Star Wars fans can now own a real-life droid helper, thanks to a special partnership between robot maker Piaggio Fast Forward (PFF) and Disney.

A Droid You Can Actually Own

Released on "Star Wars Day" (May 4 - as in "May the Fourth be with you"), the G1T4-M1N1 is a special edition of PFF's gitamini robot that can follow you around and carry your things.

"We've had conversations with Disney over the years," said Greg Lynn, CEO of Piaggio Fast Forward. "We took gitaplus and gitamini to Disney's campus, and a year's collaboration went pretty quickly and smoothly."

The robot looks and sounds like it came straight from the Star Wars universe, with design elements inspired by popular droids like R2-D2 and BB-8.

What This Droid Helper Can Do

Unlike the droids in the movies, the G1T4-M1N1 won't fix your spaceship or deliver secret plans to the Rebellion. Instead, it has a more practical purpose - carrying your stuff while following you around.

The robot can:

• Carry up to 20 pounds (9 kg) of cargo
• Follow you automatically without remote control
• Work both indoors and outdoors on sidewalks
• Make Star Wars-inspired sounds to communicate

"We decided for this model to let the robot communicate with its leader when things were happening," Lynn explained. "When the robot turns a certain number of degrees, that triggers a sound. People who love Star Wars are comfortable with that level of interaction."

Sounds Like a Star Wars Droid

One of the most exciting features of the G1T4-M1N1 is how it communicates. The PFF team worked with Lucasfilm (the company that creates Star Wars) to develop 22 different sounds for the robot.

These sounds happen when the robot does different things, like:

• Pairing with your phone
• Charging its battery
• Starting up
• Speeding up or slowing down

This makes the robot feel much more like a Star Wars droid than a typical helper robot.

For Fans and Early Adopters

The G1T4-M1N1 costs $2,875, making it a premium purchase for serious Star Wars fans and people interested in cutting-edge technology.

"There's a Venn diagram of people ready to adopt a robot and Star Wars fans, and there's a big overlap," said Lynn. "We had a robot in the Times Square Disney Store, and we've had lots of positive comments from people who were there and on social media."

The company believes that people will want to engage with this robot longer than with other helper robots because of its Star Wars connection and personality.

More Features Could Come Later

While the current G1T4-M1N1 doesn't have a microphone for voice commands or extensive customization options, the company is watching customer response closely.

"We had our first customers and had a really great weekend," said Lynn. "We met or exceeded our targets and found a lot of enthusiasm."

If enough people buy and enjoy the robot, PFF might add more features in the future.

From Scooters to Droids

PFF is part of the Piaggio Group, the company best known for making Vespa scooters. Their regular gitamini robots have been used by hotels and other businesses, and they're also working on a larger robot called kilo for commercial use.

But the G1T4-M1N1 represents their most direct appeal to everyday consumers who want a touch of Star Wars magic in their daily lives.

For Star Wars fans who have always dreamed of having their own droid companion, this real-world helper might be the closest thing yet to bringing that galaxy far, far away right into their homes.