Sony's chairman sees Aibo as a serious business

Since then the appearance of similar toys with "emotions" and "nervous systems" has created a growth industry.

Big business

A new price of $1,500 for Aibo suggests that Sony is taking the pet robot business seriously.

The corporation said it was ready to handle 60,000 orders a month for the new version, which goes on sale in November.

It has set up a new company, Entertainment Robot Company, to help develop the consumer market for Aibo-type machines.

"We see ourselves as pioneering a new market in a fashion similar to what we did with the Walkman in the 1980s," company president Satoshi Amagai said.

Lion cub

The original Aibo was challenged by pets like Sega Corp's Poo-chi dog and Omron's Tama cat.

And it came under criticism for failing to understand what its owners said.

Omron's Tama was said to be more real than Aibo

The new Aibo has more touch sensors and is capable of "intimate interaction", its makers say.

It also understands 50 words and can imitate human intonation.

Owners can now also programme its movements via a $500 software package.

And to escape from its original "dog" image, the new Aibo is based on a lion cub, with pointed ears and a stump of a tail.