AIBO Via E-mail

digicosm2 writes "In honor of AIBO's fourth anniversary, Sony announced some new AIBO-related things today, including a new 'Cyber-Blue' color. But more interesting is the 'AIBO EYES' software, which allows you to control AIBO from anywhere in the world, via email. You can even receive snapshots of your home from him to your mobile phone! Might make a great (and unobtrusive) security camera or webcam..." I just want them to produce the Cerberus ^? version.

Comments

AIBO

[Anonymous Coward]

I heard it runs on Windows XP, and all I can say is, THANK GOD.

Finally, a stable robot.

Re:AIBO

[emo boy]

I heard that too somewhere. The only problem was they were getting the Robot SARS virus through Outlook and they weren't as healthy as the other robots.

Re:AIBO

[Anonymous Coward]

> I heard it runs on Windows XP

Aibos do not run Windows XP. They run a proprietary Sony OS called Aperios. I think the terms of my NDA let me say that it's a steaming pile of Aibo poop, but I probably shouldn't go into more details.

The software for your PC that lets you control them does run on XP (and other flavors of Windows). But XP isn't on the robot itself. (It probably wouldn't fit, even if you wanted it to - they only have 32 MB of RAM)

Re:fp?

[Anonymous Coward]

Control the Aibo through mail? My god, it must feel like steering the pathfinder on mars.

[move left] ...oops...

Planting AIBOs

[Arc04]

This will now open up the oppurtunity to secretly place an AIBO in the cupboard of an unsuspecting victim, and then, in the dead of night, get it to creep around taking pictures of the occupants. ;)

MUAHAHAHAHAHA!

Sounds like Dr Evil is now working for Sony - watch out Austin Powers!!!!

Re:Planting AIBOs

[D iz a n k Meister]

Cupboard???

Honestly, the peeping tom aspect seems much more appealing. Put AIBO in the bathroom/bedroom while the sister in-law is in the shower/changing, etc.

pr0n dictates innovation.

Re:Planting AIBOs

[Anonymous Coward]

sister in-law is in the shower/changing, etc.

Leave out the "in-law" bit and you've got it.

Sony Marketing

[alephnull42]

Oh Great. After several years, the Aibo now provides the functionality of an X10 digital camera on legs.

- Couldn't they have thought of this sooner? Hardly sounds worth a press release
- Barking Popup ads anyone?

Paranoid chicks.

[Dri]

"I won't do it in front of the dog" gets a whole new meaning.

Dog with an IP address

[swifticus]

If this means I can finally get a dog that has an IP address, I'll take it.

Re:Dog with an IP address

[Findel]

I would hate to see how you ping your dog.

Re:Dog with an IP address

[Anonymous Coward]

> I would hate to see how you ping your dog.


Well, I at least would floodping the dog to death!

Dogs are such puny animals..

Re:Dog with an IP address

[AndroidCat]

But what they really need is a .dog TLD.

Insecure?

[sould]

Hmmmmn

I wonder if I can get someone else's Aibo to wander round looking up skirts, watching peoples banking passwords, etc etc

I'm sure anyone able to forge email headers are looking foward to this.

Pushing technological boundaries

[Zayin]

[...]said Victor Matsuda, ERA's vice president. "Over the last four years, we've pushed the boundaries of what robots can do and with AIBO EYES, the market is witnessing the future of things to come: A robot that is not only a companion but also offers practical applications."

We're impressed, Victor. You must really have been pushing the boundaries hard to come up with all these innovations, like transferring images and communicating through email. You can even use your mobile phone! Wow.

Further, AIBO EYES will also enable owners to remotely e-mail message commands to AIBO and have the robot perform selected songs, such as When the Saints Come Marching In and Ode to Joy.

You mean "practical applications" as in singing "when the saints come marching in"?

Security camera?

[oniony]

The last thing you want to put a security camera in is the first thing to be stolen.

I'd put my security camera in my Microsoft Barney. I'd say he'd be around taking snapshots throughout the whole afair.

Re:Security camera?

[Gordonjcp]

Ooooh, I don't know. It would keep track of where it's being taken, getting photos all the time...

One day crackers are going to have more fun...

[shotgunefx]

Thank god the bubble burst before iDoors and other such stupid crap. I look forward to the day when everyone's pad is decked out in the iFridge, iFrame, etc.

That way, when they discover flaws, they can spoil all the food in my fridge, replace the pic of my girl on my mantle with some obscene imagery and then spy remotely on me as they sic my electronic dog on me :P

a $1500 security cam?

[nai]

Gentle idea for the robber entering your home and seeing your brand new aibo. Maybe it can send you a picture of the guy?

- You're entering a private property. Please leave now.
- Ok, now take me down, please...
- Well... At least don't forget my speed board...

I can see it now....

[fishbert42]

... some rich guy's AIBO starts going completely nuts when its email address ends up on a few dozen spam mailing lists.
Maybe it'll even maul an old lady in the process.

Good security

[CptChipJew]

The AIBO now can provide excellent home security. Of course, a 120lb pitbull can provide good security too, and could be purchased for $100.

Re:Good security

[Anonymous Coward]

You could strap a small computer and digi-cam to the dog and get pictures of it ripping up intruders. That sounds more entertaining to me.

A post for this dog!

[jkrise]

A dog with an IP is not as exciting as a dog that says, I need to Pee.

Accessory to AIBO: A mail-controlled P-post.
Operating system: eXPee and below.

