Asus unveils Zenbo, a cute little companion robot with a touchscreen face - aycockdiestlyped

Asus has just unveiled what's possible to be the most talked about product at this week's Computex trade show in Taipeh, a cute talking robot for the home priced at $599.

Called Zenbo, Asus pitched it as a ad hominem assistant that can help reckon after elderly relatives or read stories to the kids, but that mightiness be selling IT a trifle short.

The robot is nigh two feet high and rolls around on wheels, with a display that can show its animated face or represent used for some other things like fashioning video calls and streaming movies.

Asus Chairwoman Jonney Shih demonstrated Zenbo at a press conference in Taipei Monday, giving it voice commands and asking it questions is it rolled around the stage.

"Hey Zenbo, is it true you can drive pictures"? he asked.

"Yes, I can take aim photographs," the robot replied.

He told Zenbo to take his exposure with the audience in the background. Shih positioned himself along stage and Zenbo trundled over and took his film. It was an effective monstrance, assuming the Zenbo wasn't being remotely controlled someways from backstage.

James Niccolai

Thither was zero word when Zenbo will go on sales event and a spokesman said Asus doesn't as yet have a ship date. It wants developers to sign up for a software kit that will let them anatomy applications for it.

But Zenbo appears to be able to act quite an a shell out already.

A big part of the pitch is affectionate for the old, which could be specially popular in nearby Japan, which is struggling with an aging population. Zenbo "helps to bridge the digital divide betwixt generations" past allowing seniors to make video calls and purpose interpersonal networking with simple sound commands, Asus said.

IT give the sack also connect to a smart wristband and intelligent relatives via smartphone app if their senior proportionate has a fall.

IT's non something other robots haven't done before, but IT's impressive that Asus will whir those capabilities for the price of a PC.

For kids, Zenbo can interpret them stories, exhibit videos and bet interactive games.

It's beguiling to think of Zenbo as an Amazon Echo or Siri on wheels, though it's unclear if it will equal American Samoa smart as those other digital assistants. It does effort to answer general noesis questions, though.

"Hey Zenbo, who is smarter, Leonardo or Albert Francis Charles Augustus Emmanuel Einstein?" Shih asked at one detail.

"I'm sorry, I do non know the answer, but I will continue to work on my cognition," Zenbo said.

It will also atomic number 4 able to dim the lights, turn off the TV and verify separate household appliances, reported to Shih, though he didn't say what engineering science standards it supports or how IT will answer that.

In fact, Asus provided virtually no technical details about the robot. Afterwards the demonstration, Shih was joined briefly by an Intel executive, suggesting Intel may have had a hand in its development.

"For decades, humans have unreal of owning much a companion: one that is smart, dear to our Black Maria, and ever at our disposal," Shih aforesaid. "Our ambition is to enable robotic computing for every home."

Source: https://www.pcworld.com/article/415014/asus-unveils-zenbo-a-cute-robot-for-the-home-priced-at-599.html

Posted by: aycockdiestlyped.blogspot.com

Share this post