Amazon Astro is spying you ? Let’s check this new robot

Today Amazon announced this cute robot called Astro, a new product that will be in our homes for christmas  2021. The web is already piling up with leaks and concernes around this new robot.. why? why this new robot is so different from others? Let’s check it out!

Astro purpose

Astro is a surveillance device that works as remote camera that can be moved around your home. Very similar to robot TEMI  or Kuri maid robot.

An additional functionality , if enabled “Pro suirveillance package” it will tracks you and everyone who enters your home. Customers are asked to “enroll” their face and voice and member of family, as well as the faces and voices of anyone who is likely to be in a home, so Astro can learn who is supposed to be there and when someone not identify is at home it will launch an alarm. Their data and video will be stored in their amazon cloud account for future references, this is already a feature implemented in their Rings / Echo products, including the doorbell camera.

Astro hardware and specs

Astro has several motors to move around and avoid obstacles and feature a periscope camera ( like submarines to reach the water)  that will popup from the head of the robot in order to reach higher views angle for the camera for the owner’s suirveillance intents.

Scanning mode :

“Astro will moves to a predetermined scan point and pose to scan any given room, looking past and over obstacles in its way. Vesta completes one complete patrol when it completes scanning all the scan point on the floorplan.”

Conclusion

The robot’s specification and information received still very limited.  It may be interesting product to have around home as companion, however it doesn’t feature any prensile arm to make it useful for remote assistance purpose.