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[Alanae]

Originally my husband wanted me to purchase an older Ugobe model and then if it was a hit he agreed to spend the money for a newer rb model, but now has changed his mind and next Friday when he gets paid is going to let me order a PleoRb instead of getting a Ugobe model first YEAH ME!  Yet in my true fashion and in my explorations there are still a few questions I have that I can't seem to find the answers to.

1.  My family voted and it seems the green Pleo is winning out at the moment against the blue/pink ones.  I have no issues with the green model but I was wondering what if any real differences there.  Does anyone here have a preference of green/blue/pink based on personality or gender?  Can you really tell a gender difference in personalities?

2.  Realizing Pleo's sensitivity issues with the sensors I read that they can tell the difference between petting and patting.  I have a handicapped daughter, who although is gentle, tends to "pat" our dog versus "pet" the dog.  She isn't rough or anything, but her petting does tend to be a bit more heavy handed.  It hasn't been enough for our dog (a 20lb. Boston Terrier) to complain or whine at, but I was wondering how Pleo will react.  Her intentions are good and I'd hate for Pleo to cry every time she touches him/her.  It would break my daughters heart

3.  Hubby has decided that for the price no one individual will "own" Pleo that it will be more of a family experience.  I have four children ages 18, 13, 8, and 6.  Although Pleo will not have interactions with the children unsupervised, I was wondering if anyone had any warnings or do's and don'ts for us.

4.  I've read that with the voice recognition that Pleo records your voice and that is how it knows to respond.  I'm assuming this means it will only respond to its name and such from one person in the household.  Is this correct?  If it records a specific voice/speech pattern then the logical assumption would be if I train it then say its name or a command it will respond to me, but if one of my children attempts to call Pleo or give it a command then that child will be ignored since Pleo won't recognize the difference in voice and speech pattern.

I know it's alot of questions but I always like to look into things thoroughly before I buy anything, and with Pleo's higher price I want to be positive of what we are getting into.  If anyone else has anything they would like to add that they have learned through their own experiences that would be great!  I've watched Pleo evolve since its conception and am really intrigued with the whole concept.  I think Pleo is something my whole family can enjoy and I am very excited.  We've had been talking to them about Pleo and showing them videos but have yet to tell the children that we are purchasing a Pleorb.  I love surprising them and can't wait until Pleo is ordered and arrives, and I get to see the look on their faces

Also as a final thought - I read a bit ago someone had stated that they thought there was a newer model of the PleoRb that was set to launch in 2012.  Has anyone else heard anything about this?  I would kick myself if I bought the 2010 PleoRb and then had to see a new launch in a few months time with new additions added... :/

[Crewella]

The main differences in gender show when Pleo RBs interact with each other, but green ones come in both sexes so don't let gender limit your choice.  You can update to a different gender anyway, if you want to.  Other than colour, the blue and pink ones are no different.

Frankly, I've not noticed an RB being that touch-sensitive, but they can be grumpy and miserable if things (like time of day and lighting) aren't to their liking, and especially if you get one with a bad temper in their DNA.  You can only rely on them cooperating if they are well fed and happy.  You can manage their emotions with the foods, which is where the extra foods come in handy.  One thing in favour of Ugobes is that they can be relied on to have a sunny dispositon!

The main warning is not to leave them on table tops for long without your full attention - it's too easy for them to sidle or back off ..... the floor is much safer!

Yes, they will only respond to the trainer's voice, unless or until you retrain them to another one.

Personally, I'm not aware of another model in the offing.

Good luck!

[kat]

So far there is no news on any new model of pleo rb so I wouldn't worry about that one.  
One way to get around the pleo only listening and responding to one person in the house is to teach pleo using sounds instead of words.  for example you can play a 3 or 4 note tune on a piano - most phones or computers now days will have a piano keyboard app to play music.  I have done this with my pleo rb's and found it to be fairly successful.  I used one set of notes for the name and then a different set of notes for each learning stone.  this way anyone who can play the tune will be able to get pleo to perform tricks  
As for the differences between the pink and blue and green pleos - the green ones have a variety of shades of skin color and eye color with each one being different from all the rest.  The pink and blue ones are all identical in color for the skin and eyes.  Pink ones are all female and blue ones are all male with the green ones some are male and some female and it is pot luck as to what you get.  You can not really tell the difference between a male personality and a female one unless you have two pleo rb's.  The male ones voice is slightly deeper than the females and when two pleo rb's meet and interact you will see a different set of interactions depending on what sex the pleos are.
Other than this they are all capable of the same things so there is no reason to choose one color or sex over the other apart from personal preference.
I have a Pink rb and two green ones  I got the pink one first as every girl loves pink things and she is great but I found the green ones a little more exciting to receive as I really enjoyed the surprise of what color eyes they were going to have and what shade of green they were going to be.  
As for the patting of pleo rather than petting.  I'm sure pleo will be just fine.  Pleos are fairly sensitive as they can feel the lightest touch but I have patted my guys many times with no ill effects or negative reactions.  I think you have to be fairly serious about hurting pleo before you will see it get upset.  I'm not totally confident on that one though so maybe someone else will have more they can share on that front.

As for do's and don'ts I would recommend getting a shirt or cape for your pleo to wear - this will help prevent wear and tear on the paint through lots of petting.  Socks can also be helpful depending on what type of flooring you have.  they can help to prevent pleos feet from catching on carpet.  Don't leave your pleo unattended on a table or high surface as they may not see the edge and walk off it.  
Apart from that reading up on the FAQ page on here will be helpful to prepare you for when pleo arrives.  

hope this helps.