The Android-powered desktop robot you didn’t know you needed
It is the first robot of this type and is produced by a Chinese company founded by a former Xiaomi employee. At launch it will cost around €230.
JoyfulRobotics has announced the first Android desktop robot that promises to revolutionize human-machine interaction. The device, made by former Xiaomi employee Lian Li, features a 2.1-inch screen on the head, a height of 16.5 centimeters, and support for USB-C cable and wireless charging. The robot can move sideways thanks to a pair of legs that are limited in movement.
In addition to the basic features such as time, reminders and timers, the strong point of the device is its ability to interact via haptic feedback, gestures, smartphone applications and voice recognition (currently only in Chinese). Over-the-air updates will be available to support Android’s native features, but the manufacturer hopes that a community of enthusiasts and geeks will be created who are willing to develop updates and modifications that will further customize this curious gadget.
In any case, barring surprises and highly revolutionary updates, this little robot on paper doesn’t appear to be much more than a kind of Tamagotchi for adults, with more than a few interesting features that make it close to devices like Amazon’s Echo or Google’s smart speakers Home Minis. We are not saying this to belittle it, on the contrary: we are extremely fascinated and we understand its potential charm very well.
A video published by JoyfulRobotics shows the robot in operation, highlighting its numerous capabilities:
The robot will be on sale starting June 26 at a price of 1799 yuan ( about 230 euros , excluding taxes) via the Tmall e-commerce platform.
