reply 5 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    Definitely NOT a Toy.

  • Reply 6 of 33
    pesipesi Posts: 424member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by der Kopf





    well, they used to cost about 10 Grand. heh.



    consider the cost of actually caring for a pet over the span of several years, and that won't seem so much.



    hell, some people pay more than that just for their pets.
  • Reply 7 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    A well-bred dog with a family history of good personalities and disease resistance can easily set one back that much in a year with food, vet visits, grooming, kenneling.



    This way, I can just box him/her/it up if it begins to be a pain.



    Then you guys could buy it from me for pennies on the dollar....



    I must also say the entire purchase phone call took less than ten minutes and was very efficiently handled, including my questions, etc.



    Even my calls to tech support (to test out the wait times - hee hee -- were answered within two minutes of dialing - not bad at all.
  • Reply 8 of 33
    spartspart Posts: 2,060member
    Yeah...just taking five minutes to add what I can remember up, plus guessing at what food and such costs, I estimate that my family has spent $2,095 on our dog, which we have had for five years. And I bet that I'm missing a lot.



    No piece of plastic and metal will live up to the real deal, though.
  • Reply 9 of 33
    spartspart Posts: 2,060member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jccbin:

    A well-bred dog with a family history of good personalities and disease resistance can easily set one back that much in a year with food, vet visits, grooming, kenneling.



    This way, I can just box him/her/it up if it begins to be a pain.



    Then you guys could buy it from me for pennies on the dollar....



    I must also say the entire purchase phone call took less than ten minutes and was very efficiently handled, including my questions, etc.



    Even my calls to tech support (to test out the wait times - hee hee -- were answered within two minutes of dialing - not bad at all.



    That's quite a bit to be spending on a dog over the course of a year. Yeah, I forgot about fencing and the kennel...crap.



    Besides, mutts always make the best dogs.



  • Reply 10 of 33
    ghost_user_nameghost_user_name Posts: 22,667member
    I have a cat, and I really wish I could turn her off sometimes



    There are a lot of people that want a pet, but you know, either can't have one in their apartment building, or they really don't want to deal with all the negativities of owning a living, breathing thing. I think an Aibo is a wonderful compromise.



    Is the thing really smart enough to recharge itself without your help? This I was unaware of...
  • Reply 11 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    THe software for self-charging (and more) is called "Recognize" and consists of the self-power-monitoring ability, and a pretty decent optical recognition package that allows the 'bot to recognize it's owner's face.

    The AIBO's personality is based in Sony Memory Sticks, and there are various "full-grown" personalities one can buy, including the "Recognition" pack. There is also a set called "life" where you get to raise him/her/it from newborn. THen there are the Disco Aibo sets that let it find the beat to music and dance (I kid you not).

    He even has a skateboard thing he can use.

    I hope he arrives this week. Can't wait to see how disappointed I'll be :-)
  • Reply 12 of 33
    low-filow-fi Posts: 357member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by jccbin

    THe software for self-charging (and more) is called "Recognize" and consists of the self-power-monitoring ability, and a pretty decent optical recognition package that allows the 'bot to recognize it's owner's face.

    The AIBO's personality is based in Sony Memory Sticks, and there are various "full-grown" personalities one can buy, including the "Recognition" pack. There is also a set called "life" where you get to raise him/her/it from newborn. THen there are the Disco Aibo sets that let it find the beat to music and dance (I kid you not).

    He even has a skateboard thing he can use.

    I hope he arrives this week. Can't wait to see how disappointed I'll be :-)



    PICTURES!
  • Reply 13 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    There is a pic of the skateboard at http://www.us.aibo.com



    Apparently AIBO rides it like a surfer swims on a surfboard ( on his stomach, using his legs to push and to turn the steering wheel.



    ANd here's a movie of an AIBO on the board:



    http://www.aibo-life.org/visorg/video/ZeoSpeedBoard.wmv



    I found it on that site just now, and yes, it is in Windows Media format (sorry).
  • Reply 14 of 33
    muahmuah Posts: 165member
    I used to consider these things a novelty. Man am I impressed. I keep thinking about the movie AI.
  • Reply 15 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    My Aibo has shipped!
  • Reply 16 of 33
    bungebunge Posts: 7,329member
    i saw one in a wintel expo. the poor ... thing looked like it had rabies.
  • Reply 17 of 33
    ti fighterti fighter Posts: 863member
    cool man, i'm all for buying robots



    awww i feel bad for the refurbished ones on sonys site, they must come from broken homes.....i wonder what happends when they don't sell them..spare parts
  • Reply 18 of 33
    applenutapplenut Posts: 5,768member
    people pay 1700 for this piece of crap and then people complain about apple's pricing?





    my God.
  • Reply 19 of 33
    jccbinjccbin Posts: 476member
    He just left California via FedEx!



    Ohhh, the joy!
  • Reply 20 of 33
    stoostoo Posts: 1,490member
    Quote:

    THen there are the Disco Aibo sets that let it find the beat to music and dance



    Same as in the Discman ads? Naturally, picturess are indeed required.
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