Remember the wannabe digital entertainment Facebook pet, the MyDeskFriend? As funny as the little gadget could get, it was just another means of a social network to keep the user attached to the computer. A nice introduction was then the upcoming Joebot, which is actually now available from WowWee, in the robotics line.

As neat as it seemed to be, it is way better. It's the first WowWee robot that will take voice command; mind that it only responds to key phrases. He looks and acts like a crazy cartoon character, full of jokes and hilarious comments. Besides the voice controls, the user can interact with Joe via the joystick hands for controlling and programming it.

I bet this would be a fun gadget to have around the house to… have fun. Just imagine, you can actually "shoot" Joebot when set to Battle Mode, using any IR remote controller and it will play a funny "death" scene. It will sure take a while until you'll get bored of this gizmo, especially with the Beatbox mode, in which the Joebot can play back up to 200 beats, in a row. Getting back to programming, Joe is capable of learning up to 40 steps - that you have to program into it, it was just a figure of speech with the learning part.

Built-in IR sensors help Joebot detect and avoid obstacles on his own, while his eyes and mouth light up when he talks. The little robot can even sense when he falls thanks to the embedded gyro sensors and also, he will ask for your help to get up. He can guard your room from intruders in Guard Mode, while in game mode, he can play Simon says with you. Think that's all? Try the Dance Demo, and Joebot will show off his moves using one of his many dance routines, while in Patrol mode, he will wander around freely and tell you what he thinks about the environment. If you're feeling lonely, you can have the Joebot provide a little entertainment with his various catch phrases, in the Conversation Demo.

All of that and many more for the amazing price of $99.99.


We are just a few, but there are many of you, Softpedia users, out there. That's why we thought it would be a good idea to create an email address for you to help us a little in finding gadgets we missed. Interesting links are bound to be posted with recognition going mainly to those who submit. The address is