Who needs a remote when you’ve got ApriPoco?

ApriPoko may weigh a mere five pounds, but this voice-operated, talking robot functions as a universal remote for multiple home appliances and devices. Its creators, the researchers at Toshiba, exemplify Japan’s obsession for all things robotic, but ApriPoko has gone even one mechanical step further than other robots have gone before.

ApriPoko actually observes human behavior and asks questions in order to learn how to operate various remote controls.

ApriPoko has a memory triggered by sensors that are able to detect infrared rays emanating from the remote. Every time a human presses any button at all, it will ask from a chest-mounted speaker: “What did you just do?”

By answering the dear little devil, for example, “I just changed the channel on the television, this information is then committed to memory. The next time a user desires to change a channel, by simply telling ApriPoko, the appropriate IR signal is transmitted directly to the device.

via weirdasianews