ASIMO vs Pepper: Specs, Price & ROS Support Compared (2015)
Honda vs SoftBank Robotics / Aldebaran — independent, side-by-side analysis.
Quick Verdict
ASIMO leads in more DOF, faster speed, while Pepper leads in longer runtime. Overall, ASIMO has an edge in 2 out of 3 compared categories.
ASIMO
Honda
Pepper
SoftBank Robotics / Aldebaran
DNA Fingerprint Overlay
ASIMO Pepper
Specifications
Never sold commerciallyPrice$32,000
130 cmHeight120 cm
48 kgWeight28 kg
57DOF20
1 kgPayload—
1hRuntime12h
2.5 m/sSpeed0.83 m/s
YesStairsNo
NoLiDARNo
Proprietary Honda embedded systemsComputeIntel Atom Z530
Pros and cons at a glance
ASIMO
Pros
- 57 degrees of freedom — full-body articulation
Cons
- Discontinued by the manufacturer
- Unit price not publicly disclosed (quote-on-request or enterprise-only)
- Low rated payload (1 kg) — research or light-handling tasks only
- Short runtime (60 min) — frequent recharging or battery swaps
Pepper
Pros
- Long runtime (12h per charge) for full-shift operation
Cons
- Discontinued by the manufacturer
- Cannot navigate stairs — restricts deployment environments
Frequently asked questions
How do ASIMO and Pepper compare on price?
ASIMO: Never sold commercially. Pepper: $32,000. Only one of the two has a public unit price; the other publishes a range or enterprise-only terms.
Which is better for ROS-based development: ASIMO or Pepper?
ASIMO has no ROS support; Pepper has ROS 1 only. For research and multi-vendor robotics stacks, native ROS 2 is the strongest signal of ecosystem maturity.
Last updated: 2015