{"id":283014,"date":"2025-11-10T10:16:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-10T10:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/283014\/"},"modified":"2025-11-10T10:16:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T10:16:10","slug":"everyone-hated-the-rabbit-r1-they-were-right-but-now-theyre-wrong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/283014\/","title":{"rendered":"Everyone hated the Rabbit R1. They were right, but now they’re wrong"},"content":{"rendered":"

When the Rabbit R1 came out, everyone hated it. It was a $200 AI gadget desperately searching for a reason to exist, and unfortunately, the features promised didn\u2019t really work.<\/p>\n

It was slow, annoying to use, and worst of all, pointless. Many who bought one felt like it was a cruel joke, as the majority of things it was supposed to do weren\u2019t even available.<\/p>\n

Well, a lot has changed, and the Rabbit R1<\/a> is very different from when it launched. It\u2019s better, and an interesting example of what happens when you release a product too soon, and how early opinions really matter.<\/p>\n

Was it really that bad?<\/p>\n

No, it was worse<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

The Rabbit R1\u2019s hardware was never a problem. The bright orange block manages to look both futuristic and fun, the rotating scroll wheel is tactile, and the motorized camera gives the R1 character.<\/p>\n

The issue was with the software and its functionality. I bought the R1 at launch, and it did almost nothing at all.<\/p>\n

The things it could manage were useless, especially compared to Google Gemini and other AI chatbots at the time, and its promised assistant features, such as booking taxis or ordering food, usually didn\u2019t work.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Reviews scoring the Rabbit R1 as a one or two-out-of-ten were absolutely correct. The only feature that was vaguely fun was the Magic Camera, where photos were re-imagined by the AI, but even that was awkward and slow to use.<\/p>\n

However, Rabbit didn\u2019t just send the R1 out into the world and forget all about it. The company has been steadily updating the software, and has largely pivoted away from the whole AI assistant feature set.<\/p>\n

The R1 is different now. Better different.<\/p>\n

New software makes all the difference<\/p>\n

Fluid and speedy<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Rabbit released its RabbitOS 2 software in September 2025, more than a year after the device\u2019s original launch.<\/p>\n

It uses a logical card-based system to navigate through the menu, the touchscreen experience has been overhauled, and the emphasis has shifted away from assistant duties, to using the Rabbit Intern AI agent to do, well, a lot more things than before.<\/p>\n

The redesigned software really suits the hardware. It\u2019s colorful and fun, and crucially, it makes it simpler to understand what the little box can do as each card represents a feature.<\/p>\n

RabbitOS 2 introduced Creations, which adds vibe coding to the R1 through a conversation with the Rabbit Intern.<\/p>\n

This has opened up opportunities for the Rabbit community to create small apps for the R1, many of which are available for free through Rabbit\u2019s site, and examples are often found in the healthy Rabbit R1 subreddit.<\/p>\n

Creations are easy to install using a QR code, and it\u2019s a seamless, simple experience.<\/p>\n

What can it do now?<\/p>\n

More than before<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had fun with simple games on the R1, from a Breakout-style brick breaker game to a bullet hell-style shoot \u2018em up.<\/p>\n

Voice response for the AI chatbot has been dramatically improved, and I\u2019ve had actual conversations with the R1.<\/p>\n

For example, we\u2019ve talked about TV shows, and it has made recommendations. It has found where the shows are streaming, how much services cost, and contextually understands as you talk, meaning you can speak to it naturally.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

There are other features, too, such as a translator, voice recorder, timers, and alarms, but nothing much you can\u2019t already do with your phone.<\/p>\n

The real-time, on-device vibe coding does set it apart from a phone, though, and I prefer the experience of speaking to the R1 than Gemini on my phone. Still, it\u2019s nowhere near as conversational or natural in its responses.<\/p>\n

Magic Camera is still a highlight, but you must manually activate the ability to save them in the Magic Gallery on the device, likely to save storage space.<\/p>\n

Otherwise, they\u2019re uploaded to the Rabbithole website, where you\u2019ll find the original and the re-imagined version. You can see a selection of examples below, and look out for the rabbit which makes an appearance in each one.<\/p>\n

While you\u2019re down the Rabbithole, you can also see all your voice interactions with the R1 and work with the Intern on coding projects.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

