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Hover Camera is a safe and foldable drone that follows you
"Follow me" is an up-and-coming feature on consumer drones, and then you've also got those that are foldable for the sake of portability. Very few devices carry both advantages, but Beijing startup Zero Zero Robotics has already gone further with its Hover Camera. As the name suggests, this drone is mainly for aerial photography and videography, but what makes it even cooler is the fact that its propellers are fully enclosed by a strong carbon fiber frame, thus making it the safest drone we've ever played with. As you can see in our hands-on video after the break, you can literally grab it whenever you like without sacrificing any of your fingers to the drone gods.
The Hexo drone is your flying selfie companion
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-916057{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-916057, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-916057{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-916057").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Hiring a film crew to capture your action sport exploits can cost thousands of dollars an hour while trying to take selfies as you barrel full-tilt down the side of a mountain is a great way to wind up in traction. But with the HEXO+ UAV from Squadrone Systems, you won't have to do either. This semi-autonomous aerial camera platform pairs to your phone via Bluetooth and faithfully tracks movement, keeping you (or at least your phone) centered in the shot. I recently took an early production model out for a walk at San Francisco's Fort Funston to see how well the HEXO+ actually performs and wound up starring in my own low-speed action flick.
Hands-on with Fotokite Phi, a pet drone on a leash
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-860439{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-860439, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-860439{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-860439").style.display="none";}catch(e){} Drone enthusiasts are flush with options these days, from a Parrot for a few hundred dollars to high-end quadcopters going for upward of $5,000. But the Fotokite Phi is unique because it offers a tether and controller that makes it feel very similar to flying a kite. I met Fotokite's founder, Sergei Lupashin, at a downtown San Francisco building to try it out. The drone he designed just hit crowdfunding site Indiegogo for early-bird prices cycling up to $349. Once it launches, though, the price is more likely to be in the $500-plus range.
This drone follows you down the trail after you toss it up in the air
Aerial footage is a nice way to capture those action sports endeavors, and it's even better if you can fit the gear in your backpack. Lily ticks those boxes, and all you have to do to launch it is toss it up in the air. Once airborne, the camera UAV will follow you down the slopes or along the trail thanks to a tracking device that you wear on your wrist (or stuff in a pocket, we'd surmise). It's a similar setup to the Airdog we saw on Kickstarter last year. On board, the drone packs a camera capable of 12-megapixel stills, 1080p footage at 60 frames per second and 720p video at 120 fps. Those optics offer a 94-degree filed of view and the settings can be dialed in with a smartphone app. You can take the thing out on the water too, as the drone is waterproof and floats -- should it land in the rapids.
3D Robotics' new drone can follow you around, carry a mirrorless camera
3D Robotics is not about to let DJI hog all the press with its wild Inspire 1 Drone, so it just revealed its own semi-pro model: the X8+. The 8-prop UAV is designed to carry GoPro or lightweight mirrorless cameras, while offering a fully automated flight control system starting at $1,350 (without a gimbal or camera). That price may tempt pro or semi-pro users away from DJI's (admittedly cool), retractable gear model, which runs $2,900 with a built-in gimbal and 4K camera. But unlike DJI's turnkey drone, 3DR is positioning the X8+ as a customizable ship aimed not only at cinematographers, but surveyors or miners too.
Nixie is a wearable drone that captures your activities on the fly
Remember the dronie? If not, it's a self-taken photograph (sigh, selfie) from a UAV like the Parrot AR Drone 2.0 that provides a bit more creativity than your arm reach allows. Imagine that you can attach that drone to your wrist and launch it instantly, and you have some idea about how the Nixie works. Once aloft, it's designed to detect your presence and fly around you, pointing its camera to film your exploits -- ranging from tourism to mountain climbing, as the video below shows. The project is part of Intel's Make it Wearable contest, and uses an Edison chip to track you and avoid obstacles. For now, it's just a delicate prototype that can fly off your wrist and not do much else. But it's scored a $50,000 finalist prize from Intel, meaning our dream of having aerial footage of all our hum-drum activities could finally come true -- yes, we are that vain.
Airdog drone serves as your loyal action sports cameraman
The battle in the skies this week is the autonomous action-sports drone apparently. Why? Because, what if you want to be the star in your as yet un-made aerial epic? With a regular drone that's a tricky one. You could film yourself, as you stand flying the drone, but where's the fun in that? Airdog is a quadcopter drone that follows you, using GPS and movement tracking to keep up as you get down (the slope, or whatever). Action camera selfie videos are cool and all, but wouldn't an epic aerial shot following you carving through fresh powder snow, or riding that killer wave, or heck, even scuba diving be so much better? Airdog promises exactly that. And more.
