Nissan recently introduced its latest SUV (Sport Utility Vehicle) in Japan, the Dualis. But that kind of news alone simply won’t make its way to this blog. The thing that interest me is that the company has decided to ask Kawamori Shoji — the creator of Abio robot, as well as Macross and Robotech mangas — to design a robot which would represent the Dualis. The result? Well, check it out yourself from the photo below. A very cool robot I must say.

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Just read about this interesting robot on the newspaper this morning. Developed by Takara Tomy, this small robot is called i-SOBOT. It can be controlled using the provided remote control or through voice commands. You can make the robot play music, speak simple words, and even fight (punch and kick). If your neighbour also has one, you can challenge his on a one-on-one duels.

Heighs 6.6-inches and weighs at just 12.25-ounces, the i-SOBOT Handheld Robot can be purchased for 29,800 Yen (or around $245) starting from July.

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CES 2007 is not just a place for taking a peek at the latest consumer electronics product. Even the futuristic one, like this “household” robot, is available. Developed by Etri, a Korea-based manufacturer, this robot is called ROMI and supposed to be able to help you clean the house. No need to use the remote control because the robot has built-in voice-activated command system. But the coolest thing is that it is equipped with video camera module. The captured video can be transmitted to other devices or PCs via wireless / CDMA connection. Imagine all the fun you can have with this feature…

One more pic after the jump.

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This is a bad signal for lazy sales person. UBIX, a Japan-based company, recently offered a new product called Ubiko. This robot is able to do various sales person-activities, such as welcoming clients, promote products on the store, etc. It reacted to the voice command and will quickly respond and do the job. Not sure whether it would be more effective or not than a real sales person, especially a sexy one, but at least, compared to a bunch of lazy workers, staffing Ubiko will highly reduce the expenses.

Fortunately, that won’t happen anytime soon. Ubiko is currently available for rent only right now. For 2 hours of rent, you have to pay 700 EUR. At least now the lazy ones will be motivated and used the rest of their working hours to work harder.

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Yes, I don’t care whether the Japanese can make a smarter robot. And I also don’t care whether Japan-made robots are almost human looks-a-like. All I care is this made-in-China female humanoid called Dion which was being shown off earlier this month at a robot show in China. She’s not as skillful as those made by Japanese, as the only thing she can do is to sing and move her lips a little bit. But guys, this robotic babe has a great sexy body (notice the important part of female’s body also included) and even wears a sexy clothes, including a sexy mini-skirt! The only thing that turn me off is the name (Dion is a BOY’s name in my country…).

(Auto) Translated description:

To beautiful proportion and the sexy mini- skirt & the audience who produces the hand to [so] putting out look, unintentionally appears. The touch feeling which becomes matter of concern, with the feeling such as thick silicon just, as for the human skin compared to the just a little setting

Anyway, you can watch the video of Dion here (mirrored here).

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Get ready, boys! Be sure to save your money or put this on your Chrimast wishlist. It’s NetTansor (english: Net Tounge Sir), a remote-controlled robot from Bandai. This cool thing is using WiFI connection, which means, you can move it around freely without the hassle of connected cable. At just 980 grams weight, the robot is equipped with three Sensor Monitor to avoid bumping into walls, chairs, etc. You can also communicate with the robot via email but we’re not really sure about the detail. As for the battery, it can provide up to 2.5 hours of play time.

That’s it? Of course not! We’re sure you need more reason to spend 50,000 Yen on this robot. So let’s get to the best part… this robot has a built-in webcam which makes it possible for you to watch anything in front of the robot! We’ll stop here and leave you imagine all of the FUN things you can do with that ultra-cool feature.

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[ Read Tutorial ] [ Via TopNotchBlog ]

“We’ve had robots before that were just toys, but the Roborior can actually be put to practical use in the home,” said Takako Sakata, a spokeswoman for the department store chain Takashimaya.

Supplies are currently limited. Eventhough it’s not cheap – Takashimaya sells it for $2600 each – many more are taking orders.

“We received a lot of inquiries after the demonstrations,” Sakata said. “Our initial plan is to sell 2,000 robots.”

Roborior is developed by Japanese robot maker Tmsuk Co. Ltd. and electronics company Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd.. Tmsuk has already produced a four-legged security robot called Banryu, which is about the size of a large dog and sells for $18,000.

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