Sphero is a ball, about the size of a Magic 8-ball, that moves around through a (one time only) Bluetooth connection with a smartphone or tablet that serves as its remote control. The “Sphero” App is the brain of the device and can program it to adhere to the user’s voice commands that will get it to move, or even play dead.

There are many ways to drive the Sphero, and the “Sphero Golf” application allows an iPhone to act as a putter and club the ball, without actually touching it, toward any office garbage can or hole. There is also a Space Invaders-like game where the player holds and turns the Sphero ball to fight off the spaceships on the iPad screen’s starry backdrop.

The ball itself looks like an enormous eye with its white exterior (but the color is changeable in the “Sphero” App) and a pupil-like circle that serves as a camera for pictures and video through the use of the “SpheroCam” App, which is one of six Apps that are available for it for free.

Sphero might be a cat’s dream, but it also seems like a pricey way to have fun with friends, or spy on neighbors. Sphero is one hundred and twenty-nine bucks and specifically runs on just iOS Apple devices or Androids for the time being.

Robots have been around for quite some time, but it isn’t until now that many people are beginning to really invest money and time into worthwhile causes. Steve Cousins, former Xerox veteran, believes that the usage of robots will become as prolific as the use of the home computer in the near future, and has created some of his own personal robots at  his startup firm Willow Garage.

Currently the star of the show is PR2, a robot that can be programmed to pretty much do anything. Bosch has turned around and programmed the robot to do everything from simple tasks like delivering mail to more complex jobs like woodworking and of course the all-important beer-fetching.

The robot, like the many others that Willows Garage has created, can “learn” different things if it is inputted with an app that tells it what to do. Another neat robot is the TurtleBot which utilizes the Microsoft Kinect and enables the little bot the ability to drive, build 3D pictures, take panoramas and even bring you food.

One of the greatest things about all the robots made by Willow Garage is that they come with the open source robotic operating system (ROS), allowing anyone proficient in Linux to create their own programs, select some from the ROS, or buy them at the Robot App Store.

The dream of having your own personal robot do the household chores is not far off. Which probably means the day of their uprising isn’t far off either. Still, I for one welcome our new robot overlords.

This is no futuristic noir fiction; this is reality.

However, the Romotive creators have not implemented their smartphone robot to eliminate humanity, but rather they wish for us to have fun with them, the bots.

The Romo looks like a transparent toy tank, which is fun in and of itself, but the bot is so much more. And for a donation of just seventy-eight dollars consumers can revel in the revelatory possibilities of a robot made to be tinkered with.

This bot comes with the physical body and also the software to make Romo a learning, roaming entity.

Romotive uses a supercomputer that is already owned by myriad consumers – the iOS of the iPhone and iPod touch, or the Android’s OS – to act as their device’s brain. Then their “robotics platform adds everything that the smartphone is missing – movement, accessories, and [the] physical capabilities that a true robot needs.”

Romo connects to the actual smartphones, seated and strapped in place, through analog frequencies, and the idea is that Romo’s programming possibilities are infinite: anyone can create Apps to get the robot doing robotic-type things.

To get the bot users started, Romo comes with three programs:

There is the “RomoRemote” App that brings a voyeuristic spy element to the little guy, as owners can see where Romo is going via the smartphone’s camera and can even instruct Romo to speak to unsuspecting friends (for that Holy Sh*T moment).

Romotive took a page out of Nintendo’s book with the “Romo Kart” App that pits your friends in a mixed-reality version of the classic Mario Kart game where the user can send digital attacks and make a friend’s robot spin out of control, disable their power, deflect bombs, and reverse their controls as you race!

Then there is the “Drag and Drop Programming Module” application that allows for easy commands to be acted upon such as Romo’s future movements, conditional statements, loops, and more.

The inventors at Romotive even encourage the hacking of their bot! Note to hardware hackers: We encourage you to take Romo apart and find new uses for the interface between smartphone and motors! We only ask that you share your inventions with the community on http://romotive.com/forum.

