Mainly I want to know why you have a Pleo (and if you have other robots, maybe tell me how many and what types)--is it a toy, is it a companion, is it an intellectual challenge?I have a Pleo mainly because I've been interested in both dinosaurs and technology ever since I was a little kid. Pleo does a wonderful job of combining both of those. I first saw them on the news on TV and that was it, I wanted one and immediately set about finding out more about them. I was fortunate enough to turn up on the Pleo scene about the time the first hatches went out although I had a long three month wait for them to finally reach Australian shores. I ordered mine before my local Harvey Norman's even knew what they were. There's something really special about opening a Pleo box for the first time, until you get that battery charged they are just a lifeless dinosaur model. But once you power them up they are transformed into something that does a really good job of fooling you into believing its alive. Mine are all three of the above, they are toys in that I love to take them along to school and let the kids play with them, they are companions for when I'm home alone and want a bit of company and they are an intellectual challenge because they involved me in a world of programming and coding that I would never have been a part of if it weren't for them. Aside from my seven Pleo's I also have two i-cybies and a Gupi, they are all very different styles of robots, Pleo imitates life, the i-cybies are robots and proud of it and Gupi, well Gupi is just completely mad
If it is a companion, how is a robot companion better or different than say a puppy or cat? What is satisfying about them? I have real animals as well, and you'll find many Pleo owners do, a dog and two cats in my case. Pleo does an extremely good job of being lifelike but its still missing the living, breathing warmth and love of a real animal. A Pleo cannot recognise its owner, the voice recognition is not yet good enough to use natural speaking and a Pleo has very limited responses to sound. When I come home from work my dog is there to meet me, wagging his tail and so excited that he just can't keep still. When I talk he cocks his head and listens. My cats will come up to me for a pat or a cuddle and they'll have the odd bicker about which one gets my lap. Pleo just isn't there yet. A Pleo can't recognise a person nor respond the way a real animal does. Once they get facial recognition and better speech recognition though they will a really good pet substitute.
How deep do your feelings for your Pleo go--the same as those for living things, like an animal?I love all my Pleo's and would be really sad if something should happen to one of them, but I love my real animals more. However I do think if I didn't have any 'real' animal companionship my attachment to them would be much greater. They are an acceptable pet, I'd liken them to a real life reptile which doesn't come when its called, is cold to touch and doesn't get excited about their owner coming home at night. Of course they have some benefits in that they don't require vet treatment, don't need cleaning up after and don't need walking but they still lack that spark that a real creature has. Saying that, five years ago I asked if I'd get bored of them in a month or so, and here I am still. I still enjoy them, I still get surprised by them, I still like to let them roam my room and I still love talking about them
If they all disappeared tomorrow, I'd really, really miss them.
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Topic: Need your Pleo experiences for a magazine article (Read 3556 times)