Pleo Toy Dinosaur

So The Pleo Was Star Of the Apprentice - And I Missed It

2009-05-30T08:07:00.003+01:00

Apparently The Pleo was star of the The Apprentice and I chuffing missed it! Hopefully this will mean that Ugobe will keep it going in some way or another after they "went bust"!

And if you did want to buy a Pleo, I've searched for the cheapest prices and here they are:

Download the Halloween Pleo Personality

2008-10-28T20:42:00.003Z

Ugobe have released the new Halloween personality. I'm going to install it and take some video. Has anyone else done it yet?

Cool Pleo Stuff From Amazon

2008-09-24T11:07:00.001+01:00

Don't you just love the guys that make their own stuff and put it on Amazon? Well there's loads to choose from to adorn your Pleo, from dog tags. But it's more fun to buy yourself some T-shirts, sweaters and mugs :-)

Pleo V2? Coming Soon

2008-09-21T18:06:00.001+01:00

I'm sure the guys at Ugobe must be working on Pleo V2! They wouldn't invested all that cash and employed all that staff for a one hit-wonder!

So what next for Pleo?

Well I doubt they'll be able to make significant review streams from accessories and updates so the only option left to them would be to build a new model of Pleo with advanced features.

My belief is that we'll have a new Pleo ready for next Christmas.

Let's hope so!

Latest Pleo Prices

2008-09-03T08:34:00.002+01:00

As you can see from below there's still a lot of flexibility in the prices of the Pleo!

Find Me A Gift is still the cheapest at £198.90, whilst Amazon have reduced their prices to £199.99. It all depends if you want free delivery and you're getting other stuff at the same time.

Latest Pleo Hack With Facial Recognition

2008-08-10T08:42:00.002+01:00

It seems that Pleo has not only been a cute toy for kids but also something for the newbie robotics engineer can get their teeth into. A team of, not-so-newbies, at the Otto-Friedrich University in Bamberg, Germany has shown how to connect Pleo wirelessly to a remote computer and give him the power of facial recognition.

Looks mighty painful if you ask me!

Right, here goes, I'll try and explain it. A small XBee module is connected to an internal serial port which allows you to send diagnostics back to the pc. The PC will then analyse them and send info back to Pleo. The team also attached a higher resolution camera to replace Pleo's own one which allowed it to perform pattern-recognition in real time.

Cracking if you ask me!

We're Destined To Have Robo Relationship

2008-08-10T08:29:00.002+01:00

The Inquirer Reports that we're destined to have become more emotionally entwined with our reports in the future as they become more humanoid.

Now if these robots become too life-like I'm going to become exceptionally worried if we get into the situation Robin Williams did in the movie Bicentennial Man.

In the meantime, I'm more than happy with my Pleo!

Never Be Left With A Dead Pleo He Can Be Reincarnated

2008-07-10T12:18:00.001+01:00

The news is that if your Pleo dies on you, i.e. stops working then you can get a new Pleo at a significant discount and they'll transplant the personality that your current Pleo built up into a new one.

I'm not sure what the details are regarding sending them back. But take a look at Pleo World to find out.

It's Not The Death Of The Pleo - It's Only The Begining!!

2008-07-04T19:37:00.005+01:00

I've been one of the that have recently thought that the Pleo could be a one-hit wonder and that Ugobe may be moving on to other ventures. But the appointment of Nat Southworth as the representative of Ugobe's marketing efforts across Europe then we can be assured that there's more to come.

Martin Hitch, Ugobe’s VP of sales recently said:

"We wanted to enhance our support for both retail customers and distributors across Europe. Working with Nat gives Ugobe and our partners a point of contact in the territory who can make things happen."

Which is all very commercial, but the bit you'll be interested in is what Nat had to say:

"Ugobe are leading the way with product development and 2008 is their break through year."

Then reading PCMag, they did an interview with John Sosoko (Chief Tehnical geezer) who said:

We are working to add capabilities to the firmware so people can have the tools they need to develop new programs. We are also working on new products, taking what we have learned and making the next life form that will be more capable of fulfilling the dream we have of these creations being much closer to a lifelike companion.

Then you see they're starting to hire great minds like Chris Hoover who's joining the Ugobe team as "leading developer relations and evangelism" - cool! This all points toward great things in the future!

But wait, there's more news. I've found out that Ugobe has (it is reported) raised $12.8m to help fund the development of more robots in the future! Awesome!

Bring it on!

May Update: The Best Pleo Buying Offers

2008-05-10T15:01:00.000+01:00

So there's more stock but where should you buy the Pleo from?

The Toy Shop - £199.95
Amazon - £199.99 & Free Delivery
Gadget Shop - £199.99
Play.com - £199.99 & Free Delivery
John Lewis - £229.95
Pleo - £249.00
Gizoo - £249.95
Firebox - £249.95
Tesco - £249.79

Scott HanselMan's Pleo Review

2008-04-27T12:07:00.002+01:00

His review may be a tad out of date, but does everyone that has a Pleo think of it?

The thing is, he reviewed it before the release of the new OS 1.1 update for Pleo's personality.

Hopefully Scott will have the heart to download the new OS and give it another review!!

£6.6m Fund To Make Robots Friendlier - Report

2008-04-18T20:33:00.003+01:00

Apparently scientists in the EU have been giving £6.6m to make robots more friendly so they will be easier to work with humans. This is probably more relevant to my Domestic Robots blog, but I thought many of you here would be interested!

