Amazon, a household name in many countries, is expanding its hands into robotics and automation with the launch of Astro. It has already achieved somewhat success in robotics after the launch of the Alexa – Voice command technology. Amazon made several modifications to Alexa, considering different geo markets and their demands, including diverse voices and languages. Available in various sizes, Alexa is up to the mark and widely chosen as more than a toy to play along with.
To bolster its foot into the robotics sector, Amazon is now launching Astro – a cute robot. Astro will serve as a house help, and Amazon Inc believes that Astro will greatly help older people. The newly launched robot runs on Alexa intelligent home technology and is assisted with a large screen, cameras and wheels. According to Amazon Inc, Astro can look after pets, children or elders, and even be capacitated to keep a tab on security. Astro is an AI-powered and automated robot, but can also be controlled with a remote.
Amazon wants to clarify that Astro is not just an advanced version of Alexa assembled with wheels. The company has given the robot an extraordinary range of movements and expressions to personalize it.
Just like Alexa, the privacy concerns have been taken care of during the making of the robot. The robot can be forbidden from entering private areas such as bedrooms and washrooms. Furthermore, the robot can be set to ‘do not disturb mode, and it also comes with a microphone and camera turn on or off buttons. But Astro will lose its ability to move around if the cameras are turned off.
Astro, the robot also comprises a pop-up periscope camera on its head part that helps to keep vigilance around the house. Amazon Inc has recently demonstrated a few abilities of the robot, which Amazon thinks is unique and ahead of what the market is offering. During the demonstration, Astro showed that it could do beatboxing, groove on the beats, and take care of open cylinder chokes. If the chock is left on, it can notify the owner.
Price of Astro
According to the reports, the robot will be selectively available for purchase only in the United States. Its initial pricing is set at $999.99. However, its pricing will be increased up to $1499.99 once it’s shipped out of the united states for purchasing. A top official of Amazon asserted that he is sure that Astro will be sold out with a few minutes once it’s open for sale in the US market.
Amazon Inc believes that robotics is the world’s future and wants to dominate the segment with its top-notch products like Astro. Amazon is optimistic about inventing and offering must-have robotic and Alexa-controlled devices. However, at what pricing these products will come holds their future.
Robotic devices are still new for most people, and they would not spend extravagantly on such devices unless they are convinced about the need of having robots at home. Paying $999.99 for a tiny device seems unreasonable for most people. However, Amazon is striving to convince people that the small-looking robot can perform several activities that justify its pricing.