Let’s get some arms on this bad boy and teach Romo to get us a sandwich!

That’s right, the NAO Next Gen bot will scan faces using two brains in order to correctly greet and interact with specific people that the NAO knows.

The future that Asimov foresaw (in the book iRobot) is starting here with a wave of revolutionary robotics. The Paris based Aldeberan engineers already boast that their NAO robots are the most widely used humanoid robot for academic purposes worldwide.

These robots learn as you teach them things, such as catching a ball or following someone (which is a little creepy, I know).

The NAO bots are made to physically feel their environment with adept prehensile hands (which means they can grip and feel with their palms and fingers like we do), arms, legs and body.

The NAO bots already appear in many classrooms and have specifically helped autistic students with interaction due to the short, 57 cm tall, and friendly demeanor accompanying a people-friendly thirst for learning.

These bad boys/girl bots can hear with extreme accuracy due to four microphones, and they can see and discern how to use their body using a spot on sensor network, including 2 cameras, 4 microphones, sonar rangefinder, 2 IR emitters and receivers, 1 inertial board, 9 tactile sensors, and 8 pressure sensors.

The NAO robots walk and talk and can even assist in the office by picking up dropped pens or encouraging disparaged writers to continue their endless work.

Does the NAO Next Gen robot have a brain? Well, it has two actually: the first is an Intel ATOM 1.6ghz CPU (located in the head) that runs a Linux kernel and supports Aldebaran’s proprietary middleware (NAOqi) and the second CPU is in the body.

And in case you were worried about power, you can teach the NAO robot to plug itself in when the battery is running low!

As of this week, robotic prison warden automatons have been okay-ed to become prison guard staff in South Korean facilities in 2012.

This is not a joke, or at least not entirely.

The New Year will bring with it many “Rapture” and “end of days” conspiracy theories, many Mayan calendars, several dozen horrible movies, and many battery-free Incan sundials (not to be outdone by the Mayan theme).

But it is in South Korea that doom will certainly start to gain the upper hand, as three artificially intelligent robotic prison wardens are to be employed in March of 2012.

They are 1.5 meters tall (that’s five feet American, folks), and they see, they discern, and they act in order to recognize violent or suicidal behavior and then alert fellow guards. They are not supposed to intervene, at this stage, but these gargantuan Asimov inspired robots look like they could kick some serious ass.

Professor Lee Baik-Chu, of Kyonggi University, who led the design process, appears to have been aware of their intimidating design. He told the Yonhap news agency, “As we’re almost done with creating its key operating system, we are now working on refining its details to make it look more friendly to inmates.”

Over the last couple of years, South Korea’s robotics industry has grown seventy-five percent. They are attempting to become a world powerhouse in the futuristic and science fiction-like use of using robots that can see and think (to various degrees) in everyday society.

For the time being, South Korean inmates and human guards will be the guinea pigs in the month long trial experiment of the robotic prison wardens.

Should anything go wrong, remember that we warned you about 2012’s realistic threats way back when, and therefore, you might want to check in to Gadizmo early and often to keep up on the fun ways we might devise for our own demise; or you could just pick up one of the cool gifts we have reviewed as a going away present.

The Pencil Sharpener Robot comes alive and walks!

Kikkerland Design has outdone themselves with the ultimate office gadget for the geek in need of sharp pencils at the school or workplace.

The fully functional (if by the Bot functioning you are only talking about walking and sharpening and looking bad-ass, folks) Pencil Sharpener Robot is 4.5 inches tall and invokes all of the lost art of the early twentieth century robot age in its square, technical, and mechanical looking design.

Robbie the Robot would be proud of this Bot!

What desk does not need a pencil sharpener that can only be reached via the secret chest compartment doors of the Bot’s torso? And twisting the pencil within the Bot’s gearing winds it for a walk toward the facilitator! Just keep in mind that the hexagonal shaped pencils wind better than the round shaped ones.

