| Commentary | Making the rounds this year at prestigious venues like CES 2008 and the 2008 London Toy Fair is the unveiling of a toy robot family named Spykee. Children growing up in the U.S. have had the concept Erector set toys for decades, but Spykee takes the concept to another level (a somewhat scary level).
The Spykee family of robots can network with computers and cell phones via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. You remote control the devices through the network connection. A Spykee can take photos or digital videos and transmit them over these wireless networks to receiving devices, similar to the function of a wireless Internet video camera. If the idea of talking to a toy doesn't bother you, you can also configure some Spykee's to work as VoIP phones, because they both accept voice input and can boom out audio through a loudspeaker.
Let us all hope: (1) these things don't work in bathrooms and (2) a next-door neighbor won't be able to take control of one by hacking into the home network.
Spykee Robot - Cate Gillon / Getty Images
The Spykee family of robots can network with computers and cell phones via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. You remote control the devices through the network connection. A Spykee can take photos or digital videos and transmit them over these wireless networks to receiving devices, similar to the function of a wireless Internet video camera. If the idea of talking to a toy doesn't bother you, you can also configure some Spykee's to work as VoIP phones, because they both accept voice input and can boom out audio through a loudspeaker.
Let us all hope: (1) these things don't work in bathrooms and (2) a next-door neighbor won't be able to take control of one by hacking into the home network.
Spykee Robot - Cate Gillon / Getty Images
What will they retail for?
I do like the spykee. But I think people are being carried away with how popular this is going to be. I think that some of the other new robots are going to fight their own corner. Robots like the tribot, isobot and rovio.