 |
|
|
|||||
I tried to go into meeting Mirumi with a heart of steel. There are a lot of cute robots at CES every year, that is a given, and you cant just let yourself get wooed by every puppy-eyed bot that looks your way. But boy did I melt immediately when that silly little thing locked its gaze on me, then bashfully tucked its head away. Mirumi is the latest bizarre-but-endearing robot from Japanese startup Yukai Engineering, the company responsible for the Qoobo cat-tailed pillow and the finger-nibbling kitty plush, Amagami Ham Ham. All it does is stare at you and move its head around a little until youve successfully been tricked into a few moments of happiness. The idea is to emulate that distinctly joyful experience of meeting eyes with a baby in public a quick, random interaction that can turn your mood around. Mirumi looks like the combination of a fledgling bird and a shrunken-down yeti, and its long arms let it cling to objects like a purse handle so it can come along wherever you go, and stare down strangers. Inside Mirumi is a distance sensor and an inertial measurement unit, which tell it when there are people nearby and when its on the move or being touched. It has different responses for each of these scenarios. When a person first comes into its line of vision, for example, it will get shy and briefly hide its face, like it did for me. Then, it cautiously peeks out again. Jostle it around and it might shake its head, No. It doesnt make any sounds. Cheyenne MacDonald for Engadget Playing with Mirumi at CES Unveiled, I found myself delighted at absolutely everything it did. It has a nice bit of weight to it when you pick it up, sort of like a tiny kitten. And on that same note, its little movements make it give off a subtle vibration, almost as if it were purring. I hooked its bendable arms around my wrist, which also had a bulky watch on it and a camera dangling by the strap, and Mirumi felt pretty secure on top of all that as I gently waved it around. On a thinner perch, like a bag strap, its arms wrap fully for a better hold. (I probably wouldnt trust it to stay on if I was in a packed subway car or similarly crowded environment, though). Mirumi is rechargeable and should last about eight hours before it needs to be plugged in again. We dont know yet what the final color options will be, but Yukai had white, black and peach Mirumis on display. The company is planning to launch a crowd-funding campaign later this year before releasing the robot, and it hasnt yet been determined if it will be sold internationally. Is it kind of ridiculous? Yes, absolutely. Especially when you consider the price: around $70, according to a Yukai rep. But kind of ridiculous is Yukais whole thing, and at least for me (and just about every person who stopped by during the demo), Mirumi elicited the exact emotional response it was made for. This is all about making people around you happier, Yukais Hiroko Sato said during our chat at CES Unveiled. I cant really hate on that. Speaking of ridiculous, Yukai is also showing off a small cat-shaped device called Nékojita FuFu that will blow on food or a hot drink to cool it off for you. Its curved arms hook onto the side of a mug or bowl, or it can be set down on a flat surface to blow on a plate. Cheyenne MacDonald for Engadget The company says it can bring down the temperature of hot water by 30 degrees Fahrenheit in three to five minutes. We didnt have any scalding liquids on hand to test that out on the show floor, but its basically just a small fan with different blowing modes packaged in a cute silicone body, and the fan did indeed blow air. As a person who waits an annoyingly long time to take the first sip of coffee or soup because Im really sensitive to temperatures, I can appreciate an option that doesnt involve me doing all that work. I cant see myself going out and buying this, but it strikes me as the sort of product that makes for a fun gift the kind thats partially a joke, but also functional. Nékojita FuFu is expected to be released later this year for $25 following a crowd-funding campaign. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/this-fluffball-robot-stole-my-heart-at-ces-2025-173009630.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
Microsoft is allowing PC Game Pass members over the age of 18 to earn rewards by playing PC games, a perk previously available only to console gamers with a Game Pass Ultimate subscription. This update goes into effect on January 7. Subscribers (on PC or console) will earn points by playing any game from the Game Pass catalog for 15 minutes or more. Do that for five days a week, and they'll start a streak that increases a multiplier. A four-week streak results in four times the points. There are additional bonuses for playing four or eight different titles per month, but again, they'll have to meet that 15 minute threshold. While PC players are no longer left out, the points only rack up on Game Pass catalog games games requiring a third-party launcher, including anything through Battle.net, don't count. The PC Weekly bonus will also be available to all Game Pass Rewards members above the age of 18. Additionally, the console weekly bonus and daily PC play are rebalanced to 150 points and 10 points, respectively. As touched on by EuroGamer, Microsoft kneecapped the Game Pass experience in recent memory, as rewards were made more challenging to obtain. It seems like the tech giant is trying to get into the good graces of Game Pass subscribers again.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/xboxs-game-pass-now-rewards-users-for-playing-pc-games-171529965.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
At CES 2025, Satechi introduced a new accessory for the Mac Mini that combines a stand with some handy additional ports for the Apple computer. The Mac Mini M4 Stand & Hub with SSD Enclosure will release on February 17 with limited availability; the company expects the product to be widely available in March. It will retail for $100. One of the main selling points of this item is that it makes accessing the petite PC's power button easier. The stand elevates the Mac Mini off your desk, but leaves a concave space so that you can reach the power button on the bottom of its rear side. This awkward location was one of the very few dings we had against the Mac Mini M4 in our review of the computer. On the front of the hub are USB-A 3.2 and 2.0 ports, as well as an SD card reader that promises speeds of "up to 312MB/s" for file transfers. The SSD enclosure allows you to add up to 4TB of NVMe storage for the Mac Mini. The hub has a recessed space at the top to keep from obstructing the Mac Mini's fans, and it comes with its own bottom vents as well. Design-wise, the stand looks like a slightly squatter version of the Mac Mini, boasting a similar finish and profile to the computer. There are a lot of quality USB-C hubs on the market, but customers who favor the Mac Mini for its simplicity and small footprint might appreciate how cleanly this Satechi accessory pairs with the machine. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/satechi-details-new-mac-mini-m4-stand-at-ces-2025-170038397.html?src=rss
Category:
Marketing and Advertising
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||