The family pet that won’t ruin the carpet
Ebo watches the house and keeps the cat happy
Ebo Air Robot From €229 enabot.com ★★★★★
We are becoming more and more used to talking to digital assistants, whether that be on our phones, in our smart speakers or through our headphones. Taking this a step further is the Ebo Air – a cute little remotecontrolled robot that can move around your house.
Ebo’s multifunctional design broadens its appeal. A lower priced SE version is also available if you don’t need all the features.
This little robot can entertain pets – or act as one as it entertains you – as well as connect you to family at home while you’re away. It also has home-security features with its ability to travel around your house and record video, even at night.
It’s surprisingly compact and not much bigger than a tennis ball at 9.6cms across. Also in the box is Ebo’s docking station which plugs into the mains.
The makers have thoughtfully added a sticky strip to the underside of the dock, so you can secure it to the floor, preventing the charger-station from moving when the robot docks. And that’s the only business that this little fella will ever end up doing on your carpet.
Also included are five coloured feathers that you can affix to a slot on top of your Ebo. These are designed for cat owners, but add a quirky decoration to the robot even if you don’t have pets.
Ebo’s built-in microphone enables two-way conversations, while the camera on the front records in HD at 1080p at 30fps.
Below the camera is a sensor that helps Ebo avoid obstacles as it moves around – and it does an excellent job of that thanks to its motorised track wheels.
These move Ebo along at a nice clip on various surfaces and make it manoeuvrable. They can also be removed and cleaned, which is handy. The robot’s manoeuvrability isn’t confined to straightforward operation and it will right itself after a small tumble, perhaps when coming over a carpet rail.
Ebo – which is almost silent as it moves around the house owing to its brushless motor – uses your home broadband network and has both 2.4 and 5Ghz connectivity, so newer router owners will see the advantage.
To get it going, download the free Ebo smartphone app and pair using a QR code. The app is easy to use and has plenty of features including a gallery to review captured videos. You can also invite other family members to control the robot.
The main interface has the video feed from the robot’s camera at the top of the screen. Tapping this brings you to a full-screen view of the camera and you can control it manually using your smartphone.
The built-in security features are surprisingly comprehensive. The Ebo can sit in its dock and record footage at specific times, even at night. This is ideal if you have it in the hall or living room or want to keep a general view on an area of the house, such as a porch.
It also has a whole-house cruise security mode where it will head
ALMOST SILENT AS IT MAKES ITS WAY AROUND YOUR HOUSE
CLEVER BUILT-IN LASER POINTER MIGHT APPEAL TO PETS
off around your home and record three minutes of video, plus audio.
Ebo has some artificial intelligence built in and can send video clips and notifications to your phone if it spots a human – or pet.
You can add reminders for Ebo to make announcements, which might amuse the youngsters… or indeed the pets. The pets might also like the built-in laser pointer, which is enabled from the app.
While the video is decent from the 1080p camera and two-way communication works well enough, the audio performance could be better. Also, the patrol feature is clever, but a little short, so maybe the Ebo needs a bigger battery.
I thought the Ebo Air might be a little gimmicky, but there’s a lot to this. Billed as a ‘family robot companion’, it will certainly amuse the kids and perhaps even older relatives – and it boasts very clever AI and some nice home-security features too.
However, if you’re a pet owner, it really is a gift.