There\u2019s quite a lot more to dig into as well, from creating AI interfaces and individual voice profiles, to a pre-installed game where you can earn special versions of the animated rabbit character that lives on the home screen.<\/p>\n

Owners who try RabbitOS 2 and still don\u2019t like it can even replace it with Android.<\/p>\n

So, it\u2019s worth buying now?<\/p>\n

Well, kind of<\/p>\n

\"Photos<\/p>\n

My Rabbit R1 was so useless at launch that it has sat untouched in an office drawer since then.<\/p>\n

Now, the Rabbit R1 with RabbitOS 2 is an entirely different device, and anyone who bought one today should actually find things to do with it. That\u2019s very different from how it was at launch.<\/p>\n

However, it\u2019s still very much a gadget for tinkerers.<\/p>\n

The battery life is also a downside, and if you use the Creations or the Intern, expect it to rapidly deplete. The voice assistant doesn\u2019t use much energy, but even when the R1 is in standby, the battery runs down pretty quickly.<\/p>\n

\"Photos<\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s the cost.<\/p>\n

If you want to use it out and about, you\u2019ll need a SIM card and data plan, and now there\u2019s a new subscription plan for those who want to use the Intern.<\/p>\n

It comes with three vibe-coded \u201ctasks,\u201d but an additional three cost $30. This price includes publishing and hosting of your Creation, and the ability to use tasks for follow-ups on your Creation.<\/p>\n

Alternatively, you can pay a whopping $100 per month (or $840 per year) for 30 tasks per month. That\u2019s all on top of the $200 you\u2019ll spend on the device, although because the Rabbit R1\u2019s reputation is so poor, you can often find used models for sale at a cheaper price.<\/p>\n

Reputation matters<\/p>\n

And it sticks<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Rabbit R1 was a product in search of an audience, with a series of \u201cfunctions\u201d which either didn\u2019t work or were of passing interest at best.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t really ready for release, and calling early adopters beta testers<\/a> was almost too kind.<\/p>\n

It was quickly lumped in with the Humane AI Pin<\/a>, the other AI gadget of 2024, which disappointed everyone.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, that kind of terrible reputation sticks, and the Rabbit R1 has stuck in everyone\u2019s mind as promising hardware with software that failed to live up to expectations, and is often used as an example of how AI is over-hyped.<\/p>\n

Using RabbitOS 2 and the R1 today is fascinating. If it had launched like this, I think it would have been far better received.<\/p>\n

No, I don\u2019t think normal people should rush out and buy it, as it\u2019s still so niche. Still, those who do won\u2019t be so disappointed. Not only are there clear reasons to buy, but it actually works.<\/p>\n

What about the future?<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a new Rabbit coming<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

It\u2019s great to see a company stick with a product, update it, and genuinely make it better. Especially when it had to deal with such a strong backlash at launch.<\/p>\n

Rabbit has clearly learned from the experience, but has it learned enough?<\/p>\n

The company\u2019s pivot away from assistant duties to agentic vibe-coding on the R1 still follows current AI trends<\/a>, which may not be a sensible long-term strategy, but at least it does what it says this time.<\/p>\n

The trouble is, I wonder how many people will care, given the R1\u2019s awful reputation. I also wonder how many people will see enough value to spend $100 per month vibe-coding very simple apps for it.<\/p>\n

All this will impact the company\u2019s follow-up product<\/a>, which it has teased is in development, and may come out in 2026. RabbitOS 2 and Rabbit\u2019s commitment to long-term support makes me more receptive to the idea of a Rabbit R2 than I would have been just a few months ago. Surely, Rabbit is unlikely to make the same mistakes again?<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve been oddly tempted by a Rabbit R1, but have never purchased because of all the deserved negativity, it\u2019s worth knowing that it\u2019s a very different product today. Provided you know what you\u2019re getting into, there\u2019s a little bit of fun to be had with an R1 in late 2025.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When the Rabbit R1 came out, everyone hated it. It was a $200 AI gadget desperately searching for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":283015,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[182,181,507,74],"class_list":{"0":"post-283014","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-artificial-intelligence","8":"tag-ai","9":"tag-artificial-intelligence","10":"tag-artificialintelligence","11":"tag-technology"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/283014","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=283014"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/283014\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/283015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=283014"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=283014"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=283014"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}