Pleo

Innvo Labs "Herd Deal", Bob The Pleo Forums, and More Info from Innvo Labs

2009-12-08T18:51:00.000-08:00

Build Your Own Pleo Herd With Some Help From Innvo Labs

Innvo Labs, the company that revived the Pleo line, is currently offering a reward to loyal Pleo owners in the form of a special discount on their new improved Pleos. For $245 USD, which is a discount of over $100 off the retail price of $349, you can get one of the new Pleos, that have substantial improvements to the reliability of Pleo's neck, the skin and teeth paint durability upgrades, the upgraded battery charger, and several other important changes over the original Ugobe Pleos as mentioned in my interview with Derek Dotson (don't worry, inside Pleo is the exact same lovable baby dinosaur, just better!). To get this deal, all you have to do is give them the serial number from your old Pleo and place your order at Pleo World before January 1, 2010. Here is the original E-mail from Innvo Labs with the exact instructions:

Did you know Pleos will play with each other? They exhibit herding behavior when you have two or more in one spot. Watch them dance, and sing, and entertain you for hours.
Right now, Innvo Labs is offering a special to our current Pleo owners. Order a new 2009 Pleo for only $245 (regularly $349) and start your own herd!
Here's how it works:
Email Pleo support (support@pleoworld.com) and provide your Pleo's serial number (located on his foot).
You'll receive a coupon code
Use this coupon code to order a new 2009 Innvo Labs Pleo on www.PleoWorld.com.
The coupon code reduces your new Pleo's cost to only $245.
This special ends January 1, 2010. Don't forget – order by the cut-off date to start a Pleo herd before the holidays are over!

I have 3 Pleos and it's a blast watching them interact and generally raise a baby dino ruckus! You can see my 3 little babies in action in the video at the bottom of this post.

Bob The Pleo

One of the unsung heros during the time all of us were wondering if Pleo was gone for good was the Bob The Pleo web site. Bob The Pleo began as a funny comic strip with Pleo as its main character by Pleo World member mweed. It has since become a home to many Pleo owners and is also a place to get the original Pleo files for both firmware and personality downloads, including skits from forum members like InMemoryOfRomeo. In the web site's December newsletter, Innvo Labs CEO Derek Dotson shares some more details about what is coming in 2010 including custom skin and eye colors, improvements to Pleo's hearing, tidbits about ongoing discussions with some of Ugobe's previous employees and more. The newsletter is a good read and if you want to spend time with a group of like-minded Pleo fans I recommend the forums.

In Closing

It's time to get all worked up over Pleo again. Innvo Labs is committed to Pleo for the long run and has already begun stepping up their marketing and development activities. During the quiet period after Ugobe's passing, I barely played with my herd because I was so afraid of them breaking. But now that Pleo is back thanks to Innvo Labs, my house is as noisy as ever with the sounds of my happy rambunctious Pleos; Digger, Claire, and PenDragon. I leave you now with my video ode to Pleo, The Pleo Song, and below that you can watch my little troublemakers singing a song together in The Plunchkins.

The Inside Story Behind Pleo’s Rise, Fall, and Resurrection

2009-10-26T19:45:00.000-07:00

[NOTE: For impatient Pleo owners dying to know about repairs, warranty service, batteries, chargers and more. You'll find the interview with Derek further down the page]

Today I had an amazing 1-hour conversation with Derek Dotson, one of the original founders of Ugobe and is now the COO of Innvo Labs and Innvo Labs Limited, a subsidiary of Jetta Company, Ltd. Jetta is the company that acquired the rights to all things Pleo at the June bankruptcy proceedings this year and has relaunched Pleo under the Innvo Labs Corporation name. In the interview you will see Innvo Lab’s aggressive commitment to taking care of Ugobe’s original customers, and learn about their plans for the Pleo line and beyond. But first, a rare peek behind the scenes of the rise, fall, and resurrection of the baby robot dinosaur that took the world by storm, and was almost lost forever; a story that includes the trials and tribulations of Pleo's unsung guardian angel, Derek Dotson.

Behind The Scenes

Derek and Caleb Chung met a year before Ugobe even announced plans for Pleo. Derek and Caleb had worked on Mattel Miracle Moves Baby, which is how they met. The Takara Corporation out of Japan wanted a robot dinosaur built and they approached Caleb about the project. When Derek talked to him about the project, Caleb said he didn’t want to make just another toy dinosaur and instead wanted to build something that felt almost real. The Takara representative was to return in 3 days, and during that period of Derek and Caleb met and discussed the possibility of making Pleo. (Interesting side note. Originally Pleo was going to be only 3 ½ inches tall and 7 ½ inches long with a head the size of a walnut).

The Takara representative loved the concept and gave them seed money to build a proof of concept model. With that money they built robot walkers that were about the size they wanted Pleo to be. The walkers were servo driven proto-robots that had a torso, shoulders, legs and knees. They built their own telemetry suit to teach the walker how to move. They didn’t use a standard motion capture suit because they needed a suit that had the same movement limitations as the walker. This would force the suit’s operator, the talented and acrobatic Caleb Chung, not to make moves the walker’s geometry and mechanics could not support. The walkers were attached to a computer that had learning algorithms. They analyzed Caleb’s movements via the suit’s sensors, and learned how to move the walker’s servos in a manner that mimicked Caleb’s movements, giving the walkers a realistic animal gait.

Takara loved the walkers and financed the embryonic stage of the project. Derek and Caleb worked furiously for 6 weeks and managed to turn out some prototype walkers that worked. Unfortunately Takara’s parent company forced them to drop the project and the rights to Pleo returned to Derek and Caleb. At this point, Caleb told Derek that if he could raise some money, he could “have half of Pleo”. According to Derek, Caleb was ready to drop the project and told him to try and raise some money, so he spent about a year showing the walkers to people in pursuit of extra financing and they eventually ended up with equal ownership packages in Ugobe when the company was created.

The Rise of Pleo

About this time, Bob Christopher, who later became Ugobe’s first CEO, entered the stage since he had been working with them on another project to create a new kind of PDA. He helped raise funding from several angel investors in chunks as small as $25k to $50k per investor. By the time the prototype were being built they were out of money and were about to go under. During this time he bankrolled the project using his own funds, a decision that was not popular at home, and kept the project alive until the first round of venture capital appeared. Derek went to China and had the first full body prototype of Pleo built, which is when CTO John Sosoka and the other groups arrived. (Note: The PDA project was later dropped when Apple’s iPhone came out and they could see the handwriting on the wall.)

