Fans of George Lucas’ Star Wars movies have dreamed of the day when robots like R2D2 and C3PO would come true. I mean, wouldn’t it be great to have a droid in your own home that could take care of you, entertain you, and serve you? How long do you think it will be before real R2 robots are roaming the halls of our own homes? 100 years from now? 50 years? 20 years? What’s up today! Real, working R2D2 units are sold to consumers for home use!
So what does a real life R2-D2 actually do? Well, sadly he won’t be able to fix your spaceship’s hyperdrive, but that’s only because you don’t have a spaceship, right? What R2D2 can do is listen and respond to voice commands, serve you and entertain you! Like George Lucas’ Artoo unit, my home version uses real sonar to navigate around the house! Obeys commands, beeps and whistles, turns on lights and turns head. It even has an extendable arm for serving drinks!
I’m sure you have a million questions in your head, so let’s go through them.
Q. Does R2-D2 need batteries?
A. Yes. You will need 4 AA and 4 D batteries.
Q. What words does R2-D2 recognize?
A. Rd-D2 will have a different reaction to 30 words. Some of the words R2 knows: Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Anakin, Obi-Wan, Chewbacca, Jabba the Hut or his best friend, C-3PO, Princess Leia. He also responds to voice commands.
Q. What voice commands does R2 know?
A. Some of the words include: Patrol, Behave, Disconnect, Turn around, Forward, Turn Right, Turn Left, Plot Course, Light Tag, Answer This, Dance Show, Room Guard and lots more. further. You can say, for example, “Erredoo! Turn around! Move forward three units! Turn left!” It will obey all your orders. Sometimes Artoo will act a little crazy. When he does this, just say, “Behave yourself!” and he comes out of it.
Q. Give some examples of what R2 does when I say the names of Star Wars characters?
A. If you mention Darth Vader, R2 will tremble in fear. If you mention Princess Lein, R2 will make excited whistles.
Q. What games does R2D2 play?
A. R2 can play tag, follow you, or find a person in a room using its infrared sensor.
Q. Does R2 speak?
A kind of. He beeps and whistles, just like he does in the movies. He can also answer yes/no questions. He will quickly learn that his sounds represent words. He has a beep for “yes”. A different beep for “no.” A different beep for “I don’t understand.” He will also play dialogue from Star Wars movies.
Q. Can I use R2 on a table?
A. You can use R2 on a table if you put the wheels in the locked position.
Q. How much does R2-D2 weigh?
A. About 7 lbs.
Q. How much does R2D2 cost?
A. The price varies depending on where you buy it. As of this writing, the best price I can find online is $119.95.