NEO by 1X: the humanoid home robot with subscription at $499/month or purchase for $20,000 — reserve with $200

The firm 1X —known for humanoid robots and for having previously shown the EVE model in industrial environments— opens reservations for NEO, its home robot designed to coexist in real living rooms and kitchens. At 1x.tech/order it offers two options: a Standard subscription for $499 per month or the purchase of Early Access for $20,000 with a three-year warranty. In both cases the initial deposit is $200, fully refundable, and deliveries in the US are scheduled from 2026.

What does NEO promise at home?

NEO is not sold as a classroom toy or a fixed factory arm: the 1X narrative is home productivity with autonomy that improves over time. The Redwood AI model—generalist AI with the firm's own vision and language—learns and repeats tasks; Marketing examples range from get the door to managing laundry. At the beginning it arrives with basic autonomy and the promise of growing in capabilities as the system learns in real homes.

For tasks that you have not yet mastered, 1X offers Scheduled Expert Mode: an “Expert” from the company can remotely supervise the robot at agreed times, teach it new movements and complete the job. It's a hybrid between autonomous robot and programmed teleoperation — similar in spirit to how other humanoid firms use human operators in early phases, but here integrated into the consumer product.

Pricing: Subscription vs. Ownership

• Standard — $499/month: monthly subscription with “Starter Productivity Package” and standard delivery. Hardware-as-a-service model: you pay as you use it.
• Early Access — $20,000: purchase of the robot with 3-year warranty, premium support and priority delivery. Aimed at early adopters with a high budget.
• Deposit — $200 today: required to reserve; The website indicates that it is fully refundable. It does not replace the monthly payment or the final $20,000 depending on the chosen modality.

The order page does not publicly detail whether an Early Access buyer will need an additional subscription for cloud services or Expert Mode—a key question that should be clarified at checkout before paying the $20,000.

Interaction: voice, app, VR and “Emotive Ear Rings”

NEO is controlled by natural voice (Companion app), by the mobile app—task schedules, monitoring, remote communication— and by remote control with VR from anywhere. Emotive Ear Rings are luminous head rings that communicate status (battery, attention, etc.) without relying on an aggressive face display. It also works as a mobile Bluetooth speaker ("Boom Box") and self-charges when the battery gets low.

Design designed to live together

1X insists on soft safety: hardware wrapped in 3D lattice polymer, machine-washable nylon suit and boots, joints without pinch points accessible from the outside and low-inertia Tendon Drive actuation (audible noise ~22 dB according to sheet). The robot understands gestures and body expressions — it relies on “body language” instead of touch-only interfaces.

Hardware specifications

• Anthropometry: 5′6″ (1.68 m) · 66 lb (30 kg) · lifts up to 154 lb · load 55 lb · arm payload 18 lb.
• Degrees of freedom: hands 22×2 · arms 7×2 · neck 3 · spine 2 · legs 6×2.
• Speed: walk 1.4 m/s · run up to 6.2 m/s · hands up to 8 m/s.
• Battery: 842 Wh · ~4 hours of use · fast charging ~6 min per hour of autonomy.
• Protection: hands IP68 (submersible) · body IP44 (splashes).
• Compute: chip 1X NEO Cortex based on Nvidia Jetson Thor; stereo fisheye cameras 8.85 MP at 90 Hz; Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and 5G.
• Includes: charger, lint roller and carrying case.

Futuristic gadget or real product?

NEO places 1X in the same conversation as Figure, Tesla Optimus or Unitree, but with a domestic twist: affordable subscription price for a wealthy niche ($499/month) versus $20,000 for advance purchase. The $200 refundable deposit reduces the friction to get on the list — although the robot remains a niche product, US-only at the start, with limited autonomy at the beginning and partial dependence on remote experts.

For MARGENEZ readers interested in technological gadgets, NEO is one of the clearest bets of 2026 for bringing a humanoid to the living room with integrated AI, not just to the warehouse. If the question is "is it worth booking?", the refundable deposit allows you to follow developments without risking $20,000; If the question is "does it already replace a cleaning person?", the 1X itself supports a learning curve and Expert mode — a sign that the leap from demo to daily utility is still underway.