A PLEN robot is a technological gadget (ok, toy) available in Japan for a cool 262,500 yen ($3,000 in US). However, quite a number of the little guys have been sold and we can see why. Derived from the English word ‘Plain’, the PLEN Robot has a number of characteristics which make it desirable. The most recent of which is the addition of an Android control device to get the PLEN Robot to do your bidding.

In truth, we see no reason why an iPhone or Symbian application would have not been able to perform just as well, but the decision to show off an Android controller tells us two things. First, Android is continuing to spread in popularity, not least within the technological community outside of the mobile smartphone arena. Second, Android’s opensource nature still puts it as the go to mobile phone operating system at the moment for projects such as these. Indeed, doing anything with Android right now seems to bring with it an element of promotion for whatever it is associated with. Check out doubleTwist as a great example. Anyway, enjoy the video after the jump.