Posted on 07/12/2009 5:21:13 AM PDT by JoeProBono
When we first caught sight of Sega Toys' meowing, purring robo-feline, we fervently hoped Lucky the robo-dog or some other bigger, stronger robot would come along and scare the creepy cat out of the neighborhood.
Alas, that's not to be. "Yume-Neko Venus," or "Dream Cat Venus," is slated for a July 30 release, according to Sega (PDF in Japanese). The fake feline will cost 10,000 yen (about $108)--not bad considering you'll be saving a bundle on kitty litter and toy mice.
The battery-operated robo-cat is equipped with five touch sensors that let it engage in real-life behavior like rolling on its back, blinking its eyes, moving its legs when you rub its belly, and sleeping a lot. Sega says the target age is four and above, and/or anyone who likes cats but can't have them due to allergies or co-habitating with animal haters.
The bot, which is modeled after the Norwegian forest cat, measures about 20 inches by 9 inches by 9.5 inches, making it the size of a (smaller) real cat. As far as we can tell, it'll only be available in Japan for now, but if you see a white cat with oddly vacant eyes slinking around your garden anytime soon, you'll know robo-cat went global.
I can has plastic cheezburger?
The article says it’s for people with allergies, but what is the fur made of?
I showed it to my cat telling him that it doesn’t steal chairs from it’s owner. He gave me a look at went back to licking his paw while resting in DH’s chair.
I’m sure it will do a dandy job keeping the mice out of my barns.
we have had a robo cat for about 6 years. It does not have fur, but paint. However it is light, movement, sound and touch sensitive. If you pet it, it purrs and flexes its tail. It runs away if there is a loud noise. It goes to sleep, after a purring sequence if ignored. Light or sound wake it. You can program it to say a few words, play a song or to wake you up in the morning. Brand name is KITTY. They also make dogs (of which we have one) and parrots.
I gots five of the real thing.
:-D )))
I’ve only got three, but the day is young.
Hmmm. No kitty litter investments....
Nah, I love my babies. :-) It would be interesting to see how they would interact with the robo cat, though.
This is too creepy. I dreamed about some sort of robotic animal last night and the only way I could get it to shut up was by disconnecting the batteries.
You have a queen about to give birth? I wish I were there.
Fur from a dead cat?
No, but strays have a way of finding me. I apparently have “sucker” tattooed on my forehead in ink that only cats can see.
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