With Pawbo, Acer is betting your pets need gadgets too - charlesswuzzy

In the battle to sell more stuff to consumers, Acer has a new object: your pets.

The companionship will soon begin marketing a countertenor-tech pet monitor that can serve hot TV of a dog operating theater cat to its owner via a smartphone or pad app. Later, the camera wish be supplemented with additional gadgets including a treat dispenser and cat teaser.

The products are Acer's initiative into the "petware" market. Its interest was sparked by ii recent interns at the Taiwan ship's company, who suggested looking at the burgeoning market for pet products, Acer CEO Jason Chen said on Wednesday at the IFA trade show in Berlin.

That market was worth $79 billion in 2009 and wish climb to $104 million this year, he said. Away 2019, world-wide spending on pets is expected to reach $128 billion.

To kick-start its efforts, Acer has acquired Pawbo, a Taiwanese company formed in 2014 by an executive from the IP camera industry. Atomic number 2 wanted to do more than than just watch his pets through a video stream.

So Pawbo was intelligent. The device contains a camera, treat dispenser, optical maser, and networking hub for the envisaged family of devices. The camera can be used to watch pets, the remote regimented laser will think about cats, and the treats can be dispensed remotely, too.

20160831 101120 — The Pawbo pet monitor on evince at IFA in Berlin along August 31, 2016.

The twist goes on pre-order on Sept. 1 and bequeath follow available to consumers in the U.S., U.K., Italia, Germany, Japan, and Taiwan. It will cost $169.

The Pawbo baseborn unit will pretend as a hub for up to eight other cameras, enabling an entire pet surveillance organization for a home.

Planned products will include Pawbo Flash, an infrared light for the base unit that volition let users see their pets in the dark; Pawbo Munch, a dedicated handle dispenser for big treats than the base unit; Pawbo Catch, a cat teaser that shakes around a fluffy toy on a stick; and Pawbo Punch, a whack-a-mole type game for cats.