Parrot's Jumping Sumo 'bot gets some pretty impressive air (video)
Oh, and Parrot's got one more thing up its sleeve at tonight's CES Unveiled event, and while this one can't actually fly, it's still pretty damn neat. The company's calling it the "Sumo," for reasons that aren't immediately clear -- the "insectoid" label it's also tossing around seems a bit more appropriate, all said. The device is a two-wheeled terrestrial 'bot that's controlled via tablet or smartphone, using streaming video from a built-in camera. It's pretty zippy, and even more impressively, it can stop on a dime. CEO Henri Seydoux was piloting the 'bot around, making sharp 90-degree turns moments before running into an obstacle. Neater still is the 'bot's ability to jump in the air up to 80 centimeters from a sitting position.
The Sumo uses 2.4 or 5GHz WiFi, giving it better range than many remote controlled toys. Like the MiniDrone, it'll be available in 2014 for an as-of-yet undetermined price.
Nicole Lee contributed to this report.
