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  "issuedAt": "2026-10-02T22:00:53.279Z",
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    "version": "2026-09-30",
    "ask": {
      "q": "robot pet under $500",
      "maxPrice": 500,
      "guide": "home-robots",
      "words": [
        "robot",
        "pet"
      ]
    },
    "summary": "5 picks. Start with Microduck ($399, Robots for the house, checked 2026-09-29): A body for your own agents, not a pet yet. Read our full review first.",
    "picks": [
      {
        "id": "home-robots/microduck",
        "name": "Microduck",
        "brand": "Pollen Robotics",
        "guide": "home-robots",
        "guideTitle": "Robots for the house",
        "price": 399,
        "priceText": "$399*",
        "asOf": "2026-09-29",
        "url": "https://pollen-robotics.com/microduck/",
        "reviewUrl": "https://pointcast.xyz/reviews/home-robots#microduck",
        "verdict": "A body for your own agents, not a pet yet. Read our full review first.",
        "why": [
          "name matches “robot”",
          "review mentions “pet”",
          "from Robots for the house",
          "$399 fits a $500 budget"
        ],
        "score": 11.2,
        "facts": "award: The one to watch · status: Pre-order (announced, not shipping) · talks: No. It walks, kicks and quacks · subscription: None announced · size: 25 cm tall · specs: Open-source biped · trained with reinforcement learning · gets itself up after a fall · game controller in the box · four colorways · caveat: It hasn’t shipped, so nobody outside Pollen has lived with one yet. Our own review flagged several specs as provisional."
      },
      {
        "id": "home-robots/loona-petbot",
        "name": "Loona Petbot Premium",
        "brand": "KEYi Tech",
        "guide": "home-robots",
        "guideTitle": "Robots for the house",
        "price": 499,
        "priceText": "$499*",
        "asOf": "2026-09-29",
        "url": "https://keyirobot.com/products/petbot",
        "reviewUrl": "https://pointcast.xyz/reviews/home-robots#loona-petbot",
        "verdict": "The pet for a house with kids. Ask what the chat costs once “the moment” ends.",
        "why": [
          "name matches “pet”",
          "review mentions “robot”",
          "from Robots for the house",
          "$499 fits a $500 budget"
        ],
        "score": 11,
        "facts": "award: Best pet that talks back · status: Shipping (dispatch within 3 business days, per KEYi) · talks: Yes. ChatGPT-4o conversation, stories and descriptions of what it sees · subscription: None for now. KEYi says ChatGPT-4o is free “for the moment” · size: 8.3 × 6.8 × 6.8 in · 2.42 lb · specs: 2.4-inch screen face · 720p camera + 3D time-of-flight sensor · 4 mics · about 2 hours of play, then docks itself · caveat: The free chat is promised only “for the moment,” in KEYi’s own FAQ. And a charge buys about two hours of play."
      },
      {
        "id": "home-robots/reachy-mini",
        "name": "Reachy Mini (Wireless)",
        "brand": "Pollen Robotics × Hugging Face",
        "guide": "home-robots",
        "guideTitle": "Robots for the house",
        "price": 499,
        "priceText": "$499*",
        "asOf": "2026-09-29",
        "url": "https://pollen-robotics.com/reachy-mini/",
        "reviewUrl": "https://pointcast.xyz/reviews/home-robots#reachy-mini",
        "verdict": "The desk friend you can open up. Best if you’d enjoy the building as much as the talking.",
        "why": [
          "name matches “robot”",
          "from Robots for the house",
          "$499 fits a $500 budget"
        ],
        "score": 9,
        "facts": "award: Best to build and program · status: Shipping as a DIY kit; lead time up to 90 days, per Pollen · talks: Yes, through its conversation app · subscription: None · size: About 30 cm tall awake, per the spec drawing · specs: Raspberry Pi CM4 on board · camera, 4 mics, speaker · moving head and antennas · 60+ one-click apps · open source (Apache 2.0) · caveat: It ships as a kit, with a lead time of up to 90 days, and buyers pay shipping and duties on top."
      },
      {
        "id": "home-robots/sphero-bolt",
        "name": "BOLT",
        "brand": "Sphero",
        "guide": "home-robots",
        "guideTitle": "Robots for the house",
        "price": 179,
        "priceText": "$179*",
        "asOf": "2026-09-29",
        "url": "https://sphero.com/products/sphero-bolt",
        "reviewUrl": "https://pointcast.xyz/reviews/home-robots#sphero-bolt",
        "verdict": "The robot for a kid who’d rather build a pet than own one.",
        "why": [
          "review mentions “robot”, “pet”",
          "from Robots for the house",
          "$179 fits a $500 budget"
        ],
        "score": 8.64,
        "facts": "award: Best rolling puck to program · status: Shipping · talks: No · subscription: None. The Sphero Edu app is free · size: Hand-sized sphere · specs: Programmable 8×8 LED matrix · waterproof shell · program by drawing, blocks, JavaScript or Python · caveat: Sphero builds it for classrooms, and it has no personality of its own: it only does what someone codes. Sphero also now points buyers to the newer BOLT+."
      },
      {
        "id": "home-robots/living-ai-emo",
        "name": "EMO",
        "brand": "LivingAI",
        "guide": "home-robots",
        "guideTitle": "Robots for the house",
        "price": 279,
        "priceText": "$279*",
        "asOf": "2026-09-29",
        "url": "https://living.ai/product/emo/",
        "reviewUrl": "https://pointcast.xyz/reviews/home-robots#living-ai-emo",
        "verdict": "The most personality per dollar on the desk.",
        "why": [
          "review mentions “robot”",
          "guide notes “pet”",
          "from Robots for the house",
          "$279 fits a $500 budget"
        ],
        "score": 8.44,
        "facts": "award: Best desk pet under $300 · status: Shipping (about 2 weeks after ordering, per LivingAI) · talks: Some: answers questions, weather, alarms · subscription: None mentioned by LivingAI · size: Desk-toy size · specs: Camera with face recognition (up to 10 people) · 4-mic array · touch sensor · on-board neural network processor · caveat: It’s a pet more than an assistant. LivingAI still lists Alexa and Google Assistant compatibility as in testing."
      }
    ],
    "guides": [
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        "id": "home-robots",
        "title": "Robots for the house",
        "href": "https://pointcast.xyz/reviews/home-robots",
        "asOf": "2026-09-29"
      }
    ],
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      "Prices are the ones PointCast saw on the date shown, from the maker. The maker’s page is the truth.",
      "No commission, no paid placement. Links go straight to the maker.",
      "A * means the price has a note on the guide card: read it before you buy."
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