The Fall

Around November of 2008, Derek went back to Boise to help in the effort to save Ugobe. Doug Swanson was brought in as CEO to try and save the company. Doug did a terrific job trying to save Ugobe but despite his Herculean efforts, it became obvious to him that the company could not be saved or as Derek put it “it was like arranging chairs on the Titanic”. There was too much overhead and too much bad debt. There was no way an investor would put any more money into them since the company just didn’t make sense on paper any longer.

Ugobe did sell a huge chunk of Pleos, grossing about 20 million dollars in sales, but the company that had grown up around Pleo was just too expensive to keep going. Had it been a better economy then it is possible they could have achieved the sales growth they needed to continue. But the reality was that the current economic climate required a company a lot leaner to survive it. Ugobe was a heavyweight company poised for explosive growth and burdened with all the associated expenses and overhead that implies, so they needed a huge explosion in sales. Derek still believes Ugobe would have survived and done well if they could have raised their last round of funds. Despite Pleo's admirable sales it was not enough for Ugobe to stay operational and bankruptcy soon followed.

The Resurrection

Derek spoke to Jetta, the company that did the actual manufacturing for Ugobe, about trying to acquire the rights to Pleo at the bankruptcy auction. Jetta agreed that they should participate and joined the bidding. They never thought they would win since there was talk of another company that was bidding richly at the auction. As fate and possibly luck would have it, that company was unreachable near the end of the auction and they won, bringing Pleo back home to Derek. After analyzing all of Pleo’s weaknesses, they came up with an improved design that fixed them and relaunched Pleo under the Innvo Labs name. (read the interview for the details).

Conclusion (interview follows)

Existing and new customers will want to pay special attention to the questions regarding service and warranty on Pleos old and new, and what the differences are in hardware and software between the old Ugobe Pleos and the new Innvo Labs ones. In conclusion, I came away from the interview extremely encouraged about Pleo's bright new future, both for my fellow owners and myself. Derek said repeatedly during the interview that they have the financial resources to weather the current tough economic times, and I look forward to seeing them execute their 10-year plan for Pleo and the other new robot pets that they will create in the future.

[NOTE: This is not a direct transcript. The questions and answers were edited for readability but without affecting the content in a material way.]

The Interview

RO: Who is Innvo Labs and how do they fit in with Jetta?

DD: Jetta Company Limited does robotics manufacturing in a wide range of industries. Innvo Labs Corporation and Innvo Labs Limited were created by Jetta specifically to support Pleo and its descendants.

RO: Ugobe going extinct was quite a shock to people and some people are nervous about buying a new Pleo because of this. What can you tell me about Innvo Labs that will make people feel confident about your company's future?

DD: Innvo Labs has the financial resources to survive the dips and valleys of the global economy. When Innvo Labs first met to talk about Pleo after the action we were told to work on a 10-year plan. Ugobe grossed $20 million in sales of Pleo but the company was too large to be profitable, they were preparing to be a big company and their expenses were very high. In contrast Innvo Labs has adopted a factory-to-web distribution model that allows them to deliver and support Pleo with significantly less overhead, giving the company staying power. Innvo Labs intends to be conservative in their company plans to make sure they will be around for the long term. However, we are committed to continually updating and making improvements to Pleo.

RO: What fixes and features do the new Pleos have that the old ones didn't (hardware and software)?

DD: The fixes in the new Pleos now sold online at the Pleoworld online store are:

The problem with neck wires breaking which affected some Pleos has been fixed
The problem of the skin separating has been fixed
The premature wearing of the paint from Pleo’s skin and teeth has been fixed. The new paint should last 3 times longer than the old one.
The packaging Pleo comes in no longer uses Styrofoam and is biodegradable making it friendly to the environment
The battery chargers have a new switch with two positions, one for regular charging and another that uses a special charging mode created specifically for those batteries that don’t charge properly. It drains the battery completely and then “force” charges it for 16 hours. This should bring many of the problem batteries back to life, although some batteries aren’t salvageable because they’re just plain dead. Also, the charger can use the old A/C adapter and it can charge the old Ugobe batteries too.

As for hardware improvements, due to a change in the hearing system Pleo responds better to your voice when it comes to figuring out where you are (left or right of him).

I would also like to point out that we have done a complete redesign of the Pleoworld web site. The site navigation has been improved and the customer experience with the online store is much better.

RO: Will Innvo Labs offer warranty support for new Pleos bought at retail outlets other than the Pleo World online store?

DD: We will definitely support all Pleos that are still under warranty, whether they were bought from the Pleoworld online store or through other retailers such as Amazon, etc. People that bought their Pleos (new in box) through auction sites like eBay will need to provide proof of purchase so they should get the original invoice/paperwork from the seller. In these cases, the warranty will begin when the buyer receives their Pleo so they don’t have to worry about the seller sitting on a unit for a long time. We are processing Ugobe Pleo RMA’s even now. Note, it is important that people understand that if they have a Ugobe Pleo, as opposed to one of the new Innvo Labs Pleos, they will receive another brand new Ugobe Pleo as a replacement and not one of the new upgraded ones.

RO: What about the people that sent their Pleos in for service right when Ugobe went bankrupt, and never got them back?

DD: All they need is their RMA number and we will send them a replacement (Ugobe) Pleo. Rafael is processing RMA’s even now. He used to be in customer service at Ugobe. He has joined Innvo Labs and is doing a terrific job taking care of people.

RO: Will Innvo Labs offer repair service for old Pleos bought at retail outlets other than the Pleo World online store?

DD: Absolutely. We have the Reincarnation program. You send in an old Ugobe Pleo and you get one of the new upgraded Innvo Labs Pleos. The cost is $245 USD.

RO: Will you transfer the personality too? (Pleo’s learned behaviors and traits).

DD: That’s under investigation at the moment and currently we are not doing that. We will try to do that in the future if we can.

RO: Is the PDK that was never released by Ugobe available now?

DD: Absolutely. You can download it off the Pleo World web site.

