Tech

This creepy headless robo-dog is an 'affordable' version of Spot

Affordable in the sense that you still have to be very, very rich to buy one.

Boston Dynamics' off-puttingly agile robot dog Spot isn't the only mechanical canine that can send apocalypse shivers down your spine.

Chinese company Unitree is slated to start selling its own more "affordable" qudrapedal robot dog called A1 (no association to the steak sauce).

When we say "affordable" please know that, in this case, the term is relative to advanced robotic dogs, which means that it still costs a lot of money.

$10k

Unitree says it will cost less than $10,000 initially and the price may still go down.

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$74k

For comparison, Boston Dynamics' Spot costs almost $75,000.

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A1 was debuted by Unitree last year at CES and boasts some of the same features as Spot, including the ability to flip and autonomously navigate its environment using AI and depth-sensing.

Specs:

- Weight: 26 lbs

- Carrying capacity: 11 lbs

- Battery life: 2 hours

- Speed: about 7 MPH

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Unlike Spot, however, A1 is being billed as more of a robotic companion or "pet" as opposed to having applications in things like safety or (god forbid) law enforcement.

For instance, A1 has been shown off tracking a human "companion" during a jog by using its on-board camera, which is maybe just a little terrifying.

Just a thought, but if they want this thing to be our friend, they maybe should have at least given it a head?

Video: "Black Mirror" on Netflix.

OK not that kind of head, though.

It's hard to say whether A1 will actually compete with the likes of Spot, seeing as how both robots are still fairly new in their status as purchasable pieces of machinery. That being said Boston Dynamics is obviously not the only show in town.

Your pets, however, might be a little more worried.

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