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VGo in Education

VGo is a robot replicates a student that is homebound due to illness or other circumstances that keep them from being in the classroom.  It is operated in real time by the student and allows them to keep their independence "in school" even though they are not able to be there. VGo is teaming up with Verizon so that you do not have to depend on Wi-Fi, you can use their 4G LTE network.  Other versions of VGo you must connect to the wi-fi to use the robot.  The six-hour model VGo robot can cost anywhere from $6,000 to $8,000.  There is also an annual service contract that costs about $100 a month.  You can purchase an additional charging pad for around $500, and you can even upgrade to a twelve-hour model for an extra $200. A maintenance plan for school costs around $5,000 for the year.  There are other versions of the VGo robot, Double Robotics Double 2 Telepresence Robot, that are cheaper and cost around $2,500.

The VGo robot is a great idea to use for homebound students, but it does not seem economical when you can use Skype or Google Hangout.  With Skype and Google hangout they are still able to converse with their classmates and get the lesson, but they cannot control either of those, and that would be a drawback because it does not allow the same interaction with the class. Allowing a homebound student that has the "freedom" to roam the halls or classroom with their peers is priceless.  So, I think this would be a good invest for schools because students need to be able to socialize and interact with one another.




http://www.vgocom.com/

http://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/the-vgo-robot-attends-work-or-school-while-you-stay-home/

http://www.capitalgazette.com/news/business/ph-ac-cn-vgo-robot-0205-20150204-story.html

http://www.vgocom.com/verizon-selects-vgo-4g-lte-network-collaborator

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