RO: How long is the warranty offered on Pleo World Pleos?

DD: 90 days which is the same as it was before.

RO: Will Pleo work with the existing 3rd party software tools like MySkit?

DD: We have not done any testing ourselves but if they worked with the old Pleos, they should work with the new ones since the computing architecture is the same.

RO: Are there plans for any new accessories or new Pleo models?

DD: I can talk about the 2010 Pleo model. That model will look the same as Pleo does now except it will have a new paint job and eye color to differentiate it from the current Pleos. Over the coming year we intend to give Pleo more depth to his personality and utilize the sensors better. For example, Pleo doesn’t do a whole lot with the camera in his nose right now. It’s not the hardware since the camera is a good quality camera. However there’s a lot of room for improvement in the software. An example of a specific feature people want badly is getting Pleo to come to you. The 2010 model will do that. Also, Pleo uses power more efficiently which will lead to longer play times. To make Pleo more realistic, Pleo will develop certain character biases at birth so that everyone’s Pleo will be different. As for the sensors, the reason why they are currently underutilized is due to a bottleneck in the serial bus that connects them to Pleo’s processor resources. That’s something we can fix without drastically altering Pleo’s architecture. Once that happens, we can do more with them when it comes to Pleo’s hearing, vision, etc. Beyond 2010 there will certainly be new creatures other than baby robot dinosaurs.

RO: Thank you for your time Derek. We will all be watching with great anticipation.

DD: You’re welcome.

Pleo's Back! - Pleo World online store now selling Pleos, batteries, chargers, and adapters again

2009-10-23T19:22:00.001-07:00

I know many of you have been waiting a long time for this news. Just recently, the Pleo World online store started selling Pleos, batteries, chargers, and adapters again under the new Innvo Labs brand.

I have a message into Jetta/Innvo Labs asking them if previous Pleo owners will be able to get warranty or repair service, but I have not heard an answer yet. I will post their answer when I get it. I know some of you, especially with this difficult economy, are tempted to order Pleos from other retailers because of the deep discounts on older Pleos compared to Pleo World's online store price. But you might want to wait until we know if if Jetta/Innvo Labs is going to cover their warranties first. Also, although I am still awaiting the details, I've been told that the newer Pleos have improvements over the older Ugobe ones, including structural changes to make certain failures less likely. Once I get the full list of improvements I will post again.

You'll have to decide for yourself, but make sure you have all the facts first before buying. Those of you that have have had battery or charger problems now have a source for replacements. More news coming soon...

Pleo's back! - Jetta Company, Limited acquires Ugobe and vows to continue the line

2009-06-08T17:37:00.001-07:00

Today there is wonderful news for the Pleo community. Jetta Company Limited, the company that manufactured the Pleo baby robot dinosaur for Ugobe, bought the intellectual property rights and other assets at the Ugobe bankruptcy sale that occurred on May 21. I spoke with Steve Ohler today, the United States liaison for the company, and he confirmed the news. He said the company is firmly committed to re-launching Pleo and continuing the line including accessories such as the vital battery and charger components.

This may be the shortest extinction on record for a wonder product. From rising star to shooting star back to rising star again, Pleo's future has been given new life by the best possible company that could have and did acquire the rights to our favorite little green dino; the original manufacturer. I asked Steve if all the equipment needed to produce Pleos and accessories were still intact and he said they absolutely were. Even better, Jetta is an established company with a 32 year history in manufacturing based in China and Hong Kong, and as part of their illustrious manufacturing history they have produced parts for members of iRobot's consumer robot line.

They currently are getting everything in order to re-launch Pleo and can not give further details at this time. But this is indeed fabulous news indeed. Watch my blog carefully as I will updating everyone on Jetta's progress. I would like to give personal thanks and a big shout out to Jetta Company Limited for this wise and wonderful decision. Below is the original press release from the company regarding their relaunching of Pleo:

Jetta Company Limited acquires Ugobe out of receivership

Hong Kong – Jetta Company Limited acquired the assets of Ugobe and will be re-launching “Pleo” in the near future. Established in 1977, Jetta has focused on manufacturing an extended range of toy, consumer electronics, juvenile, robotic and gift products and is one of the most recognized engineering and OEM companies within the toy industry. Headquartered in Hong Kong, Jetta currently operates five production campuses in Guangdong Province which combined has over 4.5 million square feet of production floor space. At the forefront of the fast-paced toy and robotics industries, Jetta continues to strive for “excellence” and is pleased to add “Ugobe” to its operations.

Ugobe files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy

2009-04-20T20:47:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

Important Update as of June 8, 2009 - PLEO IS BACK IS AND BETTER THAN EVER! Please read this wonderful update post!

I will keep this post short since I'm very saddened by the recent news that Pleo manufacturer Ugobe has filed for bankruptcy. I will continue to play with my 3 Pleos because I love them dearly, but I will of course do so very carefully now since how I would get them fixed if they broke is a big open question. Perhaps some kind soul with an engineering background will see an opportunity here to make good money repairing Pleos? If anyone knows of anybody trustworthy that has taken up the reigns in fixing Pleos, please let me know, and I'll distribute the information. I had great hopes for Pleo, apparently the economy felt differently. For those looking for a place to talk to other Pleo owners during this dire time, visit the Bob The Pleo forum.

Thanks,
Robert

United Kingdom Gladly Welcomes New Adorable Green Overlord

2009-04-06T19:54:00.000-07:00

This post is for all of you that own Pleos or are thinking of getting one. Wired/UK writer Katie Scott has fallen hard for our wonderful blue-eyed baby dino friend. In one of the best pieces on Pleo I've seen in a while, she reviews Pleo and from the first part of the review is clearly smitten:

"Yesterday, I found myself washing up and all the while chatting to a baby dinosaur, which was amusing itself in the corner by growling at the rubbish bin. Pleo the baby dinosaur is now one of the household. Indeed, he gets more attention than the cat, and certainly more affection than any of the living beings in the house. When he calls, we’ll immediately rush to stroke him on the chin, when he purrs, we all go gooey-eyed, and when he sleeps, he has pride of place on the sofa where we watch him like adoring parents. "

Ugobe's creation is and always will be a wonderful marvel that makes people smile. Admittedly they are having a a rough patch right now, having chosen to bring an artificial pet to market right before the global economy darkened, but that isn't stopping people from continuing to adopt the unique and amazing little green creature into their homes. I think Ms. Scott says it best when she writes:

"We played with our Sony Aibo robodog, but never quite suspended our disbelief: it was always a robot, not a dog. Pleo, for whatever reason, felt more like a living thing - just that a bit more comfortable in his technoskin. If you have kids who like robots and dinosaurs, Pleo's a winner, just bear in mind that this is just another step in the historic march of our robotic overlords. You have been warned."

