Official Sphero

Forget about Fido. The Sphero is soon to be man’s new best friend. Part robot, part ball, the Sphero is pure glowing entertainment, a programmable companion for all ages. He’s been put through the ringer, tested and tweaked, to be the first mass market robot with a navigational control system. Upon purchase, you’ll receive a charging station to power him up, a quick start guide, and access to six cool apps to get him goin’. For such a technologically advanced gadget, Sphero is really quite simple. You’ll be happy to know there are not cords to complicate things, and what’s more…Sphero doesn’t need to be spayed or neutered.

Sphero, Smartphone Controllable Robotic Ball

Here’s a cool gizmo that just might take on a life of its own. Orbotix releases Sphero ($130), a robotic ball controlled by your IOS or Android software. At its most basic, Sphero reacts to each tilt, tap or touch of your phone. Activate boost mode (not to be confused with beast mode) and give it that extra kick.

Download games and enjoy Sphero in a round of golf or a game of tag. It also glows in the dark with its RGB Led light inside. There are thousands of colors to choose from in the app. You can even program it to react to external events, e.g. glow red when a certain stock goes down or glow blue according to the temperature outside.

Sphero is open source, meaning this could become a mini-platform for those enterprising souls out there. It operates by Bluetooth, eliminating cumbersome wires, and charges by induction, just like your electric toothbrush.

Set to release in late 2011, you can preorder now.

http://vimeo.com/gosphero/sphero-drive-app