Telepresence robots are on the scene for the higher a part of a decade, though as global upheavals reshape work and reorient attitudes toward remote participation, the technology may finally be primed to interrupt out of its niche user base and go mainstream. The timing is fortuitous: The market is now mature enough that buyers have choices when it involves feature set and price point. As companies downsize physical locations and revamp their policies toward distributed workforces, telepresence offers both technological benefits and collaboration advantages which will appeal to some employers and workers alike.

The current telepresence lineup reflects the range of use cases and intended end-users out there, including a couple of models designed for specific fields and workflows, also as others that fit organizations of any size. A secondary dedicated wide-angle navigation camera allows you to see round the base of Ohmni while you're driving, which you'll do remotely from almost any standard device. The unit features a bright 10.1-inch screen and integrated Jabra speakerphone for nice audio. It doesn't have automatic rising and lowering like Double, but the robot can move its head side to side for natural interactions. OhmniLabs is additionally thoughtful about who might use the device, which has dual-band Wi-Fi radio with full 2.4GHz + 5GHz support and optimized background scanning and roaming for giant spaces. Full 802.1x support means it should be simple to run on business or school networks.