# Robots Get Skin That "Feels" **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 6, 2004, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869 "2004-07-06T23:32:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/21 "2004-07-08T00:49:34Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > :::sigh::: > > You just ruin everything. Oh dear- that was dreadful! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![umop\_ap\_sdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/dbc845/32.png) [@umop\_ap\_sdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/umop_ap_sdn)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/22 "2004-07-08T04:50:41Z")
What’s going to happen after 20 years when a sexbot is so old its circuits don’t function? People might be reluctant to toss out a realistic human-looking thing they’ve had a sexual relationship with. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/23 "2004-07-08T04:53:17Z")
> [@cityboy916](#): > > What’s going to happen after 20 years when a sexbot is so old its circuits don’t function? People might be reluctant to toss out a realistic human-looking thing they’ve had a sexual relationship with. Oh, I don’t know about that, considering some of the abuses my ex-GFs have subjected me to… ---
**Author:** ![Already\_in\_Use](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@Already\_in\_Use](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Already_in_Use)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/24 "2004-07-08T07:52:28Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > The one thing no-one ever explains in these kind of threads is, _who’s gonna clean the sexbots_? The sexbot version of those brush-covered CDs they have for cleaning CD players. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/25 "2004-07-08T11:26:08Z")
> [@slortar](#): > > Grandma?! Kinda gives new meaning to the phrase “everything old is new again.” ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/26 "2004-07-08T16:16:29Z")
> [@cityboy916](#): > > What’s going to happen after 20 years when a sexbot is so old its circuits don’t function? People might be reluctant to toss out a realistic human-looking thing they’ve had a sexual relationship with. I think most people would just toss them. Watch Cherry2000 ---
**Author:** ![Shaolinrabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Shaolinrabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaolinrabbit)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/27 "2004-07-08T17:36:32Z")
> [@DocCathode](#): > > I think most people would just toss them. > > Watch Cherry2000 I think most people would trade them in every year for a new model. I mean, if it’s that hard to stay with a human for 20 years, how easy will it be with a robot, especially an outdated one? To get a better mental image of this one, image you have a sexbot from 1985 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/28 "2004-07-08T17:38:52Z")
> [@DocCathode](#): > > That essay has convinced me that you are not simply and obsessed pervert. You are an obsessed pervert with research and critical thinking skills. By Og, one of us! You can thank jarbabyj for “bringing me over here” so to speak. For some reason, we both find this board … comfortable. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/29 "2004-07-08T18:01:22Z")
> [@Shaolinrabbit](#): > > I think most people would trade them in every year for a new model. I mean, if it’s that hard to stay with a human for 20 years, how easy will it be with a robot, especially an outdated one? I’m sure people would try and trade them in, but who’d want a used sex toy? I’m sure though, there’d be some people into that, not that there’s anything wrong with that. I’m sure there would be website just for that. But would there be enough demand for used sex toys to warrent trades? ---
**Author:** ![Shaolinrabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Shaolinrabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaolinrabbit)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/30 "2004-07-08T19:01:51Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > I’m sure people would try and trade them in, but who’d want a used sex toy? I’m sure though, there’d be some people into that, not that there’s anything wrong with that. I’m sure there would be website just for that. But would there be enough demand for used sex toys to warrent trades? Sure, from simple demand. I would assume the retail cost of them would be $20K-$40K at least. For the average person, the concept of getting a used one for $5K would probably be great. Plus the robots can be cleaned out and overhauled. Maybe get new skin or whatever, which you’d probably have to do anyways, considering the wear and tear a sex robot must accumulate. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/31 "2004-07-08T21:30:47Z")
If you can’t afford $20,000 for a complete robot, could you pay $10,000 for the half that doesn’t talk. If you know what I mean. I wonder if Maria from _Metropolis_ was a robot with skin but no nose. I seem to recall she had a nose. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/32 "2004-07-08T21:34:58Z")
> [@Shaolinrabbit](#): > > Plus the robots can be cleaned out and overhauled. Maybe get new skin or whatever, which you’d probably have to do anyways, considering the wear and tear a sex robot must accumulate. 😉 With all the overhauling, would you be able to keep the price of a used sex robot down to just 5k? ---
