iRobot releases "Create" specs, pricing

Until now all we've seen of iRobot "Create" is a bunch of FCC docs that illustrate the concept of a vacuum-less Roomba spin-off. As of tonight, iRobot has started selling the Create with a 1-2 day shipping period at prices starting from $129.99 going up to $999.99 for a 10-pack of the little fellas. Riding the wave of the open source / hacking communities, iRobot hopes that owners of the Create will do what they did with the Roomba and use their imagination to come up with innovative and zany uses for the technology. For a little taste of "the zany," check out the bionic hamster ball navigation system add-on that the iRobot engineers cooked up. Some of the features of the Create are 30 built-in sensors, a 25-pin expansion port for connecting a command module and other electronics, and a spacious cargo bay with plenty of holes for mounting hardware. iRobot is so eager to get people out there Creat-ing clever uses for their device that they're offering a free 30-day trial period, so what're you waiting for?

[Via MAKE]

[shirizaki @ Jan 8th 2007 10:39AM]

Finally, room and programming capability for that flamethrower attachment. MWHAHAHAHAHAHA!


Er....for those tough-to-get-out stains.

[Matt @ Jan 8th 2007 11:02AM]

Its about time a bigwig company embraced the hacking community. The new wave of 'innovation' will be open source, or at least the ability to let consumers who pay good money do what they want with things that they buy.

We are on top of what appears to be a steady increase of technological inovation and yet at the same time it seems like companies are trying to destroy everything with these crazy agreements stating we don't own what we buy.

MORE POWER TO YOU iROBOT! (Now fix my dang Roomba battery that died for no reason :) )

[Dave @ Jan 8th 2007 11:04AM]

I just want one that can do stairs.. In my place the stairs are the most high traffic area and also the most difficult to clean.. They need a slinky shaped unit or something that can to stairs!

[Matt Berohn @ Jan 8th 2007 11:34AM]

check it out here: http://www.irobot.com/create/explore/

[John Stracke @ Jan 8th 2007 11:42AM]

The $129.99 price does not include programmability; you have to buy the "Command Module", for a further $59.99. That's kind of high, given that it's just a microcontroller with one USB gadget interface and four serial interfaces. I suspect they're undercharging for the Create, and overcharging for the Command Module, on the theory that nearly everybody will buy them together. That way they get to advertise the Create as "only $129.99".

[pej @ Jan 8th 2007 12:47PM]

Just a microcontroller and USB gadget interface? Go look up prices for microcontrollers and usb fifo's and you'll see that $59 is not a bad price for a prebuilt unit. Sure you can buy a bare microcontroller for a few bucks but building the circuit and adding peripherals adds up fast.

[tiuk @ Jan 8th 2007 2:04PM]

This is awesome. I know nothing about robotics, but with such a low price I think this would be a great way to start learning.

[mom @ Jan 8th 2007 4:41PM]

Thank you Jesus! Finally a product to roam around my house saying the things I say 100 times a day..."boys make your beds, brush your teeth, set the table, pick up your dirty socks..." etc...Ideally this would have the ability to zap said teenager if it does not get done.

[Daniel @ Mar 18th 2007 8:41PM]

Could we use to "command module" by itself as a microcontroller. Is the 25 pin connector a DB25?