Japan, the land of using technology to solve problems we didn't know we had, has come out with a new robot that will let people shop at malls without ever leaving their home. Robot developer tmsuk revealed a telerobotic shopper that can be controlled using NTT DoCoMo's cellphone technology.

In the demo, unveiled at the Izutuya deparment store in Kitakyushu, Japan, a sick grandmother went shopping with her granddaughter using the robot and a video-capable cellphone. Girl and bot sauntered to the hat section, shuffled through what was available, and picked out one to purchase.

So what about this makes it better than having your granddaughter surf Internet clothes outlets with you back at home? Being the kind of person that abhors shopping at malls, I really have no clue. Tmsuk, however, is convinced that its "3D communications" technology will soon have telerobotic machines wandering around all the world's fashion capitals. [Pink Tentacle]