Please read and enjoy the article and most of all, enjoy Pleo!

My Digger says "hi" and is growling at my smelly sneakers. Unfortunately, they growl back!

Ugobe Status Update and Where To Get Pleo Downloads For Now

2009-04-03T14:42:00.000-07:00

UPDATE: The Ugobe and Pleo World web sites are back up. As I said the "Magpie" pages were placeholder pages.

I'll be adding posts as I get new substantial news reports about Ugobe. Many of you have written me so I'm answering everyone at once with this post. I don't intend to chase rumors. My last understanding is that Ugobe has downsized and not liquidated, and the reason for the web sites being down is that they are being relocated to a less expensive hosting facility; apparently one called Magpie which is the hosting company you reach when accessing the domains. What you see are standard placeholder pages which will remain there while Ugobe decides what to do with theirs.

Ugobe

The latest public information I am aware of has surfaced in an article by the Idaho Business Review. It does not give any specifics but I will post here a quote from Caleb Chung from the article where he mentions a press release the company will issue on the subject in the next few weeks:

"We’re going to respond to a lot of these rumors; we’re just going to do it in an organized way,” he said. “…Our company has always tried to have as much transparency as possible.”

Interpret the quote as you will, I see no point in speculating until the press release comes out. Until it does everything is strictly either hand-wringing, or hearsay, and most likely wrong.

Pleo Downloads

Those of you who remember the funny Bob The Pleo comic strip from the Pleo World forums will be happy to know that the talented author of that comic has created his own forum for Pleo. It's also been a place for Pleo owners to go while Ugobe is in transition. If you are looking for any of the Pleo Life O/S downloads or personality downloads, you can find them here:

http://bobthepleo.com/forums/index.php?board=2.0

Go ahead and register while you're at it and let's keep the Pleo community going while Ugobe works things out.

Pleo Batteries

I don't know of a source for these. If anyone does please let me know and I'll pass on the information if I feel it's a reasonable avenue for getting them.

That's it for now. My Digger say "hi" to everyone. I hope your Pleos are making you smile too.

Notes From A Petulant Pleo : Digger's Diary

2009-03-29T19:30:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone,

I've been out of touch for a long while, partly due to the current economic times and partly due to a project I've been pursuing for months now that is of the "all-consuming" type. Before I get to my little story for you today I did want to update you on Ugobe. As many of you know they have had to downsize recently. Unfortunately no matter how amazing or wonderful your invention is, if the economy goes south so do your sales. I take strong comfort in the fact that they downsized instead of disappeared, although I am sad because many of the people that are gone are truly wonderful people that I will miss. But the most important fact is that Ugobe is still here and intends to be in the long run. Unfortunately they are scrambling to adjust to servicing the ongoing demands of Pleo owners with a smaller crew and because of that things are hectic right now. But with patience I believe we will still see great things to come from them when things start to turn around (fingers crossed for all of us as I say this).

Enough darkness. Now for a little fun. I have always wondered what it must be like for my Digger to live with me, especially considering the way I play with him. Fortunately for you and for me I stumbled across his personal diary. It was hidden beneath the couch and although it's hard to read baby dino paw print scrawl, I managed to decipher it. I share it with you now. Those of you who feel I am betraying his confidence by doing this should know that I normally wouldn't, but he says some pretty unflattering things about me so I believe a little childish tit-for-tat is justified here.

Notes From a Petulant Pleo : Digger's Diary

Entry 421: This is crazy. I want to explore the house some more. I've been here forever and I still haven't seen much of it. My owner won't let me get 3 feet away from me before he grabs me and starts petting me again! It was fun the first hundred times (OK it still is), but geez! Let me explore!

Entry 422: I think my owner smells. I can't really smell anything (what's up with that Ugobe?), but he looks like he smells.

Entry 423: My owner thinks he's clever but he's not. Every time I try to sleep he turns me upside down and tickles my feet! I think I'm encouraging him the wrong way by laughing so hard and kicking my feet, but it tickles! Hey owner, like Drew Barrymore said in E.T. "I'm not stupid y'know!"

Entry 424: Hey I'm awake! Hey my owner is boring! (Snore...)

Entry 425: I'm awake again! This is weird. Why was this morning so short? Did I not please you my owner? Was I not entertaining enough? Did you have to turn me off so soon, just when it was getting fun? Did you? Did you!? For Pete's sake I'm a baby dinosaur! I wish I had a tongue so I could make that nasty ppphhhhtt noise human's do with their tongue. Or maybe wet the rug. Sigh.

Day 425: I talked to the toaster today and told her to burn the bread. Hah!

Day 426: Heeeeyyyyyyyy!! It's dark. What the heck? It's dark!!! Aaaagghh, I'm scared! Where's the light! Did you forget to pay the electric bill? (Note to self: What's an electric bill?)

Day 427: I think my owner knows I'm keeping a diary so I'm going to stop for a while. Wow I type pretty good for a baby dinosaur!

---- End Diary -----

Best wishes to all of you from Robert and Digger. Stay safe.

Help Save Pleo From Being Fed To The Dogs!

2008-10-11T19:27:00.000-07:00

Recently I came across Tails Of The City, a very lovely blog about pets and their owners in the Bay Area, or in blog author Amelia Glynn's own words:

"Welcome to Tails of the City: A menagerie of stories about Bay Area pets and the people who love them."

