DeAgostini Japan Robi price & specs

DeAgostini Japan / Tomotaka Takahashi (Robo Garage) Robi (1)

Was ~$880 (¥138,100, 70-issue partwork)

Discontinued · used/leftover onlyScriptedPartwork buildVoice chatJapan only

Weeks+Shipping: Import (used).

Overview

A Japanese DIY humanoid sold one part per magazine issue (Weekly Robi, from February 2013), designed by roboticist Tomotaka Takahashi. It chats and walks in response to Japanese voice commands. The first issue sold more than 100,000 copies and the series was reissued twice before Robi 2 followed in 2017. It is a companion toy, not a programmable platform.

Type: Biped robot · Walks, but doesn't really balance
Maker: DeAgostini Japan / Tomotaka Takahashi (Robo Garage)
Released: 2013
Price: Was ~$880 (¥138,100, 70-issue partwork)
Status: Discontinued · used/leftover only
Best for: Ages 12+
Programming: No programmability

Price and shipping

Weekly partwork in Japan, ~$5 (¥790) for issue 1 and ~$12.60 (¥1,990) per issue after that (5% tax included), about $880 (¥138,100) for all 70 issues. The 2017 Robi 2 ran 80 issues totaling ~$1,090 (¥171,327)

Shipping: Import (used). Japan only. Completed units appear on Japanese auction sites via proxy services.

Specifications

Category	Bipeds · Walks, but doesn't really balance
Released	2013
Country	Japan
Availability	Discontinued · used/leftover only
Sales	About 120,000 completed robots by 2016 Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun (Newswitch) ↗
Programmability	No programmability
Built-in autonomy	None / scripted · Moves only when controlled, or plays preset motions
LLM support	None · No built-in LLM and no SDK to connect one.
Best for	Ages 12+ (estimated)
Vision sensors	No vision sensors
Actuators	Smart servos (Dynamixel, Feetech…)
Audio	Speaker, Microphone
Compute type	Arduino / ESP32 / microcontroller
Balance type	Scripted
Height	34 cm
Weight	1 kg
Compute	Vstone CPU board, 20 Futaba RS308MD servos
Speed	Not published
DOF	20
Sensors	Voice recognition, human-presence sensor, IR (TV remote) module
Balance	Pre-programmed servo motions. No dynamic balance.
SDK	None (Japanese voice commands)

Common questions

How much does Robi cost?

It sold for ~$880 (¥138,100, 70-issue partwork). Weekly partwork in Japan, ~$5 (¥790) for issue 1 and ~$12.60 (¥1,990) per issue after that (5% tax included), about $880 (¥138,100) for all 70 issues. The 2017 Robi 2 ran 80 issues totaling ~$1,090 (¥171,327).