Introduction
I have new family members, and their name is Astro. The Amazon Astro, priced at $1,599.99, serves as a companion in my home, roaming around and providing me with convenience, assistance in connecting with family and friends, entertainment, and transporting items from one room to another in its charging dock. In addition to its cute pet-like personality, Astro also functions as an indoor security camera that patrols the home and protects me by sending alerts in the event it detects alarms, broken glass, or intruders. Although it is currently available by invitation only and its high price makes it inaccessible to most people, Astro is a useful and enjoyable addition to any smart home, and I have certainly enjoyed having it in my home.
New Family Companion Robot
Astro (a name meaning “from the stars,” but also a nod to the pet in The Jetsons) is part of Amazon’s Day 1 Editions program to bring “the latest and most ambitious technology” products to customers. This costly robot was first unveiled in the fall of 2021 and remains available by invitation only.
Getting to Know Astro
Setting up Astro takes about an hour, but the process is straightforward. The robot is fully charged upon unboxing; all you have to do is open the box, plug in the charging base, and place Astro manually on the dock, and it will automatically power on. Amazon recommends placing the charging station against a wall in an area with one foot of free space on each side and five feet clear in front. Finding a suitable spot for the robot to return to is important; if the area around the dock is too crowded, it may struggle to return.
Companion Robot
When you say its name, Astro will turn its head to face you, and its eyes will change from white to a swirling blue and green, indicating that it is listening. As it moves from room to room, the robot emits a futuristic sound. It is cautious around humans; it approaches you but will not bump into you. Astro generally navigates easily in my 1,000-square-foot home, but it sometimes faces challenges near mirrors, in tight spaces, or when the floor is cluttered, or when people or pets block its path. If it gets stuck and you think it has space to get out, you can always try the commands “Astro, back” or “Astro, turn.” If it gets stuck, Astro will alert you on the screen as well as in the app.
Home Security on Wheels
Many of the high-end robotic cameras I’ve tested (including Ecovacs Deebot X1 Omni and Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra) work as smart security cameras that patrol the home, allowing you to watch a live stream from within your house through an app. Astro’s Live View feature for home monitoring works in the same way, but better. For starters, Astro is faster and more stable than any robot floor cleaner I’ve tested. Additionally, the raised periscope provides a higher vantage point, allowing you to check items on shelves. If I’m out of the house and start to worry that I forgot to turn off my hair straightener, I can send Astro to check.
The Future of Home Robotics is Here
Amazon Astro is essentially a smart display and indoor security camera with self-navigation capabilities and a personality. This Alexa-powered robot roams from room to room according to your commands, allowing you to monitor your home and make video calls with family members from anywhere you are. Astro can follow you around your home, sit next to you like a pet, play music and videos, answer questions, and transport items in its charging dock. Although it is expensive and somewhat of a novelty, Astro has impressed me with its excellent navigation and home monitoring capabilities. If home security is your primary concern, outfitting every room with indoor security cameras is likely the most effective and economical option. But Astro also offers a wonderful blend of safety and entertainment features, making your home feel like a place where you live in the future.
Advantages
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Fast and reliable autonomous navigation
- Excellent home monitoring features
- Built-in Alexa voice assistant
- Large display
- Good sound and video quality
Cons:
- Mirrors and glass walls/doors can cause navigation issues
- Some home monitoring features incur additional costs
Amazon Astro Specifications
Monthly Fees: None
Initial Purchase Cost: $999
Voice Assistant Compatibility: Amazon Alexa
Table of Contents
- New Family Companion Robot
- Getting to Know Astro
- Companion Robot
- Security on Wheels
- The Future of Home Robotics is Here
I have a new family member named Astro. The Amazon Astro, valued at $1,599.99, is my companion at home, roaming around and providing me with convenience, helping me connect with family and friends, entertainment, and transporting items from room to room in its charging bin. Although it is currently available by invitation only and its high price makes it unavailable to most people, Astro is a useful and enjoyable addition to any smart home, and I have certainly enjoyed having it in my home.
The Astro (a name meaning “of the stars,” but also referencing the pet from The Jetsons) is part of Amazon’s Day 1 Editions program to bring “the latest and most ambitious technology” products to its customers. This pricey robot was first unveiled in the fall of 2021 and is still currently available by invitation only.
Astro works with a free app of the same name (available for both Android and iOS). It requires a compatible device running Android 8 or iOS 13, as well as an active account on Amazon.com. It’s worth noting that (strangely) it is currently not compatible with Amazon’s Fire OS and Fire tablets. Designed for indoor use only in homes up to 3,500 square feet, it is not recommended for homes with small pets or children under three years old.
The box includes Astro, a removable dual cup holder for its charging bin, a charging dock with a six-foot power cable, a quick start guide, and a welcome kit.
Measuring 17.3 × 9.8 × 16.7 inches and weighing 20.6 pounds, Astro is about the size of a small dog. It is smaller than my pit bull Bradley, who feels jealous and intrigued by the robot. When not in motion, Astro rests on its charging dock, which measures 5.0 × 10.4 × 11.0 inches.
