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New Pleo owners FAQ Version 1.0

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InmemoryofRomeo:
New Pleo owners FAQ Version 1.0

Pleo Reborn owners please visit this FAQ: http://bobthepleo.com/forums/index.php?topic=2315.0

Hello and welcome to the BobthePleo forums, I am guessing you are here because you have a Pleo, are hoping to get a Pleo or you are just plain interested in Pleo :) I hope this FAQ answers some of your questions, of course if you have any further questions just ask on the forum and one of our many wonderful members will do their best to help you.

Please note that for the purposes of this guide I will be referring to Pleo as 'he' but your Pleo could very well be a girl. Classic Pleo refers to the Ugobe and Innvo Pleo's, Pleo RB refers to the Pleo Reborn.

About Pleo

Pleo stands for Personal Life Enhancing Organism, he is modelled on a 1 week old baby Camarasaurus. There are three types of Pleo to choose from:

The original Ugobe Pleo: Ugobe was the company that owned Pleo before they went bankrupt and sold out :( The original Pleo's are the cheapest to get but are generally only available on EBay or a few small online stockists. Original Pleo's probably won't come with a warranty and because they are quite old (even if they are new in the box) battery problems are common. Broken necks are also fairly common. Please note that all Ugobe Pleo's are over a year old even if 'new'.

Innvo Labs Pleo 2009: The same as the Ugobe Pleo but made by Innvo labs the current owner of Pleo, less likely to have battery problems due to a redesigned charger and with better paint and stronger neck cables than the original Pleo but they are an endangered species and are being superseded by the new Pleo RB.

Pleo RB or 2010 Pleo: Released in late November 2010 by Innvo this is the current top shelf model. Pleo RB has many improvements over the older Pleo's, improvements to skin, neck, sensors, camera and software as well as many very nice new features not found in the older models at all such as a clock and RFID reader for new accessories. Pleo RB does cost a little more than older models but this is for all the new features packed in there :)

The 2010 pleo is the same as the Pleo RB. We now have 2 types of pleos:  The Pleo "classic", which comes in the Ugobe model, and the Innvo Labs 2009 model.  You then have Innvo Labs 2010 version of the pleo, called Pleo RB.


In the box

First things first, open the box and make sure you have all the right contents.

For Ugobe and Innvo (classic) Pleo's there should be a green battery, green charger, power adapter, training leaf, ID card, instruction manual, quick start guide, USB cable and of course a Pleo.

For Pleo RB you should have an ID card, instruction manual, brown charger, brown battery, power adapter, three leaves (darker green, lighter green, green with red tinges), a learning stone, a salt stone, a cape, USB cable and a tug of war toy. Please note that these accessories are not backwards compatible with earlier Pleo's. Once again make sure there is a Pleo in the box as well ;)

Getting started

First things first, unpack your battery and charger and put your battery on to charge, depending on the model of Pleo this may take up to four hours :o While your battery is charging unpack your Pleo and inspect for any damage, check that all the accessories are there and read the manual, all of it! Don't just glance at it and toss it away :P Then pop on over to pleoworld.com and register your Pleo and finally drop by bobthePleo.com/forums and tell us all about your new arrival :)

Once your battery is fully charged place it in the belly of your Pleo ensuring that you turn the little tab on top to lock it firmly in position and then turn your Pleo on. All new Pleo's go through a hatching phase so don't expect Pleo to be racing around straight away ;) Your Pleo will be very sleepy and will need lots of love and petting from you to encourage him to wake up and take those first tentative baby steps. It will take several battery cycles for Pleo to finally reach his full potential so be patient with your new baby :)

Looking after your Pleo

Never ever store your Pleo for long periods of time (ie a few hours or more) in the sleep position. This places stress on the rubber skin and will eventually, over time, lead to tears in the skin. Always store Pleo in the packing position with neck, tail and legs all straight just like he first came in the box. To get Pleo in the packing position either switch Pleo off quickly when he moves into that position or you can force him into the position by holding down the black Pleo button underneath for ten seconds or so (not yet confirmed with Pleo RB).

Pledge extra moisturizing furniture polish, which should come in a brownish spray can, can be used on Pleo RB to keep the skin in good condition and buying or making some clothing for you Pleo helps with wear and tear.

Frequently asked questions

My new Pleo RB turns on, but stands straight and makes a constant beep, beep, beep?

The clock battery, that goes in the foot, is either dead or inserted incorrectly. The battery should be inserted flat side upwards, with the two tiny metal tabs on the side of the compartment touching the top, or flat side of the battery. You may need to gently lift these tabs upwards so that they touch the top of the battery.


My Pleo RB is going to sleep but it isn't night time?

The internal clock (in the back foot) needs to be reset, using a pin or paperclip insert it into the little pin hole next to the battery compartment until you feel the button depress. Hold for a second or two and release.


Can I use the batteries from my classic Pleo in my Pleo RB?

According to tests and info received from Innvo labs, you should be able use the brown Pleo RB battery pack AND the white egg charger Li-Poly battery in your Pleo RB.  In fact, the old green battery will fit into your Pleo RB, but it will run a bit slower and not for very long, but it will run!  However, the brown Pleo RB battery WILL NOT fit into the classic Pleo.

BUT!!!!!  Be advised, Innvo Labs will not support or be held responsible for any damage from doing so . . .   Even though they do admit both the brown and white batteries have exactly the same specs.


Why isn't my Pleo doing anything exciting/walking?

