Puppy Love

By Chris Taylor

Since all 2,000 AIBOs destined for these shores have already been snapped up online, I was practically salivating when Sony reps let me take the floppy-eared robo-dog for a test drive. To the lucky prospective owners, I can report: AIBO is worth the wait. Five years in the making, this pup is a technophile's dream toy. He has a chip in each detachable limb. He has a camera in his nose. He chases after balls, as long as they're hot pink. He walks on all fours--a major cybernetic achievement, I'm told. He wags his tail freely and waves a paw cheerily. He can spin his limbs around, get to his feet when he's lying on his back--another giant leap for robotkind--and take a virtual leak. But AIBO can be willful too. His eyes go red if you pat him too hard. If he can't quite reach his hot-pink ball, he will freak out. And if you take the ball away, he pauses for a second before rotating his head toward you with just the right air of indignant menace (eat your heart out, HAL).

AIBO won't recognize your voice, unfortunately, and his mouth is too small to carry a newspaper. In fact, he has no practical applications at all, though Sony hopes developers may one day produce upgrades. Then again, the current AIBO is the kind of pet that I (and 2,000 others) like--utterly useless, and utterly cute. Guess I'll have to settle for a hamster.

--By Chris Taylor