Meet Zenbo, the Asus robot that costs no more than a smartphone
Meet Zenbo, the Asus robot that costs no more than a
smartphone
Voice-controlled companion, whose touchscreen face shows
its emotions, can entertain kids and control the lights
Asus’s chairman, Jonney Shih, introduces Zenbo: ’Our
ambition is to enable robotic computing for every household.’ Photograph:
Ritchie Tongo/EPA
By Samuel Gibbs Tuesday 31 May 2016 07.27 EDT
The Taiwanese electronics manufacture Asus has unveiled a
home robot called Zenbo that can talk, control your home and provide assistance
when needed – all for the cost of a top-end smartphone.
The $599 (£410) robot rolls around on two wheels in the
shape of a vacuum cleaner ball with cameras an oblong head extruding from the
top with a colour touchscreen displaying a face with emotions. It is capable of
independent movement, can respond to voice commands and has both entertainment
protocols for keeping kids amused and home care systems to help look after
older people.
Jonney Shih, the Asus chairman, said: “For decades,
humans have dreamed of owning such a companion: one that is smart, dear to our
hearts, and always at our disposal. Our ambition is to enable robotic computing
for every household.”
Zenbo will remind older people of doctor’s appointments
or medication schedules, and will monitor the home for emergency situations
such as falls. If it detects a problem, it will notify carers and allow them to
pilot the robot remotely, using the camera to inspect the area.
Asus hopes that children will take to the robot, which
can sing, dance, tell stories and play games, while controlling the surrounding
environment, including the lights, for a bit more novelty. For adults, Asus is
pitching Zenbo as a moving Amazon Echo or Google Home competitor, capable of
taking control of various internet of things devices, from televisions to
thermostats. In a demonstration with Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan’s new president,
Zenbo recognised a command for music and started playing, even over the sounds
of an exhibition crowd.
Voice control is the new AI butler
The voice-controlled home assistant market is growing,
with Amazon’s Echo making waves and Google’s recent foray with Home. But most
attempts are based around a fixed speaker that sits in the home and can be
shouted at by owners.
Only SoftBank’s Pepper robot, which is currently
available in Japan costing 198,000 yen (£1,220), is close to what Asus is
looking to offer, with articulated arms, cameras and sensors in a head and a
screen on its chest.
Whether anyone will buy a general purpose robot that
cannot physically help with tasks around the home, only through voice and sound
interactions, remains to be seen. For Asus and other electronics manufacturers,
in-home robots are still an experiment.
If they can capture the same enthusiasm for interaction
and usefulness to home owners as Amazon’s Echo, they could find success. Like
any other product, these robots need a reason to exist to avoid becoming
expensive novelty toys.
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