WowWee Rovio WiFi Webcam A Consumer Wunderkind
January 6th, 2009 by Mary Anne Simpson
WowWee Rovio
(PhysOrg.com) -- WowWee introduces the first consumer WiFi roving Webcam for being there without having to go there. The WowWee Rovio is PC/Mac compatible and measures approximately 13.5-inches x 12-inches x 14-inches and weighs only 5-pounds. Rovio's three omni-directional wheel design allows it to roam around an office area, home or small manufacturing area maneuvering its way around pets, furniture and obstructions without tipping over. Rovio connects up to a users WiFi network via a laptop, game console or wireless cell phone.
Rovio's TrueTrack beacon guides it back home to its charger station so you never have to worry about it running out of battery life. The Rovio comes with a CD interactive set up guide, a USB cable, a charger station and an AC power adapter. Once the device is connected to the wireless network the set up guide does the rest. To set up an external network a user needs to set up a port forwarding to your router by following the steps in the written guidelines on-line. A recent firmware update may in time clear up connectivity issues cited by some reviewers.
WowWee introduced a Beta WPA encryption and UPnP support firmware update on December 29. Hopefully, the stable version will address some issues for remote uses. The idea of attending an office conference in Washington D.C. while sitting pool side in Palm Springs has a definite appeal. As a security device, WowWee can roam around your office while you are on vacation or spy on employees spending too much time near the water cooler.
The navigational control panel on your PC makes you the Captain of Tomorrow. Set the angle of the CMOS VGA camera, adjust the super sensitive microphone or gleefully yell a "Gotcha" to your office mates and simultaneously instruct Rovio to take a picture and send it via e-mail. Select auto-rove and a path and Rovio will pick up the sights and sounds of the area. Leave Rovio at home while you are on a business trip and read Wee Willie Winkie to your toddlers and see their facial expressions. You can't plant a kiss on the wee little child, but it is about a close as you can get without being there.
The technical requirements include Explorer 6 or higher, Mozilla FireFox 1.5 or higher, Safari 3.0 or higher, Safari Mobile or Opera Mobile. A high-speed Internet connection, 802.11b/g, a USB port and a wireless access point device. The rechargeable battery pack is included and extra charging stations are available for docking Rovio in various rooms. The WowWee Rovio may not be for people short on patience while it grows up, but Wee Willie Winkie and fun loving gadget fans will love it.
© 2009 PhysOrg.com
Jun 29, 2009 |
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Amazon has it for $297.00, but reviews are mostly unfavorable.
Self docking feature is apparently not that great. :/
Not as bad as many. If it's something new and it's not shamelessly supportive, I'm not offended.
Not sure I'm ready to replace my PTZ webcams for something floor-level..
Also: seems rather LARGE. Also: why no mention of resolution/colors?
It will be banned from any office floor within ten minutes.
What a waste of money.