Now THIS is cool
 

I'm a huge fan of robots. Life should be simple, but robots can still fulfill a need to automate some of the more mundane tasks in life. I have 2 Roombas and just ordered the new 560 (quieter and more reliable) and a Dirt Dog robot for the garage. I love these things. I love the satisfaction of pulling out the bin and finding all the cat hair and dust they collect. Yeah, I'm a nerdy gadget freak, ok.

When we travel, we setup a wireless G camera that senses motion and emails me with photos. This way, we can make sure the cats are still moving around the house, and no bad guys are doing bad stuff.

iRobot is getting set to release this little gem. Wow, can't wait to get my hands on one. What a great way to keep tabs on your house when you're away.

http://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=338

No affiliation, but I am going to check to see if they're privately held or I can start loading up on shares :)

NASDAQ listed. Went public about 2000 I think??

very cool.

This opens some interesting doors for the software world as well.

I work with them all the time...an old squadron-mate of mine is an engineer with them. They are very innovative, especially in their ground UV's.

If I could have invested (I can't due to DoD regs) I would have years ago.

Should be integrated into the vacuum platform....

I almost went out with Helen on a date 2-3 years ago. any woman that used to work on her old Volvo herself, plays intramural hockey and invents robots is pretty hot in my book.

Looks like shares are near 52 week low. And they are profitable, even with their military research activities. Hmmmm.... good buy?

These are cooler:

http://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=109

I've seen the robo vacuums on TV. I totally buy into them working as far as being able to move around, avoid getting stuck, recharging, basically the whole automated part.

The part I am not convinced of is that such a little thing could do much more than remove loose crumbs. Motion- you own these things- could you give me an honest assessment on the power they bring to the table?

Yeah, well, er, it's neat, but I can't see the need for a robot AV connection unless the wife is having a victoria secret party ;)

I'm assuming the "home" party can't see you via the robot, so I prefer using PC's at both ends so we can each see each other.

Now if I could just program this guy to drop my engine for me and replace the clutch...... http://world.honda.com/HDTV/ASIMO/200412-run/index.html

Appx 1/2 consumer robot 1/2 military robot
The military robots are used for IEDs, clearing houses, etc
Just lost big military contract, fear is military is buying its robots on price so risk to IRBT rev or margins
Think the consumer bot biz is going fine
At 55X P/E N12M, valuation tough
I don't pay much attention to IRBT, just what I remember noticing a few weeks ago

At first glance it resembles the Roomba sweeper. But after a quick review I don't see any info stating that it's mobile. Would be cool if you could "visit" by remote control.

ooops, went back and found this:

"Easy to operate
The user-friendly interface lets you connect to and control the robot from any Windows XP-enabled PC. Using a computer keyboard, mouse or joystick, you can drive ConnectR around in any direction to see, hear and interact with whomever you want. The people at home can also use the included remote control to “call” out and connect to you while you are away so that you are always in the loop."

I though they would have made it a bit more obvious.

I've seen some things that definitely needed a woomba...

http://www.dhadm.com/mediaHolder.php?id=295

LOL...does it have the video option?

sorry, I'm not in.

What happens when you find your wife in bed with someone else?

Is it a chick?

Getting used to them can be a bit of a pain, compared to normal vacuuming, but once you're used to dealing with them, they do a far better job than standard vacuum cleaners. Very thorough and actually get A LOT of stuff off your floors. Being small, they also go under your furniture, which you won't do normally when vacuuming. From my experience, they're best when you schedule them to go every night at say, 3 AM. Your floors stay clean and you don't have to deal with them during the day.

They are expensive, though, and you'll need to pop $300 for the latest and greatest every 2 years or so. Not that the old one isn't working anymore, just that the newest models are always so much better. Compare that to spending $400 or so on a really nice vacuum cleaner that lasts 10 years.

damn motion, i think you just sold me on roombas. i hate cleaning my floors.