**Author:** ![Shaolinrabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Shaolinrabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaolinrabbit)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/33 "2004-07-08T21:45:44Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > With all the overhauling, would you be able to keep the price of a used sex robot down to just 5k? It’s hard to say really, it depends on the parts they use and how many robots overall are produced, and how standardized their parts become. The skin itself wouldn’t be that expensive though, unless they had to replace the touch sensors. Even then it depends on the cost of mass produced touch sensors. Although my cost estimates came right off the top of my head, so there’s no real science involved in them 😃 I just figured in essence that new robots would be very expensive and the average fella wouldn’t be able to afford one on his salary, but he could, theoretically pick up a used one cheaper, and that would probably drive sales of used machines. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/34 "2004-07-08T21:55:50Z")
I’m sure the parts that would get used a lot-- the vagina, mouth and anus – would have to be removable for easy cleaning. Which means easy replacement. The skin’s another matter. I imagine that you’d just melt off the latex and pop on a fresh mold. There’s have to be some careful fitting at the eyes, mouth, crotch and so forth to make sure the parts meld smoothly with the fresh skin, and some painting, so, yeah, might run to a thousand or two. Then again, there would probably be modular head coverings so guy who get tired of their Christine Aquilera droids could get Britney Spears droids. Or whomever. (There probably would be a certain class of celebrities who wouldn’t care to serve as models for sex droids, which means a booming underground economy for head coverings modelled on their features.) If had coverings are modular so you just adjust a seam along the neck, then replacing the droid’s skin’s might not be so expensive, since there’d be a MUCH larger market for Latest Hot Babe compared to the “older” models. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/35 "2004-07-08T22:03:55Z")
In order to keep prices down, would it be feasible to forgo making the whole robot of life like skin? It seems that, compared to the three main areas, no one is really going to care if the shoulder of the doll feel real. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2004, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/36 "2004-07-09T00:37:46Z")
> [@Evil Captor](#): > > If had coverings are modular so you just adjust a seam along the neck, then replacing the droid’s skin’s might not be so expensive, since there’d be a MUCH larger market for Latest Hot Babe compared to the “older” models. IIRC the folks a Nappster had a pretty brisk trade in Lucy Liu bots. 😉 And a Marilyn Monroe bot, I’d think, would be like a classic car for someone with “metal fever.” ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2004, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/37 "2004-07-09T03:59:31Z")
And you thought that beefcake/cheesecake _calendars_ were the latest in cozy self-promotion! ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2004, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/38 "2004-07-09T04:33:52Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > And you thought that beefcake/cheesecake _calendars_ were the latest in cozy self-promotion! You were aware, were you not, that porn stars like [Christy Canyon](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=Made+from+actual+castings+of+her+face%2C+breasts+and+vagina%21&btnG=Google+Search) have for years marketed sex dolls with vaginas and other parts modelled on actual latex molds of their relavant body parts? (Note: link is to a google search, and none of the sites on the search are work-safe, and what’s more the descriptions of the sites aren’t all that work-safe either. We don’t wanna get anybody in trouble here.) ---
**Author:** ![Beauty\_Personified](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@Beauty\_Personified](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beauty_Personified)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2004, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/39 "2004-07-09T08:28:37Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > In order to keep prices down, would it be feasible to forgo making the whole robot of life like skin? It seems that, compared to the three main areas, no one is really going to care if the shoulder of the doll feel real. Ummm… Shoulders… What? Oh, yeah. I have a thing for the naked back. (Of course, it can depend on the woman.) So, I think I’d prefer the skin on the back of my robobabe to feel pretty real. (Backless dresses are nice.) On the subject of second-hand robobabes, a lot of people have no problem with second-hand _real_ women. And then there are the people who enjoy the company of prostitutes. Forget about _second_-hand! I’d be interested in a robobabe with extra openings. Besides the usual three. IMO, women don’t have enough good openings as it is. There _are_ other openings, but they’re just too small. Give me a woman with huge nostrils and I’d be in heaven! Nasal sex, anyone? Anyhoo… ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2004, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869/40 "2004-07-09T14:13:24Z")
> [@Evil Captor](#): > > You were aware, were you not, that porn stars like Christy Canyon have for years marketed sex dolls with vaginas and other parts modelled on actual latex molds of their relavant body parts? Err, actually I wasn’t. Although after learning about Poser models I figured it was only a matter of time… > [@Beauty Personified](#): > > I’d be interested in a robobabe with extra openings… Give me a woman with huge nostrils and I’d be in heaven! _blink_ Every time I think I’ve seen it all… :eek: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/robots-get-skin-that-feels/253869.md?page=3)