Today, we have smart home speakers such as Echo that are capable of telling us the weather, researching stuff for us and telling us the weather for the day. However, looking at them, they can do so much, but they never really attach a face to their actions nor do they have any sense of sartorial style. At the CES this year (2017) in Las Vegas, Mattel revealed their latest creation …the Barbie Hello Hologram. If you don’t already know about the Hologram Barbie, we are here to tell you everything we have learned so far …
Here, this iconic doll has been placed in her own tiny holographic world where children will be able to talk to her directly. She is capable of cracking some pretty corny jokes, chatting about the weather (you know, that type of small talk) and even dancing. Yes, the Hologram Barbie is definitely a major improvement as it will get your little ones interested in the weather (you know, because the weatherman on television really isn’t all that interesting).
Mind you, we started out by talking about the smart speaker, but in all actuality, this isn’t like that. Mattel actually introduced a smart speaker at the CES, but this isn’t in the same category. The smart speaker is called the Aristotle. It is basically a caretaker for your child. Starting out, it monitors the baby and grows up with the child to serve such functions as a storyteller and a night light. The Hello Hologram, on another note, can be viewed as being more of a friend than anything.
No, Hologram Barbie isn’t able to control anything and she cannot order items from your favorite shopping site (that should be a relief to some of you). What she is capable of doing is pretty cool though! She is able to take part in small talk and answer simple questions, tell your children about the weather, keep a calendar and change her looks. Not only is she able to change her clothes, she can also change her skin tone and her hair, giving a real personalized play experience.
At the Toy Fair this year, they had a Hologram Barbie on display – three types were available and were guessing that more will be added to the final product before they officially launch it.
The holographic Barbie is actually a 3D computer animation, but the projection itself is only 2D and it isn’t going to appear if you look at the box from the side. The conversation skills are a bit more advanced, but it’s the same thing we saw in the Dreamhouse and Hello Barbie from previous years.
Of course, there’s an app, but a smatphone is not required in order to use the Hologram. It does give parents some control over the little one’s interactions with it, like setting a certain bed time so that the child doesn’t sit up all night talking to the avatar.
Conclusion
The Hologram Barbie seems pretty interesting and is a great way to get little ones interested in the weather, amongst many other things. If you have a little girl, the Hologram Barbie is a must have.
