There's finally a home robot like Rosie from 'The Jetsons,' but it looks awful

When I was a kid, I begged my parents for a dog, promising to walk it and feed it every day.

My parents, being generally sensible people, figured that it was unlikely their elementary school-aged son would actually take full responsibility for a live canine. So, given that they're also major nerds, they bought me a robot dog for Channukah.

The techno-pup was pretty cool. Sleek, chrome-colored, and able to wander around a bit and bark, it filled the pet-shaped hole in my little heart - for about a week. But I quickly got bored of the lifeless, essentially functionless thing. And that's what will probably happen to you if you buy Asus's new $599 "Zenbo" home robot.

Zenbo looks, and appears to act, a lot like home robots we've seen in sci-fi movies (and "The Jetsons"). But does it live up to that promise?

Here's what you need to know about Zenbo.