Meet Moboto: the Talking iPhone Toy

Ever wish your iPhone dock was just a little more interactive? Have we got a Kickstarter project for you: Moboto.

Designer Mark Solomon created the device for those of us who fantasized our stuffed toys were alive when we were a child (ie. pretty much everyone). Moboto turns your recharging iPhone into a seemingly life-like companion.

With the Moboto dock and app, an iPhone can take on various personalities to convey information to its user. It can display a blinking eyeball that changes color depending on your device's battery life. Moboto can also be a flower that shows rain or sunshine in the background to convey the current weather outside in a beautiful way.

Solomon says Moboto is for geeks and non-techies alike.

"When you dock your phone it just launches the app and it brings to life the character," he said. "It's going to enable you to have a little bit of fun with something that is normally a mundane task. Instead of just having your iPhone by your bedside or in a dock at night, it's plugged into Moboto and you can see its expressions."

The personalized dock can visualize the weather, time and battery life. Touch the screen to interact with its characters — by playing with the eyeball, for example, which blinks when it's poked.

"We just take the data that we get on the phone and visualize it in some way," Solomon added. "It adds some whimsy to your day."

Moboto is reminiscent of the Android robot with a stout little body. Select which style suits you best from the seven mock-ups that Solomon and his team have created so far: one has a sweater, another has a tie. Some can be personalized.

In the future, Solomon aims to allow users to command Moboto via Twitter. He's currently experimenting with a hashtag that causes Moboto to sing a song. Tweet #Moboto1, for example, and the device lip-syncs the Beastie Boys' "Intergalactic."

"We're still figuring out what to do with this," he said.

And it Moboto owners don't actually want to hear "Intergalactic" in the middle of the night when someone tweets it? No problem. Just be sure you set your alarm, and Moboto will sleep soundly, too. By default, each device is connected to the Moboto Twitter account, but users can disconnect that feature if they want.

This technology might also become really useful to sports fans. Solomon imagines a custom app that would feed a sports fan details via a talk feature. (The main Moboto app itself will be constantly updated.)

Solomon and his small team of designers, software engineers and advisors are based on San Jose. The group's Kickstarter campaign requests a total of $400,000 to put Moboto into production.

So far, they've reached nearly $20,000 with 33 days left — so they've got plenty of time.

Solomon said the Moboto teams likes to think of themselves "as a hardware company making software. The software is what brings its heart and soul," he said.

"We want to bring personality to your phone," Solomon added.

If you support the project on Kickstarter, you can get the device for $50, including shipping costs. However, they're still working out the retail price and it would likely have to be a bit higher to account for store margins.

They plan to roll out the Moboto in November, just in time for the holidays.

What do you think of Moboto? Would you buy one? Tell us in the comments.