Article Review: Giant Robot in Japan

Summary

Japanese manufacturer, Sakakibara Kikai, created a giant robot for kids. The robot could walk and move it's arms at the kid's control. You can just hop into the controller seat and you're ready to drive your robot. It's over 6 feet tall. It's named Cyclops. This robot is the follow up of the robot called "Landwalker". Landwalker is 11 feet tall and is made for adults. The Landwalker can fire nerf balls from it's air cannons. Landwalker is gasoline powered, while Cyclops requires battery. Cyclops doesn't have a price yet, but based on the previous kid robot released last year which costs $20,000, Cyclops will probably have a similar price.

                                          Cyclops                                                                  Landwalker

Main Concept

• Technology - Technology is required to create these robots and make them efficiently working. Robot's have been in books and television, but real ones are expensive and hard to make.
• Trend - The robot might trend for a while but no one cant be sure if it'll catch on and be long lasting.
• Entertainment - Nowadays people are creating so much with the help of technology. Most of the times it's done for entertainment. It's not a necessity and doesn't facilitate living.

Advantages

• Japanese kids will have new toys to play with. It'll be a while before they get bored of their own transporting robot.
• The robot is a pretty cool thing to have. It'll help the kid make more friends since they could take turns and bond over a toy they can share.

Disadvantages

• The robot will probably become a trend and those kids who can't afford it will be look down on as "uncool".
• The robot isn't of much use aside from entertainment. It's not necessary and may be a waste of money for some since eventually kids will put away their toys after being bored with it.

Questions

1. Will the robot become a thing every kid has or will it just be trending for a few weeks?
2. Is buying or having the robot really worth as much as it cause?

Source:
Knapp, Alex. "In Japan, You Can Buy Your Kid A Giant Robot For $20,000." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 24 Apr. 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2013. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2013/04/24/in-japan-you-can-buy-your-kid-a-mech-for-20000/>.