Rabbit R1 Android-Powered A.I Personal Assistant Device - Review
A $199 square-shaped AI device that garnered a lot hype. In this Q&A, we do a Rabbit R1 camera test seeing if it can identify objects and generate AI images. We also try to order a Big Mac on Doordash and a ride on Uber...
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TechTranscript
00:00I need both pickup and drop-off locations.
00:02Okay, so I gave both.
00:03It says that it's nearby, then it says it's loading the menu.
00:06Download it directly to your device.
00:08I don't think you can download it directly to the device.
00:11I asked you guys what you wanted to know about the Rabbit R1,
00:14which, spoiler, is one of the worst devices I've ever reviewed.
00:17You'll probably see why in my answers to your questions,
00:19and no, I didn't ask AI to answer them for me.
00:22Question one, what does it do?
00:25Answer, not much well.
00:27The Rabbit R1 is a handheld AI device powered by a so-called large action model
00:32that's supposed to be capable of everything from voice search
00:34and making AI-generated images to live translations,
00:37music playback, and voice recordings with summaries.
00:40It can also sync with some third-party apps like Uber and DoorDash
00:44to carry out demands on your behalf.
00:46That is, when it's working properly.
00:48Book me an Uber from 135 West 41st Street to Port Authority.
00:53I'm unable to request an Uber ride without your current location.
00:56Can you please provide it?
00:58The Rabbit can also identify objects with its camera vision feature,
01:01but your phone can do that faster.
01:03Which iPhone is this?
01:05Based on the image, this appears to be the latest model of the iPhone.
01:08Nope.
01:09Likely the iPhone 13 or 14.
01:12So the fact that this, the Rabbit R1, believes that the most recent iPhone,
01:17the newest model, is the iPhone 13 or the iPhone 14
01:20when the 15 has been out for months is a problem in and of itself.
01:25Next question.
01:25How much is that?
01:26It's $199, which actually seems like a good bargain
01:29compared to similar products out now like the Humane AI Pen.
01:32But it's just made of cheap plastic.
01:34If you ask me, this neon orange square design is reminiscent of an iPad Tamagotchi hybrid.
01:40Does it work with cell phone Bluetooth when not connected to Wi-Fi?
01:43The Rabbit R1 does sync to your phone via Bluetooth,
01:46but your phone needs to have Wi-Fi or LTE connectivity
01:50in order for the device to actually be able to answer your questions or look things up.
01:54That said, it does have a 4G LTE SIM card slot,
01:57so it's nice to know you can get connectivity without Wi-Fi.
02:00But you're likely just better off pairing this device with your phone
02:03in hotspot mode when you're on the go.
02:05Connecting to Wi-Fi is a bit of a chore the first time
02:08as you need to enter the password with a tiny keyboard,
02:10but at least the touchscreen works in this mode.
02:13Next up, is it a smartphone?
02:14Why would I carry another device around when my phone does it already?
02:18The R1 is not a phone, and when I set out to review it,
02:22I didn't expect it to be one.
02:24It can't make calls for me, it can't take photos, and it can't be used for messaging.
02:28Instead, it wants to be a companion device to your phone for completing certain tasks.
02:32And it wants to be able to do them faster,
02:34but that wasn't really the experience in my case.
02:37Generate an image of four golden retriever puppies
02:41playing at the beach and fetching a frisbee.
02:45Got it.
02:45Please be patient while I'm generating your image.
02:49One eternity later.
02:52Your images of four golden retriever puppies playing at the beach
02:55have been successfully generated.
02:57But it would be nice if this thing was able to at least email you things,
03:00like the mid-journey images you create.
03:02Ironically, it told me that it couldn't email me
03:05even though it has my email on file.
03:07Email that image to me.
03:09I'm unable to send emails or perform email-related tasks.
03:13If you'd like to save the image, you can download it directly to your device.
03:18I don't think you can download it directly to the device.
03:20Here's your next question.
03:21Is the AI able to have normal back-and-forth conversations?
03:25If so, does its personality evolve and adapt as it learns from the user?
03:30I'm not really sure who wants to sit and have a small talk with an AI device,
03:33but yes, it can continue on with topics
03:35without you needing to give it context every single time.
03:38So for example, I asked,
03:40who won the Yankees game last night?
03:42And I got the score.
03:43And when I asked, were there any home runs,
03:45Rabbit was smart enough to mention Volpe, Verdugo, and Stanton all going yard.
03:50The R1 hasn't really developed a personality in my time with it,
03:53but it certainly tries to be helpful and has a small sense of humor.
03:56Like it will say, taxi, when I'm trying to book an Uber.
04:00Can you get me an Uber to Port Authority?
04:02Taxi!
04:04Just to let me know.
04:06Here's the biggest question of all.
04:07How reliable is the action model?
04:09Can it order me a Big Mac?
04:11Can it get me an Uber without making mistakes?
04:13Let's try it out.
04:14Can you order me a Big Mac?
04:18Here are some food options for you.
04:20DoorDash may take a while to load on Rabbit OS
04:23and may not be available in all regions.
04:25And what's happening now is that it's trying to query DoorDash.
04:28There's not an official partnership between Rabbit and DoorDash in this case,
04:32but they've trained their AI on their interface.
04:35So they go out on your behalf using your credentials
04:37that you give them when signing up for the device,
04:40and they're trying to go through.
