Mattel’s internet of things-powered Barbie promises real time conversations with kids
Toy maker Mattel has unveiled an internet enabled Barbie doll capable of conducting conversations with kids.
In a bid to stem the doll's falling sales, Mattel has teamed up with San Francisco kids app start-up ToyTalk to bring Barbie dolls into the 21st century using a Wi-Fi connection.
With inbuilt speech recognition ‘Hello Barbie’ will be able to identify children in addition to registering, via the cloud, its likes and dislikes.
A Mattel spokesperson told BBC News: “The number one request we hear from girls around the world is that they want to have a conversation with Barbie. Now, for the first time ever, Barbie can have a two-way conversation.”
The doll comes kitted out with a microphone to register dialogue, speakers to project its own speech and a rechargeable battery unit. It will cost £49 upon its release later this year.
Mattel is making many forays into new tech of late and has partnered with Google to produce a new version of its View-Master which works with Google Cardboard.
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