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Description
So your young child is pestering you for the 100th time about having a pet guinea pig or rabbit? And you just know that the novelty will wear off after a few weeks and you'll end up cleaning up all its mess.
Gupi is the perfect solution.
Gupi doesn't need any programming, any controlling (other than waving the carrot at it) or special treatment. And, just as importantly, it's cute and cuddly, with very realistic appearance and fur, so you can pick it up and cuddle it as you would a real guinea pig.
What is Gupi?
Gupi is a robotic guinea pig that looks and feels like a real one. Gupi is highly autonomous; he walks around in the house, avoiding obstacles thanks to Gupi's sensors in its eyes. Gupi is so smart he can also walk through a maze and you can be assured that he will find a way out.
Gupi has a very interactive playing behaviour, if you don't play with him he becomes lonely and scared and he will go hiding in a dark place. But if you caress him he will feel loved, and he will be happy. Gupi can also hear you, and he will react to voices and sounds, depending on his mood. When Gupi is happy he will actually come running at you when you call him, but when he's scared he can't stand noise and will run away from it. When Gupi is happy he will also follow a light beam so you can lead him wherever you want him to go. When Gupi gets hungry you can feed him (recharge his batteries) through a little carrot, and he's ready for a lot more fun together with his friends.
Gupi creates the Tamagochi® binding-effect. Gupi has a unique identification codes in the chipsets, therefore, when other Gupi's are in the vicinity, they will express excited behaviour and they will learn gradually how to accept each other, how to share food (battery re-loader), and how to play with each other. When one or more Gupi see one another they will sing and dance with each-other in a cute manner.
Sensors
Infrared sensors in its eyes and on its nose help it find its way around and stop it bumping into obstacles. Light sensors in its eyes tell GUPI when it's in the dark. A sensor in the body detects when it's horizontal (i.e. free to move around) and when it's vertical (i.e. being held nose-up and cuddled). A pressure sensor on Gupi's back lets it respond to being stroked. A similar sensor between the eyes also acts as a master control to send Gupi to sleep or wake it up again.
The Carrot
The Carrot has three features. Firstly it will feed/charge the Gupi. Secondly when the carrot is inserted in the mouth of the Gupi, Gupi will become very excited and make cute little sounds and will cuddles towards the user. Thirdly when the carrot is pressed it sends out an infrared beam that GUPI picks up and homes in on. It starts to dance and moves towards the carrot.
Movement
Gupi's movements are very realistic due to its patented wheels/feet. It is fun to watch Gupi aimlessly move around his surroundings, avoiding obstacles and finding his way out of complicated surroundings. Gupi can move around as it wants to, in any direction, forwards and backwards.
Sound effects
There are a over 20 different sound effects - ranging from from cute 'ahh' noises to grumpy 'uh-oh' sounds when it's fed up or hungry. When you feed the carrot, Gupi makes a "gump gump" sound . When Gupi bumps into something he makes an "ouch" sound. Very cute sounds.
Learning Modes
As you'll see from the table below, there are a number of states that GUPI can be in. In practice, you don't need to worry about this too much, 99% of the time your Gupi will either be behaving normally or asleep. You just need to know that it needs lots of stroking after your first turn it on and a little patting on the back for the first few minutes of its life.
| 4 states: | Baby state (cries and shakes head - doesn't walk) |
| Learning state (walks around but needs training to avoid obstacles) | |
| Happy state (walks around, giggles, follows carrot...) | |
| Sleeping state (falls asleep in the dark or after period of non-play) |
Battery life
In practice, you can get about two hour's run-time out of each charge. This doesn't seem like long, but after a minute or two of exploring with no human interaction at all (i.e. you or your child has gone off and forgotten about it) it puts itself to sleep. In an average day in the family household, you'll just need to put Gupi on charge at night.
Different Versions
You'll see different types of Gupi on the Internet, and Gupi Version 3 is the latest and greatest Gupi. The main differences between Gupi Version 2 and Gupi version 3 are
- Higher capacity battery
- Softer and cuter fur
- Enhanced User Manual
- Bug fixes to the controller chip
- 3 Pin Mains Charger
- Adoption certifcate
- Packaging redesigned
Further information can be found at this amazing Gupi site, please visit the link below for further information. http://3lib.ukonline.co.uk/gupi/index.html
Packaging and Contents
- Retail colour box with clear window
- 1 x GUPI robot pet
- 1 x Charging carrot
- 1 x UK adaptor
- 1 x Operation manual
