Sony’s Rolly Adds More Bluetooth Control

Sony has unleashed a new version of its dancing Rolly music player, with expanded Bluetooth control so users can better boss it around with cell phones.

Sony brought its unique Rolly music player to the United States last May, and while the unit garners some quizzical looks, there’s no denying there’s really nothing quite like it on the market. The unit features 2 GB of memory for storing music, and can play back MP3 and ATRAC songs using itsintegrated speakers…but that’s not the unique part. The Rolly can be programed to pop, dance, and roll in conjunction to the music it’s playing, putting on a full song and dance specular—complete with LED lighting!

No, Sony has introduced a new version of the Rolly in Japan (Japanese press release)—this time, the little tyke is available in three colors (pink, black, and white) and now responds to additional commands via short-range Bluetooth links, so users can change tracks, start and stop the unit, and change playback volume from a remote device (like a cell phone) rather than having to chase down the Rolly and make adjustments manually.

The first edition of the Rolly also feature Bluetooth, but with a more limited set of capabilities. Sony says they plan to release a firmware update that will add new Bluetooth capabilities to existing Rolly units.

The price of the Rolly remains unchanged at ¥40,000 (about $425 USD), although there’s not yet any word on when Sony plans to bring the new units to the North American market. They should be available in Japan November 21, 2008.