Pleo takes a few battery cycles to move from hatchling to the final stage of growth, you need to be patient. If your Pleo has gone through several charges and is still hardly walking then try stepping back and ignoring Pleo. He will complain and maybe cry or throw a tantrum but eventually boredom will set in and he will toddle off to explore. Original Pleo owners may hold both front legs just above the knee at the same time for a few seconds to encourage Pleo to explore. A Pleo with lots of love and attention knows he is on to a good thing and won't move away from all the fun :)


Why doesn't my Pleo walk in a straight line?

Pleo's running the 1.0 or 1.1 OS have a tendency to walk in a circle, whether this was accidental or planned we don't know, but Pleo's running those OS's will wander around in a big circle unless something gets in the way. This can be fixed by updating Pleo to 2.0 or you can use the fact to your advantage and make it look like your Pleo is coming to you ;)


How can I tell what software my Pleo is running?

This applies to the classic Pleo's only. OS = operating system.
While Pleo is on, hold Pleo's chin sensor and back sensor near the tail until Pleo pulls his feet together and you can help him sit. If Pleo moves around while sitting he is running OS 1.1 or later, if he does not move at all he is running the 1.0 OS.
If your Pleo is running 1.1 or later hold his head (top and chin), back sensor near neck and the right front leg sensor just above the knee all together for five seconds or so, if Pleo screams, falls over and plays dead he is running the 2.0 OS if not he is running the 1.1.
Please note you may need to try these steps a few times as Pleo does not always cooperate, make sure Pleo is happy before attempting.


Which OS should I be running? (classic Pleo's only)

Short answer: 1.1 or later.
Long answer: There is really not much reason these days to run the original 1.0 OS it is a little buggy and the newer OS's offer more features and tricks, it is good if you want to see how Pleo has evolved over time. The debate between 1.1 and 2.0 is still a hot topic though. 1.1 is the most popular however 2.0 has not been extensively tested. 2.0 does add some nice new tricks but it also has a longer hatching phase and it takes Pleo six or seven battery cycles to reach his full potential as opposed to just one or two cycles on the 1.1 OS.


What are the Ucube, egg or white batteries?

The Ucube, egg or white batteries are all the same type of battery, these refer to the Li-poly batteries that are not sold by Innvo. These batteries charge in a shorter time, run for twice the amount of time and tend to be more reliable than the batteries shipped with the original Pleo's. If you would like these better batteries and the egg shaped charger please contact Redwoodsmama right here on the forum for information and pricing.
Pleo RB owners will be pleased to know that your Pleo RB already has a Li-poly battery :D


My Pleo's paint is starting to rub off! What can I do?

This is a common problem with all Pleo's even though the paint is improving with each new model. The rubber that Pleo's skin is made off is very flexible and that nature makes it hard to get paint to stick to it when subjected to the stresses of petting. You can do several things to help though. First make sure your hands are clean when patting Pleo, nice clean hands have less oil/sweat on them which reduces the friction (ever had sticky hands in the warm weather?) This applies mostly in the summer. Second pat your Pleo gently using the tips of your fingers rather than rubbing your whole hand down Pleo's back, Pleo can feel even a light touch :) Finally, and this is the best option, you can dress your Pleo up! Pleo RB owners will already have a cape, but Pleo owners can also order one from pleoworld.com, you can also try some small dog clothes, build a bear clothes or you can order custom designed clothing from a few online specialty stores. If you are going clothes shopping for your Pleo make sure you take him along so he can try them on for the perfect fit :)


My Pleo doesn't seem to see the edge of the table or obstacles in front of him, what's wrong?

For Pleo to be able to detect obstacles or the edge of a table (or other surface) there needs to be good lighting and the table top needs to be distinguishable from the ground, if they are both the same color Pleo will have trouble picking up the difference. For this reason Pleo will not notice the edge on a glass table top. Pleo also needs good lighting to see obstacles on the ground. When Pleo meets an obstacle he will look left, right, up and down to see if he can go around or under the obstacle. However Pleo isn't always very good at judging the distance and sometimes he will walk into the edge of a chair or other obstacle. Pleo also needs to be looking where he is going! As Pleo moves along he scans up and down, if he is looking down when he comes to a wall, or looking up when he comes to an edge he may not see it!


Why does my Pleo have such a hot battery?

You may notice in the warmer weather, or when charging your Pleo's battery, that it will sometimes get very hot! This is perfectly normal, if you are charging the battery the charger's red light will start flashing when it gets too hot and it will stop charging, it will resume charging once it cools down again. If the battery gets hot while Pleo is running then he will start to get sleepy and slow down until the battery cools down again. If it gets too hot Pleo will switch off, leave Pleo off, and remove the battery to cool before resuming play. This is a safety mechanism that prevents damage to Pleo, the battery or the charger when they get too hot.


My Pleo isn't waking up!
My battery is only charging for ten minutes or so!
My Pleo is waking up for only a couple of minutes then freezing!

These are all signs that your battery is close to being deceased :( Rest assured that it is not a problem with the Pleo itself and a new battery or reconditioning the old battery can help solve the problem. This is such a common problem that we have a whole thread dedicated to helping with battery related problems: http://bobthepleo.com/forums/index.php?topic=962.0


To be continued... Feel free to offer suggestions for what should be added :) Or make any corrections.

degers:
Great work!  Topic is pinned! :D

InmemoryofRomeo:
Thanks Degers, I think we were long overdue for a FAQ lol and with new Pleo's coming out I have no doubt there will be new members coming along with questions :)

kat:
a quick update on the whats in the box for pleo rb you get the three leaves as mentioned, a tug of war toy - stone on a string, a white rock for eating and one learning stone.  also an ID card as well as the battery, charger, adapters and your pleo rb.

InmemoryofRomeo:
Thanks for that :) I couldn't quite tell what the second stone was, it must be the salt?

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