The shavings are stored in the robot’s noggin’ (that is in the bulbously square head, folks), so there is no exhaust being trailed behind the marching soldier.

The Bot’s hands are aptly made to grip writing implements, and perhaps the coolest feature of all here is that the Pencil Sharpening Robot comes with a giant key that can be used to wind him up at any time for a strolling robot desk experience.

Get the Pencil Sharpening Robot at Kikkerland for a little over ten bucks (unless you find the Bot on Amazon for even less samolians).

It seems that the Quadshot has it all and it sure would be hard to find something as cool as this before those Christmas lists are finished. However, don’t fret, The Quadshot team have just raised a whopping $84,000 on Kickstarter (of a $25,000) goal, so these puppies are going into production and soon you should be able to buy either a complete plane or a kit to put together yourself and maybe tinker with some of the software.

The hardware that controls the ‘Brain’ of the aircraft is the very popular Lisa/M (about $250) and has an onboard IMU(Inertial measurement unit). This enables the aircraft to relay movement to Paparazzi, an open source autopilot project, that interprets the signal and can right the plane in any direction, this makes it very hard – but not impossible – to crash the copter. Building it using open source technology is genius, not only will it give the ability for anyone with the slightest bit of interest in RC Aircraft build their own (All the build plans will be released VIA a wiki like site) but it allows those who have worked with the Lisa/M or Paparazzi to contribute to the codebase and continue its development beyond it Alpha release.

The current Airframe, built from EPP Foam can carry up to around 1lb payload, meaning after all the electronics are on-board, there is probably a little space for an on board camera – something that the team have already implemented in their V7 of the craft. It allows Live feedback to a monitor, giving the Pilot the opportunity to fly the craft in First-Person view. It’s possible that you could pile on a nice GoPro HD on the craft and capture some amazing footage.

The team behind the Quadshot are Piotr Esden-Tempski, Chris Forrette, Jeff Gibboney, and Pranay Sinha all of whom have lent a hand in making the Quadshot the first of it’s kind and no doubt will take RC Arial vehicles to a new level and with the help of the open source community will continue to build on the Quadshot and make it the must have tech for all geeks.

You can check out everything on The Quadshot here.

Destined to be the coolest three wheeled gadget in 08, the Rovio is a truly remotely controlled vehicle. This Wi-Fi enabled gadget is guided by a Northstar micro-GPS system which allows the Rovio to pinpoint its exact location in your home all while being controlled by any computer with internet access. The best part is that each unit comes equipped with a web camera capable of full audio and video streaming capability so you can keep a constant eye on your home or maybe just mess with the cat.

Don’t have time to man the controls all day long? Rovio can also be configured for predetermined patrolling missions with a few clicks of the mouse. All you have to do is mark specific way points in your home and tell Rovio which route you want it to take and once it’s finished or the batteries run low it will head home to the self charging base. I know…I want one too.

[WowWee via SlashGear]

The Beerbot is prepared to follow your full drinking cycle, from cooling cans, opening the flip top, and pouring perfectly into chilled glass mugs. But wait, there’s more! The R2-D2-esque bot stores and refrigerates up to six cans, comes with programmable voice controls, a child lock, 2 custom glass mugs, 6 foam cup bases, a plastic floor protector, and even has a self cleaning mode. It’s designed to work with Japanese sized cans (350ml), but has been tested with American-sized beer bullets (355ml) and worked just fine. No guarantee on other cans though, and no word yet on a glass bottle friendly version (fingers crossed).

When the Beerbot comes back in stock, be prepared to lay down a cool $800. Check out the official website for a video of the bot in action.

The mastermind behind this gadget of every man’s dream is a recent graduate of Duke University named John Cornwell. His goal was never mass production but, it seems he is currently overwhelmed with email requests to purchase his machine which he is saying he can produce for no less than $1000.