Voice-Controlled Interactive AI Smart Robot Dog – Programmable Pet with Mobile App, USB Rechargeable Design, Robotic Movements & Smart Learning Features

The robot they have actually seen in videos

Every few months another clip goes round: a four-legged robot trotting up a staircase, getting shoved, catching itself. Children see those. Then they ask for one, and what turns up in most toy aisles is a plastic puppy that barks when you clap.

This is the other thing. Twelve inches nose to tail, ten at the shoulder, with hips and knees that actually articulate — a small version of the machine they were looking at, crossing your floor because someone told it to.

It rolls. It does not pad.

This is the thing the photographs never explain, and it is worth knowing before it arrives. Each of the four legs ends in a small wheel. The legs lift, swing and take the weight like legs — but the last inch of every foot is a roller. That is how something this size moves smoothly across a room instead of clattering.

The consequence is about floors. Wood, tile, vinyl, laminate, a big dining table: it is at home on all of them. Short pile is fine. Deep pile carpet and shaggy rugs are where it bogs down — and that is true of everything in this class, not just this one. If your living room is a thick rug wall to wall, buy it for the kitchen floor.

Three ways to drive it, two of them phone-free

Your voice. Speak and it responds. It knows a set list of instructions rather than holding a conversation, and it works best in a normal room, said clearly and reasonably close. Competing with a television will make it miss you.

The handset. A full gamepad is in the box, and it is the one most children end up living on: a button per trick, instant, nothing to pair, nothing to charge separately. One fair warning — the button legends are printed in Chinese. The first ten minutes are an adult and a child pressing things and working out which is which. After that it is muscle memory, and honestly that is half the fun.

The app. Rapidpower, free on iPhone and Android, pairs over Bluetooth. It is the manufacturer's own app and it is where the programmable part lives. It is also the weakest link in the package: it sits at about 2.4 stars on the App Store, mostly for connection trouble. Buy this for the robot and the handset. Treat the app as a bonus that may or may not behave.

About the word AI

It is in the name, so let us deal with it. This robot does not learn, does not adapt, and does not develop a personality of its own. It recognises a set of commands and it carries them out. In the app you can chain those movements into a sequence and play the sequence back — that is what programmable means here.

For a child that is genuinely a good first taste of programming: give an instruction, watch a physical object obey it, work out why it did something other than what you meant. What it is not is a companion that gets to know anybody. We would rather you knew that before it was unwrapped than after. A child promised a pet that learns is disappointed by hour two. A child handed a robot they can command is still at it a month later.

What you get

• One robot dog, 12.2 x 6.3 x 10.6 in (31 x 16 x 27 cm) — about the footprint of a toaster
• The gamepad handset, with buttons for the movements and tricks
• A USB charging cable. The battery is built in, so there are no loose cells to buy or lose
• The free Rapidpower app for iPhone and Android, if you want it
• Hard moulded plastic body in white with a green flash, on grey and black legs
• The manufacturer marks the box 3+

Charge it over USB from any phone charger or laptop. Nothing else is required to start using it.

Choosing between the three models

If you want the robot described on this page — the dog, the handset and the app — the one to pick is Smart Mechanical Dog Remote Control + Mobile APP Interactive Model. The other two are the same shape and size with a different feature fitted. If one of those specific features is the reason you are buying rather than a bonus on top, ask us before you order and we will confirm exactly what that model does. We would rather answer the question than have the wrong box turn up.

Frequently asked questions

Does it really learn?

No, and we would rather say so plainly than let the name do the work. It responds to commands and it replays the sequences you build for it. Any sense of it having a personality comes from what you programme and how it reacts, not from it forming an attachment to anyone.

Will it understand my child speaking English?

Voice control answers to a fixed list of commands rather than free speech. We are confirming the exact list and its language with the manufacturer, so if voice is the only reason you are buying, wait for us or ask first. The handset does everything voice does and more, and it is the control most families settle on anyway.

What surfaces does it work on?

Hard flat ones — wood, tile, vinyl, laminate, a table top. Short pile carpet is usually fine. Deep pile and shaggy rugs stall the wheels at the ends of the legs.

How long does it run on a charge?

We are not going to print a figure we cannot stand behind, and the manufacturer does not publish one. Plan for a play session rather than an afternoon, and put it on the USB cable between goes. If a specific run time matters to you, ask us and we will get the answer from the supplier rather than guess.

What does the Water Cannon Turret model do?

That model has a turret fitted to the head. We are checking with the manufacturer exactly what it releases and whether it is meant for indoor use before we describe it here, because getting that wrong is not a small thing in a house with children. If the turret is why you are here, ask us first.

Is it too complicated for a three-year-old?

The box is marked 3+ by the manufacturer, and a small child can press handset buttons and watch it move quite happily. The setup, the pairing and the programming are adult jobs, and the app is aimed at older children. Most families use it at both levels, which is why it tends to outlast toys pitched at one narrow age.

Is it loud?

It makes sounds, plays music and responds audibly, which is most of the appeal at first and most of the problem at bedtime. The honest answer is to put it on charge in another room.

Do I have to use the app at all?

No. Voice and the handset work on their own, straight out of the box, with no account and no phone. The app only adds the sequence building.