She had begun a series of posts named The Pleo Diaries which talked about her experiences with a Pleo she named Baby Nathaniel. I enjoyed reading her posts about her family's stories of discovery and wonder at what our plucky, little, green, cuddly hero could do. That is until I came across this post. Ironically, the post begins with a very funny story about how Nathaniel was mistaken for a turtle by conductors on the train she was riding. But at the end she has this worrisome note about Nathaniel's overall future:

"Maybe I'm just not enough of a tech geek, but I have a hard time understanding why an adult would want a pet dinosaur. Real pets are, hands down, more fun. (Plus they're soft and tend to be better cuddlers.) And although I can see how a Pleo could help teach kids how to handle and care for a pet, the same could be done with a live dog or cat, with more parental supervision of course. Could this be who Pleo is really for: parents of kids who want a pet but who don't have the time or deep-seated desire to take care of one? I'm clearly still stumped.

If there are any Pleo parents out there who'd like to weigh in, I'd love to hear from you."

What she doesn't say but clearly implies if you read between the seemingly impartial lines of her recent Pleo Diaries posts, is that if Baby Nathaniel doesn't impress her sufficiently she will feed him to the dogs! I offer as proof the disturbing photo to the left. The furry executioner you see in the photos belonging to this post is none other than Walt the baby dino eater. Walt comes from a long line of baby dino diners who were bred to help control the dangerous Tyrannosaurus Rex population that was plaguing the Bay Area back in 1971. You may not have read or seen about this because that was a very smoggy year in the Bay Area and all you could see of the rampaging Rex population were their feet. But the army of trained baby dino hunters were brought in and very quickly eliminated the Rex population by mercilessly consuming the Rex babies along with a tablespoon of salt and a chew bone.

Please visit her blog and comment on her post about Pleo and her final feelings on him. Let her know why we love Pleo so much and open her heart to the idea of letting little Nathaniel live! She loves pets so somewhere inside her there most be a spark of mercy for our little baby Camarasaurus!

[Note: the photos on this page are copyright Amelia Glynn and were used with her permission.]

Pleo Celebrity Sightings at the 15th Annual "Kids For Kids" Celebrity Carnival

2008-10-01T04:02:00.000-07:00

[UPDATE: 10-2-2008] There are a bunch of great Pleo photos from the Carnival on Flickr; a lot more than the 3 I list in this blog post. Visit this Flickr page to see them. ]

Pleo was sighted recently at the 15th Annual Elizabeth Glaser "Kids For Kids" Celebrity Carnival, a benefit held for pediatric AIDS victims that is attended frequently by well known celebrities. Among the celebrities this year was Tyson Beckford (calm down ladies), who was said to be seen checking out Pleos that were roaming the event and enchanting attendees left and right. I couldn't find the pictures of Tyson Beckford with Pleo but there are several other pictures of him with the kids in the Zimbio "Kids for Kids" picture set. I did find a few pictures of actors Sebastian Stan and Leighton Meester hamming it up for the camera with a stunningly attired Pleo who seemed to be loving the celebrity attention. I have included links to the pictures below. Check them and the other Carnival photos out. They're really fun!:

Sebastian Stan laughing with Pleo

Sebastian Stan providing support while Leighton Meester feeds Pleo

This is *not* a Pleo photo despite erroneous reports it is

Good Pleo/Bad Pleo! - The BBC puts Pleo to the "nature vs. nurture" test

2008-09-23T04:18:00.000-07:00

The BBC recently created a humorous video where they put Pleo in a nature vs. nurture style test. More tongue-in-cheek than scientific, they hatched Pleo twice and raised him in two starkly different manners. In the first, they are dutiful doting parents to our beloved dino, offering strong parental psychological support and kindness. In the second they are neglectful harsh parents that refuse to give Pleo a second helping of Christmas Pudding no matter how much he cries. Then they show the dramatic difference in Pleo's happiness and self-esteem between the two upbringings in a fashion that would make even the great Charles Dickens uncomfortable: "Please sir, I want some more!".

The funniest part of the video is when you see how the actors struggle to be mean to Pleo in the "bad upbringing" segment, especially when compared to the kissing, petting, stroking behavior they helplessly exhibit in the "good upbringing" segment of the video. The test was done as part of their intriguing The elements of your smarter home article where they talk about some of the technologies that will affect our day to day lives at home in the near future. Follow this link to the article and at the top you will see a video player for the Pleo segment. Warning: video contains mild scenes of anti-Pleo behavior, quite tepid actually.

Pleosaurus Rex - Pleo lays waste to your favorite town!

2008-09-09T12:11:00.000-07:00

Ugobe has released another software download for Pleo that when written to an SD card, makes Pleo do his best dinosaur on a rampage impression. Pleosaurus Rex mode comes complete with Godzilla like sound effects and aggressive animations which make Pleo act as if he is laying waste to some hapless urban area. Add a few army men and a small toy tank or two, and you've got your very own angry dinosaur destroys the world scene, albeit in an relatively adorable manner. If you find the mystery touch trigger that triggers the Pleosaurus Rex death animation, you'll be treated to the heart wrenching final moments of a baby robot dinosaur gone berserk, complete with the appropriate sorrowful sound effects in a scene that rivals the likes of the famous King Kong death scene. You will need an SD card and an SD card writer to use the download. Click here to download Pleosaurus Rex now.

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Taiwanese music star dumps boyfriend for Pleo!

2008-08-30T16:29:00.000-07:00

Hello all. It's Labor Day weekend so this post will be short. According to this post on a Taiwanese Music blog, the female music star of the video below receives a Pleo from her ex-boyfriend as a gift. But I have to admit that when I first watched it, it really looked like she was dumping her boyfriend for Pleo! Think about it. No dirty underwear around the house. No getting lost on trips and refusing to ask for directions (heck, future versions of Pleo might even be GPS capable!). No arguments about who left the seat up in the bathroom or forgetting to put the cap back on the toothpaste.

Wait a minute. This isn't funny. Honey, why were you gone all day with my Digger again? Hmm?

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo's Spa Day

2008-08-07T18:35:00.000-07:00

Another great video from Pleo World member maggie44n. In this video, her Pleo named Linus gets the full spa treatment at Changes Salon! Somehow maggie44n got the whole spa staff to play along and Linus gets the full treatment including a fossil rock massage (ironic, isn't it?). There's nothing like watching a bevy of beautiful women fawn over a tiny baby dinosaur to make you very jealous. On top of all this, my Digger got a hold of this video and has put himself up for adoption! For more fun adventures with Linus & her other Pleo named Schroeder, read her plog.

