Guillotine

I always knew it would be either Mattel or Tomy to cause the downfall of man…

Okay… So it’s just a toy… Not really the end of the world, but are they already setting a precedent that disregards common sense?

Mattel has released a new robotic toy called D-Rex. Kind of like the e-pets (Aibo, I-Cybie, etc) we’ve seen for years except this time the toy is a T-Rex. Here are a few of the features:

• Walks on it’s own
• Roars and makes other noises (like burps and farts or you can record a personalized sound)
• Touch sensors in the nose and jaw (to tell it if it bumps into something or something is in it’s mouth)
• A petting sensor on the back of the head (so it knows when you are petting it)
• Light sensor
• Sound sensor
• 4 modes (Attack, Guard, Prank, Question, and Seek)
• Ability to change modes on it’s own
• Moving tail which speeds up or slows down depending on ‘mood”
• It bites (???)

Okay… So it’s a pretty cool toy, and who wouldn’t have wanted something like this when you were a kid, but I do find a few things disturbing about it. One of which are the sensors… Now granted they are rather simple, but apparently the sound sensor is stereo so that the mechanical beast can tell what direction a sound is coming from… Am I the only one who finds that a bit creepy? It also apparently will respond to questions by either nodding or shaking it’s head while in Question mode… Granted it’s just a Magic 8 Ball type of gimmick…. It doesn’t really understand human language (I hope). And the thing that makes me scratch my head the most… Yeah it comes with a bone shaped remote to control the modes, but… They have also added a “mood” element similar to the Tamagotchi which needed to be fed and interacted with or they would “die”. Well… D-Rex won’t die, but it’s mood changes depending on if it is fed and interacted with properly… Along with it’s mood changes it can randomly switch modes. Uhhh… Where are the three laws here???

Okay… So it’s really just a toy, but doesn’t it make you wonder??? If this is the low end of robotics, and it’s already got some elements of autonomy as well as some ability to sense it’s surroundings it’s a bit frightening to think about what’s at the other end of the spectrum stashed away in research labs around the world.

So, you would like to own one??? (I mean uhhh… Buy one for your kids… Yeah that’s what I meant) They are currently retailing for around $130, and most likely available at your local toy store or online at Amazon:

D-REX Interactive Dinosaur