04:41So you can see that McDonald's has popped up as one of the options
04:44so that's definitely a good start.
04:46So if I want to select that, it says that it's nearby.
04:49Then it says it's loading the menu.
04:52And this part really gets me because it shouldn't take that long
04:55to see what the menu is.
04:57On your phone, this would take much less time.
04:59In fact, I'd already have a bunch of stuff in my cart.
05:02So there's the fries.
05:03Not what I asked for.
05:04You can see that I am getting menu options now,
05:07and I can scroll through them.
05:09And, you know, one of them here, like I can order a Big Mac if I want.
05:12So if I select that, let's see if I'm actually able to order.
05:15So I've selected this.
05:16You see that the plus button has shown up,
05:19and then I keep scrolling down,
05:21and then I can go to my cart.
05:23I put two in there, so we'll see how that works.
05:26Loading my cart right now in the background.
05:28Again, this just takes way too long to make it useful.
05:32And...
05:34Okay.
05:35So I actually do have my total order with the ability to check out.
05:40I'm not gonna order it, but let's see what happens when I try.
05:44Calculating bill.
05:46Yeah, with this sort of delay, I just wouldn't even bother using this.
05:50But I could check out if I wanted to, and pay.
05:54So it works, but just not fast enough.
05:56So how about ordering an Uber?
05:58Can you get me an Uber to Port Authority?
06:01Taxi!
06:02So there's that sense of humor.
06:04Uber may take a while to load on RabbitOS.
06:06So we get another disclaimer.
06:08I'm unable to request an Uber ride without your current location.
06:12Can you please provide it?
06:14I can, but I shouldn't have to, because you should know where I am.
06:17135 West 41st Street.
06:20Arranging your ride now.
06:22Uber may take a while to load on RabbitOS.
06:25Just in case you didn't get it the first time.
06:27Apologies.
06:28I need both pickup and drop-off locations.
06:30Okay, so I gave both.
06:31Let me try again with the more specific instructions.
06:34Book me an Uber from 135 West 41st Street to Port Authority.
06:39Arranging your ride now.
06:41So now there's no excuse for not getting it right.
06:43Uber may take a while to load on RabbitOS, and may not be available in all regions.
06:48Okay, so we actually have an option here.
06:50Confirm pickup.
06:51It is the addressed, and I can continue just by selecting here.
06:55Confirm the drop-off.
06:56Yes, and...
06:57Apologies.
06:58There was an error with the Uber ride request.
07:01The service may be under maintenance.
07:03Which service?
07:04I don't think it's Uber.
07:04I think it's the Rabbit service that might be under maintenance.
07:07Now that you're suitably impressed, you might be wondering, doesn't Siri do this?
07:10To demonstrate Siri versus RabbitR1, I actually conducted a head-to-head face-off,
07:14asking both the same questions that you can see on our TikTok.
07:18But what I found is that Siri is faster, but can't answer follow-up questions very well,
07:23or execute actions with third-party apps like RabbitR1, at least not currently.
07:27We know that WWDC in June should bring a big update to Siri's AI abilities.
07:33So who knows?
07:34Siri might be able to do a lot of the things the R1 does before the end of the year.
07:38Talk about bad timing.
07:39Next question.
07:40Why is there a scrolling wheel?
07:42Like, didn't we invent swipe to scroll 20 years ago?
07:45That's a great question.
07:46The scrolling wheel is cute, but I feel like it's unnecessary.
07:48After all, this has a touchscreen, but I found that it only works in keyboard mode.
07:53Otherwise, there's a lot of scrolling up and down and backing out of menus.
07:57It's a throwback in a bad way.
07:59But at least the scrolling feels faster after a recent software update.
08:03Here's a quick one.
08:04Most anticipated gadget says who?
08:06This question is in response to a caption we used on a TikTok video.
08:09But yeah, in case you didn't know,
08:11these kinds of AI hardware products are really having a moment.
08:14The RabbitR1 became available right on the tail of the Humane AI Pen,
08:18which got terrible reviews with its hand-projection interface.
08:21It also cost $699, not including a subscription fee.
08:25There was hope that the R1 would be a functional device at a fraction of the cost.
08:30The CEO built up a big community on Discord,
08:32and they apparently had 100,000 pre-orders.
08:35I'm guessing a lot of them may be returned.
08:38How is it?
08:39Worth it?
08:40Now, this is probably the most important question.
08:42Part of me didn't even want to give my RabbitR1 review a rating
08:45because it feels so unfinished and broken.
08:48There are some pretty cool ideas behind the R1,
08:50but most of them are not executed well at all.
08:52And I ran into way too many bugs, errors, and inaccurate answers
08:56to recommend this AI gadget to anyone.
08:58Will the RabbitR1 get better over time?
08:59For sure.
09:00And Rabbit promises all sorts of future upgrades,
09:02like point-of-interest research, navigation, and a teach mode,
09:05so the R1 can learn more things.
09:07But I just don't see the R1 taking off
09:09because it's yet another device you need to carry around.
09:12So for most people, it's just not worth it.
09:15But let me know if you feel differently.
09:16I can also answer more of your questions in the comments.
09:19For my full RabbitR1 review, make sure you go to tomsguide.com
09:22and be sure to follow us on all of our socials.
09:25For Tom's Guide, this is Mark Spoonhauer.