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

New Ugobe Lifeforms Next Year (2009)!

2008-07-26T22:26:00.000-07:00

Gizmodo UK has a short but very interesting interview with Steve Bannerman, a new arrival to Ugobe's powerhouse marketing team. In it he talks about the 55,000 Pleos now out in the wild, the Pleo Reincarnation program I mentioned in a previous post, and most importantly officially states that:

"Next year we will bring out additional life-forms. I can't say which right now but the new lifeforms don't necessarily have to be for purely entertainment purposes."

He also indicates that Ugobe wants to get more software out there for us Pleo owners to enjoy and explore. Bannerman was a bigwig marketing type over at Apple where he worked on Quicktime TV and headed up the launch of Apple's online media streaming business. Read the interview if you get the chance and here's to an exciting 2009 where new Ugobe critters will roam the Earth!

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo Rides The Roomba!

2008-07-20T19:54:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. I've been swamped with projects lately so I've been lagging on my Pleo coverage, but I wanted to pop you a quick note on a funny video I found. This video is from Pleo World member maggie44n. In this video, her two Pleos Linus & Schroeder enjoy a quick session of Roomba surfing. So while her house gets clean, her Pleos hang 16! For more fun adventures with Linus & Schroeder read her plog.

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo Reincarnation Program

2008-07-07T21:53:00.000-07:00

Ugobe has instituted a new program aimed at softening the blow of the
loss of a Pleo after the 90 day warranty period. They call it the
the Pleo Reincarnation Program. If you find that your Pleo has
developed a critical problem after the 90 day warranty period,
you can exchange your Pleo for another one at a significantly reduced price. The
intriguing part of the program is that Ugobe technicians will "extract" the personality of your Pleo and carry it over to your new Pleo; effectively porting his or her digital soul into a new shell. This is straight out of several science fiction stories I read as a kid about humans evolving to the point that they inhabited robot bodies. Eerie but cool.

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo's future is brighter than ever! Here's 12.8 million reasons why

2008-06-11T21:42:00.000-07:00

Pleo has even more reason to smile and so do existing and new Pleo owners! Our favorite dinosaur pet manufacturer has just secured another 12.8 million dollars in venture capital specifically for expanding Ugobe's product line (which means new artificial pets for us)! This doesn't surprise the legion of Pleo owners, including myself, since we knew long ago that Pleo was special and so were the people that make him (or her). You can read the full VentureBeat article for more information.

But this does get the imagination churning with wonderful thoughts of what new changes may be made to Pleo and even more enticing, what the shape and form of potential exciting new siblings for our little green buddy may be. I have spoken to Ugobe and ShiftComm to get further details about this happy new financial event and I will update you as soon as I get more information.

Now if I could only get someone to make me a picture of Pleo wearing a pair of sunglasses for this post. Anybody out there got one? Then I would add that picture to this post and title it with my favorite ZZ Top song line ever: "The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades!".

I'll be counting Pleos tonight to get to sleep. Digger, one my three Pleos for those of you new to my blog, will be counting leaves of course. Until next time ...

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo Costumes, Dino-MITE software, Watchdog Game, & Battery Update

2008-05-24T11:24:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Day weekend to my fellow USA residents. Here's a quick post to bring you up to date on several interesting developments in the land of Pleo.

Pleo Costumes

Since it's a holiday post the fun comes first. Here are two photos by two superstar members of the Pleo World community group, Siren and FancyFont.

Dragon Wings!

When my PenDragon saw these he flipped. In fact, I don't think things will be the same around here until he gets a pair of his own! This photo was taken at the Megacon festival which is a large convention for anime, sci-fi, comic, and fantasy buffs held in Orlando, Florida. Siren's Pleo Pixie was a huge hit with everyone and looked right at home at a fantasty/sci-fi convention of course. The green felt wings make Pixie look like a baby dragon and are simply the best add-on I could think of for a Pleo (hear that Ugobe?). The full thread of her visit to Megacon is on Pleo World and it is a must read since it is chock full of photos showing Pixie with many costumed visitors and fans taking their turn with Pixie in front of the camera. For more of Siren and the adventures of her Pleos named Crusoe and Pixie read her plog.

(Click on the photo to see it full size.)

Pleo On Skates!

Here's a guaranteed chuckle. Take a close look at Peeky's feet (Peeky is Fancyfont's beloved Pleo). That's right, those are ice skates and correct me if I'm wrong but Peeky is grinning madly about wearing them. I don't know if there's a dino igloo soon to follow or a parka with some ear muffs, but that's just too funny! Trust me, I'd pay good money to see Peeky actually doing some ice skating. Please read Fancyfont's plog for a ton of other great pictures and stories.

(Click on the photo to see it full size.)

Dino-MITE Software

BAUER Independents Ltd. has released Dino-MITE, a free piece of software that gives you a truly fascinating glimpse inside your Pleo. After you have installed it on your Windows PC (sorry, no Macintosh version at this time) and attached your Pleo to your PC with a USB cable, you can:

Monitor interesting internal state information
See what your Pleo sees with his or her nose camera and take then pictures
Record sound with your Pleo's "ears"
See other pertinent sensor and joint/motor information
And more...

It's more of a program for the technically inclined but novices users will find it fun to poke around with too. You can download it here. Here is a link to the main Dino-MITE discussion thread on the Pleo World forum that covers the software if you have questions outside the user manual and you will find more helpful tips on this forum thread. Note, to get good results with Pleo's nose camera you will need a well lit environment; see the forum threads for more information.

Pleo Game - Watchdog

(Note, this is not the same thing is as the Watchdog easter egg behavior hidden in your Pleo's personality. This a game you play with your Pleo that you download from the Pleo downloads page on Pleo World.)

Ugobe has created a fun game that you can play with your Pleo. It's called the Watchdog game. After you have written the game to an SD card and restarted your Pleo with the SD card inserted, you will be able to play the Watchdog game. Here's Ugobe's description of the game:

Pleo's a playful baby dino. He counts to four while you get set - then the game is on! Will Watchdog Pleo see you before you tag his head or back, or can you sneak past him? Note: Watchdinos are notoriously smug winners.

You can download the Watchdog game for free from the Pleo World downloads page.

