My dog, Zoomer, doesn’t listen. He sticks his shiny black nose where it doesn’t belong, is always bumping into things and has a habit of peeing where I don’t want him to. Still, when he rolls around on his four paws I am more than a little charmed by his impish nature and can’t help but be a little sad when he runs out of power and falls asleep.

Zoomer is, as you may have guessed, no ordinary dog. He’s a $99 (retail) robotic pet from Spin Master LTD for children ages 5 and up, and despite his (or rather, "its") limitations and the fact that it's not the “most technologically advanced robotic dog ever made” (as the press materials promised), Zoomer is certainly an entertaining electronic companion.

Spin Master’s canine creation is, without a doubt, a level above most toys. It has motorized joints and sensors in its chest to detect motion, objects and touch. It responds to voice commands in three different languages: English, Spanish and French. It can move more quickly than any robot dog I’ve ever seen. That’s because Zoomer’s feet are actually wheels. This was a smart move on Spin Master’s part; previous robot dogs like Tiger’s i-Cybie and even Sony’s legendary AIBO robotic dog had articulated plastic feet, which meant the robot dogs could walk, but at a relatively slow pace. Running was out of the question.

Zoomer zips around the room with speed, but virtually no grace. It makes the toy remarkably puppy-like, which makes sense; at roughly 10 inches long and 6 inches high, it's about the size of a small puppy.

Mostly white with black spots, LED eyes and a rubber tail, Zoomer has an internal battery. That’s right, no double or triple A batteries for Zoomer — he uses an internal rechargeable that connects to an old school mini-USB cable, which can charge directly from your computer or a wall plug. A full charge takes about an hour. It’s rated for about 30 minutes of play time, though you can extend that by turning Zoomer off when you’re not playing with the robot. The most intelligent robot dog I ever tested, AIBO, could charge itself.

Zoomer’s power, language control and charging port are all covered by rubber on its belly near the sensors. I had a habit of touching the cover, which kept flapping open. It was kind of annoying.

Spin Master’s instructions and useful website explain that Zoomer can actually learn and improve at following commands. It even has moods. It didn't get noticeably smarter in my time with it, but I hope Spin Master's promise is true; Zoomer isn’t great at following instructions like "sit," "play dead," "follow me" and a dozen or so other voice-activated commands, all of which start with announcing the robot’s name. I had to repeat commands multiple times.

Spend enough time training Zoomer and you may finally get him out of training mode so he doesn’t forget commands. Personally, I’d like to see a quick learner mode, in which Zoomer becomes a great listener with the flick of a switch. Even if Zoomer does get smarter, its way of listening is not particularly sophisticated. 

Zoomer doesn't listen at all unless you press the robot pup's head, essentially a giant button, and wait for his LED eyes to turn into two question marks. This is just one of the places where Spin Master’s claims fall short. Sony’s AIBO, for example, only needed you to say its name for the robot to pay attention and respond. Of course, AIBO cost nearly $2,000 in 2003.

When you do get Zoomer to pay attention and perform a trick, it's quite endearing. If you ask it to, the toy will follow you, shake hands, play with a ball and pee on command (with no messy cleanup!). Zoomer’s body is jointed at the waist so it can roll half of his body and then the other to play dead and get up again. Zoomer will also perform random tricks if you press the button on its back, and the robot dog will bark loudly and run around if you leave it in independent mode. All that noise left me wishing Spin Master added a volume control, which is a feature available on almost every robot dog I've tested.

Despite its sensors, Zoomer cannot see edges, so keep it away from steps and off tabletops. Unlike most real dogs, it also prefers the indoors.

Though Zoomer lists for $99, you can easily find it on most sites for $79. Considering build quality and entertainment value, I think the price is worth it. Zoomer isn't the best robot dog ever made, but it's one of the best on the market today. I bet it will make some child very, very happy this holiday season.

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Bottom Line:

If you’re looking for an affordable, fun, worry-free pet for a child than can’t have pets, Zoomer is an above-average holiday choice.

source: Mashable