Apple Announces iRobot
MACWORLD EXPO, SAN FRANCISCO--Jan. 9, 2001--Building upon its success in the consumer and education markets with the popular iMac and iBook, Apple today unveiled iRobot. Apple's new CEO Dr. Susan Calvin wowed the crowd by introducing Robbie and Rosie. The pair did a short musical medley performing a number of household chores. Now consumers have a choice for their fully bipedal personal home robots. They come in two stunning humanoid metallic bodies Brushed Steel and Red Gold.
Susan assured the audience that it is a safer, friendlier robot than the homicidal Microsoft Robot 2000 last year. Microsoft blamed it on Intel's T1000 electronic brain. Unlike it's predecessors the iRobot is the first to fully incorporate Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics:
- A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
- A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the first law.
- A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the first or second laws.
Susan joked, "These aren't your axe wielding killbots with glowing red eyes shouting 'Destroy all humans!'" She noted that more people would have died had Microsoft delivered a stable and easier to use Windows Robot operating system. Apple continues it's grand tradition of power and ease of use with their new robotic line.
Features
- 20/25 active-matrix CCD stereo vision. Can see all visible wavelengths, infrared, and ultraviolet
- Fast Positronic Brain running at 4.7 Gigahertz
- 4 Terabyte Positronic Brain expandable to 32 TB.
- Up to 400 hours running time on Cold Fusion reactor
- Recognizes human speech (sixteen languages)
- 42 built in voices
- Incorporates Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics
- Quiet powerful servo motors
- Egg gentle hands
- Water resistant to 50 meters
- Navigate stairs natively
- Universal Mechanical Bus for third party peripherals (UMB)
Software Included
- Martha Stewart's Living
- Binford's Handyman
- Kai's MetaSculptor
- Apple's CyberDog Walker
- Red Crosses CPR & First Aid
- Amazon's Storyteller
- And many more titles
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