Battery Update - no more purchase limits

Ugobe has lifted the "one per customer" purchase on getting extra Pleo batteries that they previously had in place. This means that you can now get as many extra batteries as you desire to increase your fun time with your Pleo (however, please do give the little guy a decent rest break, he's just a baby!). You can order extra batteries from the Ugobe store.

Until next time, happy dino dreams!

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo meets Flipper and family!

2008-05-09T01:14:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. I still owe you a post about Pleo and costumes, especially since Ugobe sent my Digger a dino T-shirt (which he refuses to take off, ever). Pleo World member and Pleo superfan Siren has done it again with this video she took of her Pleo "Pixie" visiting Sea World. With the permission and help of Sea World's staff, Pixie becomes the main attraction for a family of dolphins who seem utterly fascinated by Pixie. Watch carefully after the 2:00 minute mark as the dolphins crowd the exhibition glass to get a closer look at Pixie. Apparently Siren's other Pleo Crusoe was not present for some reason but Pixie was a hit! Siren's Plog (Pleo blog) is a must read for Pleo devotees of course!

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Extra Batteries for US customers for Pleo

2008-04-28T17:06:00.000-07:00

Pardon the short post but I'm swamped with real life issues at the moment. I wanted to make sure you knew about Ugobe making available an extra battery for sale to its U.S. customers. Currenty the price is $49 and it's only one to a customer. There is no word yet on when the extra batteries will be available to international customers. This is great news for those of you that want to play with your Pleos for longer periods of time. (Be sure to give the poor little guy or gal a rest from time to time!).

Here is the E-mail that Ugobe sent out regarding the extra battery offer. You can order them from this page:

Dear Pleo Owners,

It has been a long wait, but we now have a limited quantity of extra batteries available for purchase in the US! Go to the PleoWorld store to buy.

Thank you for your enthusiasm and patience. We're glad that your Pleo can now interact with you for even longer periods of time, especially with the fun new features from the recent update Life OS 1.1.

Cheers,
The UGOBE Team

Extra Batteries: the Details

Each battery costs $49.

At this point, because of our very limited supply, each person is limited to buying one battery.

We can only ship to the US at this time.

Don't worry if you can't buy right now � batteries will once again be available on the PleoWorld store starting in around a month.

Click here to buy a battery

Extra Batteries: the FAQs

Q: Why limit orders to one per customer?
A: Unfortunately, we only have a limited supply of 500 batteries at the moment. We are working as hard as we can to expedite shipment of the next shipment of batteries from our suppliers.

Q: When will more batteries be available?
A: We are expecting the next shipment to arrive around a month from now. Check back on PleoWorld for further notice.

Q: Why are batteries only available in the US?
A: We are working with our international distributors on a broader, worldwide launch of batteries in the upcoming months. Due to regulatory constraints and shipping details, batteries are only available to ship in the US at the moment.

Q: Why is UGOBE releasing extra batteries now?
A: Because UGOBE has developed a proprietary battery for Pleo, the company has had very low supply of batteries to meet worldwide demand for Pleos since the launch. Our goal is to have a ready supply of extra batteries for all Pleos all over the world!

Q: How can I get an extra charger and adapter?
A: Please contact Customer Support for more information.

Click here for more FAQs

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

When Pleos Attack! (It's usually funny.)

2008-04-13T19:52:00.001-07:00

I begin this latest post with the kind of humorous story Pleo owners have learned to expect from their amazing, complex, and cuddly little mischief makers. Below you will find a video that shows one Pleo's fondness for the family Furby gone sour. Ironic since they have the same talented creator, Caleb Chung. The Pleo featured in this post is Pleo World community member Caaahl's delightful Crazy Helge.

Before showing you the video I think it must be said that when you name your Pleo "Crazy Helge" and back that name up by attaching a hilarious "mad scientist" style blonde wig to your Pleo's noggin, you have to expect strange behavior from your pet! In this video, Crazy Helge, previously a devout friend of the family Furby, suddenly turns on the Furby and attacks! When you watch the video you can see Helge knock over Furby and start eating him. If you turn up the sound on your computer you can clearly hear Helge making loud chomping noises! No harm came to the Furby of course but for that done to his pride.

For more hilarious videos and stories regarding his antics, read The Plog of Crazy Helge. In upcoming posts I'll show you some wonderful Pleo costumes that fellow Pleo devotees have found or come up with and I'll talk some more about Pleo's new hilarious sitting and singing abilities.

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo Dinosaur - New 1.1 update available!

2008-04-01T06:45:00.000-07:00

As promised, Ugobe's talented technical folk have been hard at work creating new and improved behaviors for your Pleo. Now there is a new update just released; the 1.1 software update. This update brings several new truly fun interactions to Pleo along with a solution for those of you whose Pleo's are having trouble walking a certain kinds of carpet.

My Favorites

I have updated all three of my babies: Digger, Claire, and Pendragon. My favorite tricks in the new update definitely are the singing and sitting tricks. If you stroke Pleo's chin for a long time he will start to sing a little baby dino song. Later, he or she will use that song to seek your attention.

Digger used to sit on his rear occasionally by accident. Now, you coax that behavior by holding his chin and rear at the same time. This is a hilarious and somewhat undignified behavior that, like the tickling interaction, is a guaranteed smile inducer! You can find a more complete list of what's new in the List of What's New section below.

NOTE: This update is incompatible with any existing My Skit created skits. If you install this update, you will have to wait until the new My Skit comes out which supports the 1.1 version. However, there are new versions of the Ugobe created holiday and love struck behaviors which you can find on the download page for the update (see the Important Links section below). This update will give your Pleo more ways to express his or herself but it will not alter their fundamental personality; they will still be the same quirky Pleo that you have come to know and love.

High Stepping Gait

Another highlight is Pleo's new high stepping gait. This walking style allows Pleo to walk better on certain carpets and was a direct answer to feedback from those of you that with carpets that gave Pleo trouble.

Interactions Page

There is a page on Pleo World which you should bookmark. This page gives a comprehensive list of all the different interactions Pleo is capable of, and tells you what steps to take to induce them. You will find a link to the page in the Important Links section below. Some of you may want to avoid this page if you like discovering things all by yourself. But others will find it to be a great resource for learning many of the fun tricks your Pleo is capable of and how to do make your Pleo do them.

