I probably don’t have to tell you this one for you to know it, but Asian engineers (and especially those from Japan) are really into robots of all colors, sizes and types.

Fortunately for those who live in fear of the Terminator prophecy actually coming true, the robot we’re going to talk about in this article is not equipped with flamethrowers, nor does it launch any rockets, and is (for all intents and purposes) quite harmless. Jokes aside, the Takara Tomy i-SODOG is a robot dog, one that is able to recognize and interpret up to 50 unique voice commands that it picks up via its integrated microphone.

According to the creators of this unique toy (the Takara Tomy i-SODOG was just recently unveiled at the Tokyo International Toy Show), the i-SODOG features a little bit of artificial intelligence, meaning it will able to learn how to behave over time. If you don’t fancy talking to a robot dog much, you’ll be able to control this mutt (and its 15 custom servos that allow him to follow your controls) directly using the dedicated Android / iOS app, as well as via a dedicated controller.

The Takara Tomy i-SODOG is touted for a Spring 2013 release for about $400, although there’s little chance it will actually be available outside Japan, where you’ll be able to buy it for 31,500 yen. On a personal note, I find that Parrot quadcopter that we introduced a while back to be a lot more interesting! But to each his own, right?

What follows is a video of the Takara Tomy i-SODOG in action. Make sure you drop us a comment in the section below and tell us if this robot puppy impressed you or not!