Information AboutFurby |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT FURBY | |
| robots | |
| fictional species | |
| hasbro products | |
| dolls | |
| virtual pets | |
| 1990s fads | |
| toys of the 1990s | |
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A Furby (plural: '''Furbys''', as claimed by Tiger. Co., instead of the more correct '''Furbies''') is an electronic toy, more specifically, a Robot , made by Tiger Electronics which went through a period of being a "must-have" toy following its launch in the Holiday Season of 1998 , with continual sales until 2000 . Furby sold 1.8 Million units in 1998 and 14 million units in 1999 , and altogether in its three years of original production, Furby sold over 40 million units, and its speaking capabilities were translated into 24 languages. Furbys were the first successful attempt to produce and sell a Domestically Aimed-robot . A newly purchased Furby starts out speaking entirely '''Furbish''', the unique language that all Furbys use, but are programmed to speak less Furbish as they learn more English. The more English they learn, the more they "grow", thus placing them under the Autonomous Robot category. In 2005, New Furbys were released, with voice-recognition and more complex facial movements, among many other changes and improvements. BIRTH OF THE FURBY The name ''Furby'' apparently comes from the prototype which one of its creators David Hampton nicknamed 'Fur-ball'. In appearance, the Furby resembles a furry Owl with large ears instead of wings. Dave Hampton and Caleb Chung created the Furby in merely nine months (in addition to an additional nine months spent designing the toy). That was the amount of time between Tiger Electronics showing an interest in his interactive creatures, during which Roger Schiffman bought the rights to it, and the time they hit store shelves. Furby's first public appearance was at the International Toy Fair in 1998 . However, it is unclear whose yearning for a Furby was greater: that of the child, or of their parents. Furbys originally retailed for about US$ 35,1, and upon release Furbys flew off the shelves in toyshops. Catipulting demand for these toys during the 1998 holiday season drove the resale price over one hundred dollars and sometimes as high as several hundred dollars. Furbys sold for over 300 dollars in newspapers and in auctions from people that just wanted to make big money off of parents who wanted their kids to be happy. Nicknames were given to them and sellers assigned rarity values to them. Some people continue to call their Furbys by the terms 'wedding Furby', 'tuxedo Furby', 'snowball Furby', 'biker Furby', among others. All, of course, were dubbed rare by sellers, because they were so hard to find at the time. And in a sure display of the demand for even one Furby, there were some sellers at the time that scammed people out of a lot of money, some didn't even give them a Furby. Parents battled and there were arguments and fights as supplies dwindled, and when retail supplies ran out, parents turned to the Internet , where Furbys could be purchased for twice, three times or even more of their market price. This action led to many parents ending up on EBay ; due to this and the density of parents searching for at least one Furby, some cite the Furby as the major spark that started ebay's success. There were 27 million Furby toys sold for a 12-month period. FURBY TYPES Classic Furby The original Furbys were 6 inches tall. The main reason that many people liked them was their apparent "intelligence" and learning ability as they developed their language skills. They can communicate with one another via an Infrared port. Furbys start out speaking entirely ''Furbish'', a language with short words, simple syllables, and various other sounds, but are programmed to speak less and less Furbish and more and more English as they "grow". There was a common misconception that they repeated words that were said around them. This belief most likely stemmed from the fact that it is possible to have the Furby say certain pre-programmed words or phrases more often by petting it whenever it said these words. As a result of this myth, several intelligence agencies banned them from their offices.2 Simple electric motors and a system of gears close the Furby's eyes and mouth, raise its ears and lift it off the ground in a faux display of mobility. However, Furbys could not walk, as some were led to believe. The originals are still popular with many Hacker s as they can be dissected and made to do interesting things. In particular, their advanced audio capabilities and various sensory interfaces make them popular with the Circuit Bending community. Other Furbys Furby Babies In 1999 the Furby Babies line was introduced. Furby Babies are smaller than the original, have higher voices, and can't dance, but switch to speaking English more quickly. Furby Friends Novel Furbys were also released, including an interactive Furby-like Gizmo , from the movie Gremlins , (which is ironic, because Warner Bros. was, at one time, enamored with a lawsuit against Hasbro for the similarities between Furby and Gizmo) a Furby-like ''' Interactive Yoda ''' based on the Star Wars character, and a Furby-like '''Interactive E.T. ''' from the movie of the same name. Another 'friend of furby' called '''Shelby''', who is similar to Furby, but looks like a clam, has vast improvements in memory, and has a different personality, was released in 2001 and can communicate with the original Furbys and Furby Babies. They also have sensors that can sense loud sounds, they can sense being upside down, and they laugh when you "tickle" them. They also purr when you "pet" them. You can feed them by sticking your finger in their mouth. Emoto-Tronic Furby The new species of Furby was released in August 2005. They're larger than the previous version, and have been upgraded with a more emotional face and a voice recognition system, enabling them to communicate with humans. Unlike the Furbys originally released, just one order is necessary to make them 'sleep', and they have an off switch. They can communicate with other Emoto-tronic Furbys and new Furby Babies, but they cannot communicate with the original Furbys. Emoto-Tronic Furby Babies In 2005 a new version of Furby baby was released, with most notable features being the new look and a more "Baby-ish" appearance in contrast to the Emoto-Tronic Furby adult. Emoto-Tronic Funky Furby The Funky Furby was released in August 2006 in the U.K. . They're limited to three colour combinations so far, and can sing three new songs and dance. They can be taught dance routines and remember them. FURBISH-ENGLISH PHRASES Although they are able to respond to other phrases and words, the Emoto-tronic Furby will answer the following without problem:
Furbys may say these Furbish words:
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