Running head: NEW AGE TECHNOLOGY 1

New Age Technology

Callie Van Neste

Siena Heights

PHI 329
NEW AGE TECHNOLGY 2

Purpose

Petzi Treat Cam is a newer technology that allows an owner of a dog to “be home” with

their dog when they are actually out of the house. The owner purchases the Petzi Treat Cam and

then downloads an app to their phone that allows the owner to see, speak, and give treats to their

pet through Wi-Fi. The Treat Cam comes equip with high-quality audio, a wide-angle camera

with night vision, and a treat launcher. This technology is great for pet owners who work long

days or cannot be home as much as their fur baby needs them to be (2013-2016).

Effective and Economic Status

Based on the blog on petzi.com, the Petzi Treat Cam was featured in Independent UK as

the number one on the top ten list of best pet technology. Other posts on the Petzi blog shows

nothing but positive reviews about the Treat Cam. This shows me that the invention is very

effective and successful in keeping dog lovers and their dogs as close as possible. The Petzi

Treat Cam is for sale on their website for just $169.99. That is a very affordable for people who

feel like their pets need more attention. The product is available online, and in numerous stores

such as Best Buy, Bed Bath and Beyond, PetCo, Target, and more. The Petzi website offers a

satisfaction guarantee or you can have your money back, which provides no risk for the buyer

(2013-2016).

Unanticipated Consequences

Though the Petzi Treat Cam can provide the owner the ability to communicate with their

animals while they are away, there may be a draw back to that possibility. The Petzi Treat Cam

should only be used to check on an animal while at work or out of town for the day, however,

some owners may see this as an opportunity to go out after work, rather than go home and

actually love on their animal. Though the human may feel the connection to their animal by
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checking on them and talking to them while out of the house, an animal still needs the actual

care, attention, and physical contact between their human, rather than just from a device.

Empowerment and Disempowerment

The Petzi Treat Cam definitely empowers the owner of the animal. The product gives the

human the power to communicate with their pet whenever they feel. This leaves the pet owner

with the decision to have a different type of relationship with their animal while the animal is

awaiting their arrival home. This device, however, disempowers the pet. The pet does not know a

life other than when their owner is home and when they are waiting for their owner to come back

home. The device will allow the pet to hear their owner when they are not home, which may

result in mass confusion for the animal. When first being exposed to the Treat Cam and their

owner’s voice, the pet may not do much but sit by the machine all day, waiting to hear from their

owner.

Human Condition

This invention may worsen the human condition because it gives people another reason

to be on their phones and stuck behind a screen. These days there are more and more things that

are becoming accessible from our phones, which can be convenient, but can also isolate us. Just

like in the movie Wall-E, humans surrounded each other but they only looked at the screens in

front of them. The invention will surely better the life of an animal stuck at home, but may cause

issues in everyday life for the human involved.

Purpose II

Segway has now created a robot to attach to the front of their product. The new Segway

looks more like the newer hover boards, with a screen attached to the front of it. The robot has

the ability to track where the user has been, self balance, connect with other smart hardware,
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listening capabilities, GPS, and quicker travel for its user. There is a camera on the front of the

screen that can track eye movement, take pictures, and has object recognition. The purpose of the

robot is to make getting around easier (2016).

Effective and Economic Status II

The Segway has already been deemed effective for those who had the necessary funds to

buy one. Now, the Segway will be made even more effective once the release of the Segway

Robot is underway. For the users who can afford an upgrade, the Segway Robot will make day-

to-day life much easier for the owner. The robot will be able to look up directions, track the

movement, and help the user get around. There are many features that the Segway Robot

producers are still working out, however, they want feedback from users to make the

functionality of the Robot the best it can be. The cost of traditional Segway’s started at about

$6,000, so the Robot will surely be more costly than that, therefore, the Segway Robot will not

be very economically friendly (2016).

Unanticipated Consequences II

Though the original Segway’s ended up being a success, the Segway Robot may not gain

popularity so easily. When hover boards became popular, many recalls were issued due to over

heating and other malfunctions. This may be a drawback for someone interested in the product.

Also, when it comes to robots, there is not much technology open to the public that is considered

a robot. There could potentially be errors and bugs that are not anticipated by the creators of the

Segway Robot. I will also bring back the idea of the movie Wall-E with this product, because

this is exactly what the people of Axiom were doing with their lives; Riding around on machines

with a screen attached to the front of it.

Empowerment and Disempowerment II

This product will empower the robot itself. By riding a Segway Robot, the user is giving

a lot of control over to the robot by asking it to take them to a certain place and by allowing it to

track their eyes, where they have been, and much more. By allowing this, the user is

disempowering their self by not thinking or walking while using the product.

Human Condition II

The Segway Robot could pose a lot of concerns for the human condition. As mentioned

earlier, this product seems to epitomize the characters in Wall-E, by putting humans behind a

screen and not allowing them much physical movement while riding the product. There is

nothing wrong with old-fashioned walking around town when running errands or going to work.

However, this technology could be great for Public Safety workers who need to be able to get

around quickly and connect with others while on the job.

References

(2013-2016). Petzi: Connect with your pet from anywhere. Petzi RSS. Retrieved from

www.petzi.com

(2016). Segway Robot. Segway Inc. Retrieved from http://robot.segway.com