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New Spykee models to be announced at CES 2008
Word on the street is that your favorite build-it-yourself bot is about to get some wacky new siblings. If you'll recall, the Erector-branded, Meccano Spykee is a DIY bot which incorporates a webcam, VoIP, DAP functions, and other robotic accessories which make it slightly more friendly and interactive. Well now the day-glo automaton is getting a handful of new playmates in the form of the Spykee Cell, Spykee Vox, and Spykee Miss -- three sassy new models that plan to slowly motor their way to world domination using only their good looks, "special light and sound effects," and concealed-yet-deadly laser vision (note: we're not sure that they have laser vision). Additionally, some of the bots are getting equipped with Bluetooth and voice-activated functions. The new entries to the line are set to be unveiled at -- you guessed it -- CES 2008, where the faithful Engadget staff will be poised, hands ready, cameras charged, to pounce on and photograph the new subjects. Until then, we can only dream.
Spyke the spybot gets a price and release date
In case you were still wondering when you could get your hands on one those Erector Spyke bots, and for how much, we've got word that the bot will be hitting for £200 on April 9th, at least in the UK. That's about $390 in real people money, quite steep for what you're getting: a remotely accessible WiFi-enabled bot which can drive around your home, sense intruders, and shoot video to you over the internets. Oh, and R2-D2 bleeps and bloops, can't forget those. There's an action vid after the break.
Meccano to unveil WiFi-enabled Spyke Robot Set
Meccano is all set to unveil a WiFi-controlled, Erector-branded robot kit at CES. The Spyke certainly improves on Meccano's earlier metallic attempts at robot sets: this little fella is capable of feeding a webcam video stream to a PC over the aforementioned wireless connection, as well as climbing stairs with its triangular tank-track; that's right parents, your staircase can no longer keep your kids safe. These basic specs combined with the teaser image on the right should be enough to perk up the ears of all the consumer robot enthusiasts out there -- who are now no doubt waiting to hear how competitively priced the Spyke will be in comparison to Lego's Mindstorm series of robot kits -- but unfortunately there's no other information (availability, pricing, etc.) about the Spyke as of yet. Don't fret though, because when CES kicks off in a couple of days, all will be revealed.[Via Robot Gossip]
