We’ve seen a few telepresence devices in our day, including the incredible AnyBot, but this little guy, called the Botiful, looks like it may make life at the office a little less weird and a little more bearable. It’s essentially a little telepresence platform for your Android phone (if the creator, Claire Delaunay, nets $100,000 she’ll make an iPhone version) that roams around and lets you chat with people in the vicinity. Think of it as a little robotic dog wearing your face.
The early bird robot price is $199. To interact with the bot, you simply call it via Skype after downloading the proper software. Motion controls allow you to move Botiful around the office, room, or under and around obstacles. Delaunay recommends using it to play remotely with pets and/or kids and to visit hard to reach places like a crawlspace or dungeon.
Interestingly, $399 gets you a Botiful dinner with Claire herself. You’d call in remotely, of course, and you guys could chat about Botiful in Silicon Valley from the comfort of your home desk chair.
The robot will come in red, white, and blue and she’s looking for $90,000 to tool up and start shipping. I, for one, welcome our dinner-having, small-motor-powered, Android-based overlords.