It's amazing how robots have evolved from the Furby to the Pleo and the new range of Wow Wee robots. I think we're in for a very interesting year in terms of toy robots and in the next decade, if more money is being spent on it, I think it'll blow our minds!

Pleo Life OS 1.1 Released

2008-04-16T09:53:00.002+01:00

If you've not updated your Pleo recently or just wanted to freshen him up a bit, there's a new update to his Life OS.

You can up date here.

"Update process is easy and clear!"

"He's a lot more lively, talks more in a larger variety of noises, and seems to interact with his surroundings a lot more."

"Helen began coughing and sneezed a couple of times, then made the most pathetic sound - we've all felt the way she sounded with a miserable cold."

"I like the way that Pleo now reacts to abuse, this is much more realistic and really makes me feel for Pleo! I will never hang him by his tail again! That is unless he knocks another coffee mug over with his tail."

"LOVE the sit trick! My daughter has been playing patty cake with Pleo all week!"

Buy The Pleo At Gizoo

2008-03-25T09:45:00.002Z

If you still wanted to get the Pleo, then you can save another 10% with the discount code TGSVCH1000 at Gizoo.

Firebox Pleo Sales Video

2008-03-19T12:00:00.001Z

What do you guys think to the Pleo video from Firebox - looks pretty neat to me:

Improve Your Pleo With A Software Update

2008-03-09T16:35:00.002Z

You're now able to improve your Pleo with a software updated if you wanted. Other people that have have said that he explores more. Whilst Ugobe themselves have said that with the updatet they have allowed to better "see and detect objects and properly navigate around them".

Also when your Pleo is around other Pleo's their behavouir will change and will start to sing.

It sounds cool to me! I'm just downloading mine!

On Sale At Amazon Just £229.99

2008-03-02T10:08:00.002Z

Amazon have got the Pleo on sale for just £229.99!!!!

Back in Stock at Firebox

2008-02-23T08:26:00.002Z

The Pleo is back in stock at the gadget specialists Firebox! I think they may only have another batch of around 35 to go round.

Now In Stock At Drink Stuff

2008-02-21T17:27:00.001Z

Drink Stuff now have the Pleo in stock for a very reasonable £244.95! Get in quick!

KOTA The Triceratops - Large Dinosaur Toy

2008-02-19T09:17:00.003Z

Have you seen this yet? Its KOTA The Triceratops! The information I've got to hand is:

PLAYSKOOL goes prehistoric with the introduction of the KOTA The Triceratops Dinosaur. Featuring sophisticated electronics, animatronics and design, this 'life-size' baby dinosaur 'comes to life' creating a magical experience for preschoolers. Measuring over 40-inches long KOTA The Triceratops reacts to touch and sound with realistic dinosaur noises and movements. Featuring sensors in eleven areas on his body, KOTA will react to touch by moving his head, tail and horns or giving a friendly dino roar. With KOTA The Triceratops children will enjoy the simulated experience of 'riding' a dinosaur; kids can ride comfortably on his back in a spring-loaded seat, holding onto a handle hidden behind the dinosaur's head. To enhance the fantasy play of going for an adventure on a triceratops, while 'riding' KOTA children will hear fun jungle sounds. Kids can also flip a switch on the handle to play adventure-themed songs while enjoying their prehistoric journey. KOTA The Triceratops comes complete with leafy greens that the dinosaur will 'munch' when 'fed.' And, like a good friend, KOTA will roar back when spoken to.

There's also a video:

It does like pretty cool. Unfortuantely I'm too big to go on it :-(

I'm not sure when its out in the UK, but we'll try and keep you informed. For now you can keep an eye on this page: KOTA The Triceratops, the shops autmotatically add their products to it.

Amazon: In Stock 24th Feb

2008-02-19T09:05:00.000Z

They've been selling like hot cakes! Amazon have just sold out their last Pleo's. They say they'll be having some more in on the 24th Feb!

Your Valentines Pleo Mode

2008-02-14T08:18:00.001Z

The guys at Ugobe are ace! They've created a Valentines Day Pleo Mode! I'm at work at the mo so can't load it up. But I'll try later and post some videos!

Has anyone else loaded it up yet? You can download it here.

Pleo In Bits [Photo]

2008-02-11T08:23:00.000Z

Yet more people are jumping on the "lets take it apart bandwagon!". So here' it is, if you really want it, a Pleo in its constiuent parts!

I love it when people say they do it "for the sake of science" - what a load of rubbish hey?

Latest Stock Update

2008-02-02T08:38:00.000Z

We've trawled through the internet to find the current stockists of the Pleo. Firebox got some stock after the rest so that means they're still in stock now!

Many seem to be getting stock in a couple of weeks whilst the others aren't saying when they're getting stock.

In Stock:

Firebox - Doubtful if they have any stock left.

Due Mid Feb:

I Want One Of Those - The site says due in a couple of weeks
Amazon - Due 15th Feb
Play.com - Due 15th Feb
Findmeagift - Due in 13th Feb
Gizoo - Due in 13th Feb

So You Want To Control Your Pleo?

2008-02-02T08:10:00.000Z

If you've got a Pleo and you want to programme it to do stuff - you'll need the MySkit Performance Editor for the Pleo from the guys at DogsBodynet.com

You can also take a look at the YAPT tool too!

They look a bit technical and I'll need a couple of hours I expect to make one, but I'll try and give it a go later!

If anyone else wants to give it a go, then feel free and don't forget to post the videos here!