Video Conferencing Robot

A few days ago (I’ve been slacking) Engadget reported on a video conferencing robot, called Giraffe. It has a screen at the top where the video conference-ee’s face would appear. At the robot’s base is a set of wheels that allow it to shuffle about an office.

The idea here is that you can sit at home (or on a trip) and operate this robot and create a physical presence in the workspace. The operator can tilt the LCD up and down to look around and the built in microphone also sends sound back to the user. Then, of course, the built-in screen and speakers allow everyone at the office to see and hear the person running the machine. However, I just can’t see it being widely adopted, or even at all. It’s just plain odd. The price isn't set in stone, but the word is that it'll retail for somewhere between a whopping $3,000 and a paltry $1,800. But, Hurry! Pre-orders yield deep deep discounts! OMG!