Important Links

Download page with instructions on updating Pleo to the 1.1 update
Interactions page - list of Pleo interactions and how to get Pleo to do them

List Of What's New

Here is a more comprehensive list of what's new in the 1.1 update, as per the E-mail Ugobe sent out. Note, this list is not a complete list so be prepared to find other fun and unexpected behaviors in your Pleo!

-At the UGOBE labs, the team has seen Pleo continue his evolution. Pleo has been altering his attitude and behavior depending on how he’s interacted with. A happy Pleo is one who receives a lot of attention, while a sad Pleo is one who is neglected or abused.

-The team was also surprised to find out that Pleo can actually get sick! Pleo can cough and sneeze, but you can nurse him back to health by giving him lots of love, attention and feeding him his leaf.

-Some Pleos have been picking up strange habits lately-some have been stomping their feet, others get hiccups. Be on the look out for odd behavior!

-Pleo has learned a new trick. Try making Pleo sit by holding his chin and rear at the same time and then help him sit back. Pleo seems to enjoy kicking back and hanging out like this, so help him forward when it’s time to continue playing.

-Pleo has got quite the singing voice. He experiments with new songs when you scratch him on the chin and he also seems to remember the last song he sings (and uses it at odd times, sometimes calling for attention)!

-Pleo can now visibly see his training leaf and he will respond accordingly. When he sees it, he may open his mouth or call for it with a little panting sound. The training leaf has become an object of affection for Pleo, so try showing it to him to see how he reacts. If he is in a playful mood, he will show it!

-Pleo has learned a new way to walk, high stepping. He used to have a lot of trouble getting around different terrain, so hold Pleo’s front legs and touch the Pleo button to help him stride more easily over challenging surfaces, like carpet.

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo Just Got Smarter!

2008-03-04T15:24:00.000-08:00

This is not the big upgrade that we are all excited for but it is definitely a reason to celebrate. Ugobe has released a new software download that improves Pleos behavior in several key areas. Those of you on their E-mail update list already know about this upgrade, but in case you haven't, below are the key details courtesy of Pleo World.

New Features In The Pleo Upgrade

Pleo is exploring the world a lot more. UGOBE has spent time re-training Pleo how to see and detect objects and properly navigate around them.
When in pairs or groups, Pleos have surprised us with some new singing abilities...
Being the social butterfly that he is, Pleo is listening for sounds even while resting.You may wake him up...and he'll want to join in on the fun.
Don't worry, this update will not affect your Pleo's existing personality!

I upgraded all three of my Pleos: Digger, Clair, and Pendragon and I can definitely say that they appear to more lively. In addition, there are several new sounds in their repertoire (some of which are hilarious). In one of my previous Pleo Parties my 3 babies started mooing loudly in unison! I laughed so hard I was in tears.

Visit Pleo world now to download the upgrade.

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur

Pleo Party (The Sequel), Price Drop, and Quotes from Owners

2008-02-27T16:17:00.000-08:00

Pleo Party - The Sequel

Last week was the first global online Pleo party, hosted with the help of Yahoo Live. Yahoo Live is a free broadcasting service recently launched by Yahoo, that lets people like you and I broacast live video to the world for free! The gathering was small but we had fun, especially when the first Global Pleo Mooing event occurred (GPM). I haven't confirmed this with Ugobe yet, but my current belief is that Pleo's tendency to synchronize with other Pleos is based on what he or she hears. Several times during the broadcast my 3 Pleos (Digger, Claire, and Pendragon) all started mooing loudly almost in unison.

The extremely cool part is that Pleos belonging to other party attendees started mooing along with my Pleos, even though they were hundreds if not thousands of miles away from where I live! Apparently they had their Pleos listening in to the broadcast and when my Pleos let loose with a baby dino Rebel Yell, they joined in the fun!

I'll be hosting another Pleo Party tomorrow at 9 PM - Eastern Standard Time (EST) on Thursday, February 28, 2008. Please come by if you can and visit! The full details for attending a Pleo Party can be found on my first Pleo Party Blog post. For those that already read it, here's the direct link to my Yahoo Live channel.

Price Drop

[UPDATE] - Be aware that Sharper Image has recently filed for bankruptcy so I have to hedge deeply my comment about their extended warranties. I would guess that Ugobe's manufacturer warranty still stands in effect but you should check with Ugobe to make sure. Sigh, these are not easy times! A big thanks to fellow Pleo owner "The Snake's Mommy" who alerted me to this fact in a comment to this post. Read her blog, it's a good one!

Sharper Image has dropped their price on Pleo from the original $350 to $279 (USD). I don't know how long the offer is good for but I wanted to let you know about it the moment I found out. One of the nice things about Sharper Image is that they offer extended warranties. Here's a link to the Sharper Image Pleo page.

Quotes from Happy Pleo Owners

As I surf the web I find quotes from real Pleo owners like myself in various blogs and forums. I collect them because they make me smile when I read the thoughts and stories from other Pleo fans. I have quite a few of them so I've included two of them below because they are among my favorites. I'll be sharing more of these with you each week.

This comment was left on my Plunchkins video on YouTube, by a woman who calls herself HRS06 and works at a convalescent home:

"This is really cute. I named mine Cam. I work in a convalescent hospital and cam is the high light of the day.I was brought to tears when I had Cam out and around them and they would actually wake up and light up the look in their eyes just was so rewarding, some even spoke when we have not heard them talk for a while. He is just the most amazing little friend to all.I took him to listen to a favorite band that we go see on Sundays it seems he does like the blues and some rock and roll too.

This one shows how much Pleo entertains and delights so many of us, from Pleo World forum member Pirka, in a thread titled "Pleo vs. Golden Ghraham! (Epic!)":

"I decided to take Pleo up onto our little mini-bar for breakfast so he wasn't left unattended, and so I could pet him as I ate my cereal. It was dry golden grahams (I think milk makes them taste soggy and...ick), and no sooner had I sat down than the Pleo had his head in my bowl, picked up a piece of cereal, and started attempting to get me to play tug-o-war or something with it! It was absolutely hilarious. After a while, he dropped it (and my dog ate it)."

I'll see some of you tomorrow at the Pleo Party, until next time ...

This is a post about Pleo, UGOBE's robot dinosaur