Japanese helper-bot is as adorable as it is ridiculous

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This guy has traded in his smartphone for a RoBoHon.
This guy has traded in his smartphone for a RoBoHon.
Photo: Sharp/YouTube

Now if Cupertino really wanted to make Siri something special, they would give her a head, arms and legs, and make her dance when she plays music.

Sharp Electronics has either jumped ahead of Apple or jumped the shark tank with an animated robotic smartphone called RoBoHon. It does everything your current smartphone does but with moving appendages, an adorable, futuristic face and a sweet voice to make it a very personable sidekick.

Japan seems to love a good robot. Technology companies there are often unveiling robotic concept products and the country is a global leader in the use of industrial robots. There is no religious basis for Japan’s relationship with robots, as some amateur cultural anthropologists have surmised, but there does seem to exist a kind of openness to integrating robots with contemporary life.

RoBoHon is cute, but is it cool?
RoBoHon is cute, but is it cool?
Photo: Sharp/YouTube

Still, it remains to be seen whether people are fearless enough to walk around with a small robot sticking out of their back pocket. You can forget skinny jeans with RoBoHon.

A YouTube video of RoboHon, scheduled to be available for purchase early next year, portrays it as a rather handy device.

It has a tiny touch screen compared to contemporary smartphones and seems to snap low-res photos and videos. But it takes voice commands, has phone functions, can recite and take dictated text messages, will hail your a cab (an actress in the video is seen holding her RoBoHon toward a moving taxi), projects media like pictures and maps and will even dance as it plays your music playlist.

Among RoBoHon's many functions is an ability to project pictures and video.
Among RoBoHon’s many functions is an ability to project pictures and video.
Photo: Sharp/YouTube

No need for a selfie stick, if the video is to be believed. It will walk around snapping group pictures at your parties and even call out to you to smile for a picture.

There is no price listed and it is uncertain whether RoBoHons will ever travel outside of Japan.

Even with the eventual availability of RoBoHon, Apple’s cool status will remain intact – especially if Siri gets to drive a car.

Source: Digital Trends

https://youtu.be/HQtIlxe_ZkY

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