Hummmm.....

[bad_fx]

...more interesting is the 'AIBO EYES' software, which allows you to control AIBO from anywhere in the world... You can even receive snapshots... from him to your mobile phone. Might make a great... webcam

Hmm... A cute little walking webcam. Are you pondering what I'm pondering? :-)

Robotics

[simgod]

If former decade was about internet boom and network connectivity, the next will definetely be about robotics. The problem about robotics today is that they are tough to build - I mean the development of both hardware and software was until now the domain of academic work. Than you Sony for doing what IBM was doing in the 80's with the personal computer. Someone must set a standard and make parts interchangable. I'm just sorry that these AIBO things are so expensive. Just imagine the possibilies of entering mainstream at an affordable prize. The whole robotics market and development will boom and soon you will able to program your own humanoid machine to do some serious work for you around the house. History repeats itself. Our society will again be built on slaves (for some time). After that ...

Re:Robotics

[magullo]

What's wrong with Lego Mindstorms (plus perhaps a miniITX to hook the Lego cam to)?

Here's an impressive machine: Eric Sophie's Jamocklaquat

And here is a fairly smart one: J.P. Brown's Rubik Cube Solver

Too time consuming? You mean as compared to reading/posting about robotic toy robots on the internet? 8?)

One step closer to slam hounds

[nounderscores]

Anybody remember William Gibson's idea for a slamhound assasination device? it was sicked on Turner in count zero. Slamhounds are biological creatures based on dogs which have all of a dog's tracking abilities and physcial characteristics except that they are missing a few internal organs and have a large bomb implanted there instead.

I really don't want to be chased down the street by cute little explosive abios controlled by somebody tapping away on their mobile phone as they sit on the balcony of a rooftop coffeeshop table sipping a laté and cursing in slang-free french.

Give the dog a bone

[Findel]

Kinda give a new meaning to "Give the dog a bone" aswell.

Also, I cant wait to see what happend when it recieves some of the spam you are all talking about. I can just see the dog making his/her/its ways into the bedroom in the morning to find its owners in bed. Then it starts to read the email it just got:

"Hey..you need a bigger Jonson! Or why dont you try Viagra, that might help?"

Is it so complicated?

[RMH101]

All I want is a semi-autonomous robot about the size of, ooooh, say a hippo. With massive servo-controlled hydraulic jaws that go "psssssst". And angry glowing eyes. Is this so hard for Sony to grasp? Enough of the cuteness, already, I want something that's *dangerous*, unpatched and connected to the Internet.

Ric

Go and fetch the morning paper, then mail me back.

[Pellelelle]

The slowest robot in the world just got remote control capability... Via email!

I've heard...

[Hwatzu]

I've heard of dogs fetching your mail, but never mail fetching your dog!
(Thank you, I'll be here all week; the evening show's different from the morning one. Tip your waiter.)

Re:Sold!

[stu_coates]

Looking at my email, it's only a matter of time before my Aibo offers to make my penis larger, give me a loan, and let me know that hot sluts want me!

;-)

Unobtrusive?

[vjmurphy]

"Might make a great (and unobtrusive) security camera or webcam..."

Yep: nothing says unobtrusive like an expensive silver (now in blue!) robotic dog. No one will notice that, nosiree.

Cerberus version?

[jdreed1024]

I just want them to produce the Cerberus version.

You mean the Kerberos version. Where you can control AIBO and not worry about exposing your POP or IMAP password to the world. Good thinking!

And before anyone says "It's Cerberus, not Kerberos, there's no such dog as Kerberos.", Kerberos is the Greek spelling of the dog's name, and Cerberus is the Latin spelling. And, of course, Fluffy is the British spelling.

Aibo? Sony?

[Anonymous Coward]

Aren't these the people who sued a web site owner for releasing code he wrote to make his Aibo dance, under the DMCA? Should we really be promoting a company that files criminal charges against geeks for making their robot dogs dance? Shouldn't we at least force Sony to buy an Aibo ad on Slashdot to support our efforts to fight their perversion of law?

A vote for Aibo is a vote against geek freedom. Pick your side.

Where are the sex robots?

[HarveyBirdman]

You know you want one. You know that's what will launch the robot industry just like sex lit a fire under the video industry and the internet and just about everything else.

A robot that licks and begs and follows orders is great, but not when it's a dog.

As for home defense, well, when the robot is not otherwise occupied (with sex or cleaning house or making me dinner, dammit) it's dressed in it's Carrie Anne Moss "Trinity" outfit and in full Kung-Fu mode.

Yeah, I have a sick, perverse and chauvinistic mind, but it's a very focused sick, perverse chauvinism, and that's a good thing. I think.

Actually, these robots would liberate women from having to deal with twisted desires and expectations of men raised on anime and Maxim magazine, and they can go form knitting circles or covens or whatever it is they do on "girl's night out."

Aibo AI Mind

[Mentifex]

The Aibo AI Mind is available to make your pet robot dog a more intelligent companion for you.

The User Manual of the Aibo Kennel Club Robot Artificial Mind teaches you how to interact with the Aibo AI Mind.

A more recently updated Mentifex AI version is freely available for tinkering and for installation in more humanoid robots than the Aibo.

Technological Singularity is on its way -- thanks to the Sony Aibo robot dog!

Woof! Woof!

[AndroidCat]

"Hello, you've got burglars!"