Furby, the fur-covered robot that specializes in speech, made its debut in the holiday season of 1998. Furby appeared to learn English as it slowly advanced beyond its exclusively Furbish native language—a stream of indiscernible, sometimes grating sounds. The idea was a hit—the toy sold more than 40 million units in its lifetime and can be considered the first successful attempt to produce and sell a domestically aimed robot. Furby was a top-selling toy for three full years and was available on store shelves until 2007
This is filed under "Useless Robot" by Daniel H. Wilson(Roboticist)
Source: Popular Mechanics
