Video: hanging with WowWee's WiFi-enabled Rovio
By Nilay Patel 
posted Jan 6th 2008 8:28AM
posted Jan 6th 2008 8:28AM
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holy crap thats ME. I HAVE A TWIN BROTHER!
i thought you were a bird!
Veronica is a hottie!
$299 only? Sweet! There go my plans to get the wife a dog...
Are these videos going to end up in the podcast feed?
I'd be willing to pay a 1,000$ if only it were able to go up/down stairs!
And an extra 1,000$ if it also manages to get up on the dinner table and wreak havoc.
Get on the stick, WowWee!
The lady is attractive and has cred.
That's hot.
Is it me or is Veronica Belmont hot? I wonder if she is available :).
nop, she has a boy friend. I already checked that on her personal web page sorry :-( This is the lucky guy.
shes ryan blocks girlfriend. And I just visited gizmodo for a mo' to see their dirt on the CES and there is a post sayin something like " CES: forget the gadgets, beer and the girls are the hot ticket" and the picture for that post is a pic of veronica. Dunno iif they know shes for engadget. Once they kno they'll probably think shes ugly (which she is not).
Veronica is teh hot! My hands feel clammy.
let's hope veronica keeps that low cut top thing going.
http://www.myspace.com/belbot
Her Myspace says she's in a relationship :(
I want one, and I'd like it to live at Veronica's place.
One mod it needs is a way to defend itself against dogs, cats, and maybe humans.
I'm getting a vision here--- it's a geek's place, rigged with ramps for the bot to gain elevation.
This sounds very similar to the Spykee robot that I've had on order since September, and has failed to materialize. I guess I can spend the money on this robot.
This rovio design is a hack. An design concept identical to this one has been on ebay for more then a year. Search robot rover. Where are the engineering ethics at guys? I hope they are not members of IEEE.
You're saying I can buy a robot that has the same functionality now? Please show me a link!!!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ROBOT-ROVER-NIGHT-VISION-CAMERA-DIRECT-INTERNET-ACCESS_W0QQitemZ300186663006QQihZ020QQcategoryZ48636QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
This robot has smart sensor to follow objects and talk to other robots. 3-axis accelerometer, digital compass, and a very robust video server that does not require you to have a wireless networke setup to work. It connects to your serial port or usb port.
You tube video is up:
Cool, thanks!
BTW, do you really think WowWee is ripping off this homebrew bot? I'm just saying, I could see the Rovio and Spykee being conceived of and developed without much outside influence. Is there evidence of a true theft of idea, or is that just your gut reaction?
video link is here:
http://www.youtube.com/v/p8AxvInETpw
University presentation:
http://www.unf.edu/groups/computer/presentations/robot.pdf
As you can see versions of this also uses a b/g network card, and has been formally presented in a university setting. Versions of this robot have also been on ebay since 2005. The design concept is protected by US copyright and patent laws, and the truth will come out. The patent office works on a first to invent basis for judgements...you decide :) Wowee sells their robots on a ebay regularly, and eBay does log IP's so if anyone associated with their company has every viewed any of the previous listing, it will be shown.
Okay, so I take it then that it's YOUR robot that you feel is being ripped offed by WowWee. Do you think the Spykee bot is also infringing on your design (even though it seems slightly different)?
I see on the ebay listing that your(?) bot comes with PC software. Does this mean that as a Mac user, I would not be able to use this bot? I really like the idea of being able to control a bot with a camera from a web browser anywhere in the world...
It is controlled through a web browser, the interface software runs in the background just as with any other I/O interfacing would. And it does work on Mac also. We also produce a version that works with the same b/g network compliant protocol as the ROVIO...It is a total rip. Trust me, I've been work on wireless communications for a long time.