Astro features some pet-like qualities, starting with its big, blinking eyes. The 10.1-inch touchscreen with a resolution of 1,280 × 800 pixels (similar to the Echo Show 10 smart display) acts as its electronic face. The screen can tilt and rotate automatically to face you, but it is locked in a horizontal position and cannot be switched to vertical mode. The black bezel surrounding the screen is 0.75 inches at the top, 0.5 inches on the left and right sides, and 0.25 inches at the bottom.
It has two cameras, including a 5-megapixel camera located in the middle of the top bezel, and a 1080p camera with a 132-degree field of view that can extend via a periscope up to 42 inches off the ground. At the top of the periscope is an indicator light that glows green when video or audio is being streamed to the cloud, such as when using the Live View feature to monitor your home remotely.
Like a self-driving car, Astro utilizes a combination of sensors (including navigation, depth, obstacle, and night vision sensors) and advanced learning algorithms to navigate autonomously around your home. Its large rubber-covered wheels help it move from room to room without bumping into obstacles and easily navigate different types of flooring. Several microphones surround the periscope on top of the frame so Astro can hear you. For audio, it is equipped with 55mm front-facing speakers and a passive bass speaker working together to deliver clear, room-filling sound.
Astro operates
The robot is powered by Alexa and responds to the wake word Astro, but you can optionally add a second wake word like Alexa, Amazon, Computer, or Echo. It responds to commands such as “Astro, follow me,” “Astro, go to the charger,” “Astro, turn,” “Astro, take this to the kitchen,” and “Astro, dance,” as well as other questions and requests supported by Alexa. It can, for example, set timers, create reminders, tell you the weather or game scores, and more.
At the top, Astro also features three physical buttons, including separate volume up and down buttons and a microphone/camera off button. The latter allows you to quickly disable the cameras, microphones, and navigation and depth sensors for privacy. When these features are disabled, Astro cannot move or capture audio or video. This button is also used to power Astro on/off and restart the device.
There is a charging dock at the back of the robot, which has space for two drinks in the removable cup holder. You can also opt for a custom 56-ounce storage container (sold separately).
Getting to Know Astro
Setting up Astro takes about an hour, but the process is simple. The robot is fully charged when in the dock; all you need to do is open the box, plug in the charging base, and manually place Astro on the base, and it will power itself on automatically. Amazon recommends placing the charging station next to a wall in an area with one foot of free space on each side and five feet clear in front. Finding a suitable spot for the robot to navigate back to is important; if the area around the dock is too crowded, it may have difficulty returning.
Astro will guide you through the setup process on its screen. To get started, connect the robot to your home Wi-Fi network, log into your Amazon account, agree to Amazon’s terms of use, and select your time zone. After that, the robot outlines the remaining steps on its screen: Meeting Astro (5 minutes), Recognizing You (about 15 minutes), and Learning Your Home (about 30 minutes).
When using Astro for the first time, you’ll learn about some of the things it can do and try out sample voice commands like “Astro, dance” and “Astro, play music.”
During the voice recognition step, you’ll set up a voice profile and visual profile so that Astro can recognize you by voice and appearance. These features allow the robot to provide personalized reminders, timers, and alerts for each family member.
To create a voice profile, you must read a few sentences aloud so Astro can learn to recognize your voice. If you have previously created an Alexa voice profile, you don’t need to repeat this step.
When creating a visual profile, the robot will guide you to look directly at the camera, then tilt your head up and down, then side to side (similar to how you would on a smartphone) so it can recognize your face from various angles. Other family members can create a visual profile during the initial setup process as well, or at any time by saying “Astro, learn how to recognize me,” or by going to Settings > Profile > Add Profile on the robot’s screen.
After that, Astro guides you to download its companion app and log in using your Amazon account credentials. You can use your phone to scan the QR code on the robot’s screen to pair them. In practice, I had no issues using this method, but if the QR code doesn’t scan, you can always create a PIN to log in instead.
In
The final step of the registration process involves a tour with Astro in your home to help it learn the layout and each room. Before starting the home tour, Astro instructs you to open the doors to the rooms you wish to explore, close outer doors and closet doors, clear the clutter from the floor, and stay away from people and pets.
During the home tour, Astro will follow you from room to room and use its sensors to collect spatial data. When you want to name a room, just stand in the middle of the space and say “Astro, this is the kitchen” (or the name of the room you are in). When you’re done showcasing it, say “end tour,” and the robot will quickly create a map of the floor plan in its companion app.
While exploring your home, Astro sends the information from its navigation sensors to the Amazon cloud, where it is processed to create a map. Amazon states that the map data is encrypted during transit to its cloud and “stored securely, with technical measures in place to restrict access to it.” It is important to note that Astro needs a map to navigate, so if you are uncomfortable with Amazon knowing the layout of your home, this product may not be suitable for you. After the initial map is created, all sensory data that Astro uses to navigate in your home is processed on the device itself and not sent to the cloud, according to Amazon.
In the welcome guide, Amazon warns that full-length mirrors, walls, glass doors, and picture windows might
Source: https://me.pcmag.com/en/smart-home-2/14892/amazon-astro
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