14
2011
iPhone Toys – Tankbot Desk Pet
An article by eoutlet The Tankbot Desk Pet is a unique, entertaining toy for the iPhone. It’s the world’s first sub micro-robotic toy that can be controlled by your iPhone and is also compatible with the iPod and iPad. The most outstanding feature that the Tankbot iPhone toy has is it’s autonomous mode which uses IR sensors to navigate mazes, avoid obstacles, and react with military precision leaving people astonished at it’s intelligence. There are a range of different colours (orange, blue, black, and green), each operating on a different frequency mode allowing for multi-player racing and battling. It has a retractable USB charger built into the body of the product so that you can charge it in your PC and play for hours.
Desk Pets has revolutionized remote control toys by connecting their most recent micro-robot to today’s latest mobile technology. Each TankBot features a dongle that easily plugs into the headphone jack of your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. Utilizing Apple’s accelerometer technology, Desk Pets developed a program that enables TankBot to be controlled by simply tilting your mobile device. Tilt the iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch forward and TankBot rolls forward, angle the phone right and TankBot instantly makes a right turn. TankBot even has a mind of its own. Switch to autonomous mode and using built-in IR sensors, TankBot can navigate a maze, avoid obstacles and interact with the users hand motions, all on its own.
Desk Pets International’s Managing Directors, Michael Trzecieski and David Piltz, have taken interactive toys to a new level by incorporating Apple devices as the main control. “We are the first company to develop a sub £30 toy with full compatibility with the Apple devices,” says Trzecieski. Piltz highlights TankBot’s autonomous mode that set it apart from other toys on the market. “Just waving your hands in front of the robot almost becomes addictive as it moves and reacts to what you do. You wait for it to slip up and it doesn’t, it consistently acts with a military precision.”
TankBot features include:
Incorporates Apple’s accelerometer technology to be fully controllable by tilt of iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch
Autonomous mode uses IR sensors to navigate mazes, avoid obstacles, and react with military precision
Free roaming mode with tank sounds
Retractable USB charger built into body of the product, 30 minutes of charge = 15 minutes of play
Flashing heartbeat eyes pulse when robot is at idle
Each color (orange, blue, black, and green) operates on own frequency, allowing for multi-player racing and battling
