Macworld: Double Robotics + iPad = Never leave your house again

Double Robotics president and co-founder Marc DeVidts, left, demonstrates the Double.

By Chris O’Brien

Feb. 1, 2013 12 AM PT

Stand by the Double Robotics booth at the Macworld trade show, and you hear the same thing over and over again as people walk by:

“I would never have to leave the house again.”

Or:

“I would never have to go to the office again.”

That’s the reaction to the Double, a remote-controlled robot stand that will be available this spring for $2,000. Built by Double Robotics, a Sunnyvale, Calif., company, the gizmo is essentially a stand for an iPad with two wheels at the bottom.

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Insert an iPad on top of the Double and download the company’s app on that iPad and another iOS device. Use the second iOS device to steer the Double from miles away. The robot uses sensors and gyroscopes (much like the Segway) to stay balanced.

The app allows for two-way live streaming. So the driver’s face appears on top of the Double, and the driver can see whatever the Double sees.

President and co-founder Marc DeVidts said the company hopes to sell them to companies whose executives want to be able to visit different sites or to doctors so they can visit more patients.

For a short demo, watch this video: