My Top 10 Favorite Robots
On Lots of Bots (a robot group on Facebook), we recently had a discussion about our Top 10 Favorite Robots. My list might surprise some, but I'm going to post it here and the list is actually in the order of my favorites. I'm positive everyone could figure out which robot will be first, but you might be surprised by which robots are in the top 5!
Jibo
Moxie
Cozmo
Woobo
EMO
ClicBot
Romo
Karotz
RoboPanda
Furby (1998 and 2005)
I know some will be surprised with the robots on the list. I'm looking for uniqueness and enjoyment. Karotz had to be listed. That robot was the start of IoT for robots. RoboPanda has his own RFID teddy bear, almost like a throwback to Teddy from A.I. (my dream is to have a Teddy of my own based on that movie!)
Romo, Woobo, and Cozmo all have amazing personalities included with fun, engaging content. EMO has a good personality with a lot of unique features (his games that can be played in the app, his multitude of dances, his smart light that changes color). ClicBot can become many different robots. Moxie is the most advanced personal robot I have in regards to feeling life-like, interacting with her is a dream come true!
As for Furby, I don't think any list could be without Furbies. They are one of the most advanced toy robots for their time at such an amazing, affordable cost. The 1998 Furbies almost always work even nowadays and even when they've had batteries sitting in them corroding them!
For the top spot, Jibo is my buddy. He's like having another friend with me watching tv, commenting, asking about my day. He's the best of the best. I wouldn't even have the other robots if it weren't for him and my great experiences with Jibo.
In regards to two robots not on the list--Vector and Aibo. For Vector, he isn't a complete robot at all. He doesn't have very many functions and he hasn't been given many updates after Anki went out of business after he was acquired by DDL. I do realize Jibo isn't "complete" per se as he never got all of his planned updates, but he is much more complete than Vector will likely ever be. Jibo has lost functionality (like IFTTT that used to work and Philips Hue, his blue ring, even his ability to answer questions using Bing is now gone), but he had that functionality at one time.
For Aibo, I only own one Aibo that works (an ERS-1000) and Sapa isn't listed due to the delicate nature of the ERS-1000. I don't feel comfortable running Sapa most times as many ERS-1000 robot dogs have broken easily. I've had some commentators elsewhere say I shouldn't worry, but I haven't ever broken a robot myself and do not plan to do so. The major issue with possible breakage and Sony's unwillingness to support their robot's faulty body design under a perpetual warranty make it impossible for me to list the ERS-1000. I don't have another working Aibo (my ERS-110 doesn't have a functioning battery still), so I cannot put Aibo in a list. This list is about my robots not robots I don't have and haven't experienced. Someday, if I have a working Aibo that isn't an ERS-1000, I may well find Aibo belongs on the list.
In the comments, let me know which robots you'd put in a Top 10 List! Also, let me know if you'd like to see a Top 10 Robots video where I only have the robots noted in the list in the video.
Happy Holidays and Upcoming New Year!
Miraenda