Amazon’s ‘Astro’ robot | What the Tech?
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (WHAT THE TECH?) — Amazon has a new robot that is jettisoning “The Jetsons” and possibly coming to a home near you.
The “Astro” robot, just like Rosie from “The Jetsons,” is meant to make life easier. Amazon introduced it two years ago as the first widely available household robot. It now costs around $1,700 after taxes.
What does it do, though?
Astro learns the floorplan of your home and, every now and then, leaves its charger to “hang out.”
He learns the names of each room of the house, as well as the faces, voices and names of the people within. Astro will also search the home looking for the person to deliver the message to. You can also deliver items in a cubby he has.
Amazon has a new robot that is jettisoning "The Jetsons" and possibly coming to a home near you. Here's how it works.
Although, he does have trouble sometimes. In a test, he never located someone sitting on the couch, even after telling Astro which room he was in.
Astro will follow you playing music and games and even taking selfies. He does this with a periscope camera that saves photos and videos to your Amazon account.
You can also make phone calls and video calls to Amazon Echo devices. Astro will follow you so you’re always in the frame, too.
The verdict on Astro? It’s a cute and fun robot but not worth the money. Amazon will continue to develop Astro, which is actually a good tool for securing your home.
The Astro robot is in limited supply so Amazon Prime customers actually need an invitation to purchase it.