Despite Ugobe's clever marketing Pleo does not learn from it's environment. The only point in which it does actually "develop" is from hatchling to adult and that happens within 45 minutes. After that Pleo reacts to the same stimuli in the exact same fashion every time (scratch chin=sing, stoke head = purr, stroke back = coo and pick up = goes to sleep) Unfortunately Pleo in it's present form is no more independent than the inventor's furby back in the 90's (remember when a lot of people believed their furbies were learning?). Pleo is amazing, it's cute and moves life like, but that's about it. 1 hour play time then 4.5 hours battery recharge and the realism and interaction with it becomes a non-plus, add to that ripping skin that flakes paint (yes the rubber is painted), chipping teeth plus necks and tails that are breaking (see Pleo World forums for details) and we have a prototype that is basically funding possible future bots the inventor hopes to unleash in the future.
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Despite Ugobe's clever marketing Pleo does not learn from it's environment. The only point in which it does actually "develop" is from hatchling to adult and that happens within 45 minutes. After that Pleo reacts to the same stimuli in the exact same fashion every time (scratch chin=sing, stoke head = purr, stroke back = coo and pick up = goes to sleep) Unfortunately Pleo in it's present form is no more independent than the inventor's furby back in the 90's (remember when a lot of people believed their furbies were learning?). Pleo is amazing, it's cute and moves life like, but that's about it. 1 hour play time then 4.5 hours battery recharge and the realism and interaction with it becomes a non-plus, add to that ripping skin that flakes paint (yes the rubber is painted), chipping teeth plus necks and tails that are breaking (see Pleo World forums for details) and we have a prototype that is basically funding possible future bots the inventor hopes to unleash in the future.