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Live from ASUS's CES 2017 press event!
ASUS is back for another CES, ready to show off all its latest wares, like the Tango- and Daydream-enabled ZenFone AR. The ASUS press conference kicks off at 11:30AM PT (2:30PM ET) on Wednesday, January 4th, and Engadget will be there, live, to share all of the details as they roll in.
Watch ASUS' adorable robot butcher a Christmas classic
ASUS held an event in Taiwan today announcing the availability of its Zenbo robot. From January 1st, customers in the country will be able to pick up one for between $620 and $780, depending on configuration. Engadget Chinese editor-in-chief Richard Lai wrote many words in his dispatch from the launch, including some that detail new features coming to Zenbo. You should read those if you want to know more about it, but I have more important things on my mind. At the robot's launch event in Taiwan, Asus decided it was apt to ring in the holiday season by getting a choir of Zenbos to perform Mariah Carey's Christmas classic, "All I Want For Christmas Is You."
Taiwan to get first dibs on ASUS' Zenbo home robot
At Computex, ASUS captured the hearts of many with its cute home robot, Zenbo, with Chairman Jonney Shih hinting at a retail launch before end of this year. Well, he's not too far off in the end. At today's local launch event, the company announced that its Intel-powered bot will be up for grabs in Taiwan on January 1st, albeit in a limited quantity for the first batch. Price-wise it starts from NT$19,900 or about US$620 -- just a tad more than the intended $599 price point -- for the 32GB standard package, and then there's a 128GB model plus self-charging dock for NT$24,900 or about US$780.
Computex 2016: It's a wrap!
Just like that, Computex 2016 has come to an end. As in previous years, the show kicked off with ASUS' big keynote presentation, but this time it wasn't just laptops, tablets and smartphones -- the company also unveiled its first home robot, Zenbo. We met up with Chairman Jonney Shih who gave us an exclusive demo of this $599 machine, so do check out our interview with him. We also saw Intel launch its first 10-core desktop processor geared towards hardcore gamers, followed by yet another exclusive interview -- this time with the company's new consumer head, Navin Shenoy.
ASUS' Zenbo proves our robot butler dreams remain just that
Another robot wants to join your family. Announced earlier this week, ASUS' Zenbo is aimed at providing "assistance, entertainment and companionship." Like numerous home robots that have (literally) rolled out before Zenbo, it involves voice-activated commands, cameras, an internet connection and a touchscreen. It can't wash your clothes or clear the table and you still need separate robots to vacuum your house, or get you from A to B. ASUS says Zenbo can help with cooking, but that just means it can read out recipes. It's not chopping onions for you -- it doesn't even have arms. Let's take a look at the promo video.
ASUS' $599 home robot is smarter than it looks
It goes without saying that ASUS' first home robot, Zenbo, stole the show at this year's Computex. As soon as it rolled onto the stage during the keynote, everyone rushed to the front to get a good look at this cute little fella -- and that was before Chairman Jonney Shih shocked the audience with its surprisingly attractive low price of $599. Apart from its basic capabilities, little else was said about the machine, so we traveled all the way to ASUS' headquarters to meet Shih for a detailed demo. During the process, we managed to pry a little more info out of the exec, including what's inside this mysterious bot, the thinking behind its design and a target launch date around the holiday season.
The President of Taiwan tries a quick chat with ASUS' home robot
I've said before that Computex is ASUS' show -- and what better demonstration than having the recently-elected President of Taiwan "talk" to your newly announced home robot? Crowd noise necessitated several repeated commands to ASUS' Zenbo play some music, but if it was apparently a live demonstration (ASUS' PR affirmed to our Engadget Chinese colleagues that it was), then it's pretty impressive. I mean, with my connectivity, I can barely even upload to Instagram in the thick of the show.
Catch up with Computex 2016: Day one
Computex is typically ASUS' show. Every year, the Taiwanese company takes to Taipei to unload a host of its wares and, in the process, steal the lion's share of the show's headlines. Well, 2016 is no different as ASUS has taken the wraps off a slew of devices including an ultraportable that's thinner than Apple's own MacBook, Surface-like 2-in-1 PCs, three new ZenFones, a charming robot assistant for the home and a me-too mobile VR headset. Don't fret if you whiled away the holiday weekend and need to get up to speed on day one of the show -- we've got you covered in the video above and the gallery below.
ASUS' Zenbo robot walks, talks and controls your home
ASUS chairman Jonney Shih took to the stage at Computex today to announce something a little different, if completely on trend: a home robot. "Our ambition is to enable robotic computing for every household," he said before revealing Zenbo the home robot. With the goals of "assistance, entertainment and companionship," it's aimed at older people in particular. However, the most interesting feature here is the promise that the robot will connect with traditional and smart home devices. You'll be able to check who's at the door from a connected camera, and then remote-unlock the door from the robot's, er, face. Zenbo will also be able to connect to lights, TVs and air conditioners -- if it speaks your langauge, that is.
