Last updated: 04 March 2015 The Parrot AR. Drone 2.0 is a small flying device with an on-board HD video camera, which is controlled with a smartphone and can record both video and GPS data. Does this sound like the coolest gadget ever, or an invasive surveillance tool that should be approached with caution? While the answer to that all depends on your own perspective/paranoia, the Parrot AR. Drone 2.0 hover quadricopter is certainly an interesting toy that can be used for many social (and possibly anti-social) activities. Capture the world from above The drone is quite small, at just 52cm x 54cm and only 400 grams, which means it could easily be mistaken for a normal remote control toy found in parks around the country. However, the four propellers arranged around a stealthy camouflaged body, which contains an HD video camera, all combine to make it look a little more exotic. Or possibly a bit sinister. The asking price of $380 isn't too high compared to some of the more traditional remote control helicopters or planes currently available.

An additional rechargeable battery, which will set you back about $70, is an advisable addition as we found we were getting no more than 15 minutes or so on a single charge, and it took nearly an hour to recharge a dead battery.parrot ar drone quadrocopter für iphone ipad ipod touch The device is controlled through an app on your Apple or Android smartphone or tablet and a wireless connection, with a Windows 8 app reportedly coming soon. parrot ar drone hull repairThe controls are pretty simple to use and you can get a drone's-eye view from the front camera in high definition video, or an overhead perspective through the second downward- facing camera, although at a much lower resolution.ar drone 2 reservdelar

While the controls on the device are a bit tricky to start with, the AR. Drone 2.0 is reasonably stable in still air, but will wander about a bit in a breeze. storm drone ff flying platform ebayIt's also a good idea to pay careful attention when you're flying at any altitude, because wind speeds will vary at different heights.ar drone 2 tillbehör We were able to comfortably get the drone to fly 50 meters from the user in the open; black ops 2 quadrotor drone ebayhowever, when you exceed this the drone goes into a holding mode and just hovers. Its camera range is the same, and it uses a wireless network connection not a phone network, so the limitations are with Wi-Fi technology, not the device itself. It dropped pretty hard from a couple of meters' elevation a few times during our testing without obvious damage.

Although we didn't carry out any tests in rainy conditions, its mostly plastic body and the battery/processor area seem reasonably well protected from minor showers etc. Share and share alike You're encouraged on the AR. Drone website to record and share your flights, with connections to Facebook and YouTube to help make this easy. In addition, there are games and activities that help transport the pilot to virtual worlds, where there's the opportunity for more competition and social interaction. Picture quality from the front-facing HD camera is no better than you'd expect from an average quality compact camera, but it's still good enough to see where you're going and for sharing with other drone fans. You can record to a USB stick as well as directly to your controlling device. Once you become more familiar with the controls you could have a lot of fun indoors with the drone, although it would be a good idea to remove any expensive items or family heirlooms before hurtling the drone through your home, just in case.

It's not particularly noisy, so there is definite potential for covert surveillance of your neighbour's dog's digging sites or finding out who's really stealing your Sunday paper from the doorstep, but remember that you still have to be in the general vicinity, so don't think you can stay in an apartment and send your virtual minion out into the world to do your bidding. And the drone's likely to draw attention to itself in built-up areas anyway. It comes with a soft protective indoors hull, as well as an outdoors hull that leaves the plastic rotors uncovered. Some care should be taken when flying in this mode because the rotors could do serious damage to eyes. It's fun to fly and a good deal less noxious and noisy than model airplanes of the past. The sharing factor will be compelling to social network addicts and it adds a new perspective to how you look at the world around you. However, you may want to think carefully to determine whether your flight recordings of others are just good fun or an invasion of their privacy.

Online streaming TV and movie services compared Geoclense Home Harmonizer review Helping older people online Tomorrow's smartphones globally unveiled at MWC Tell CHOICE what you want us to test in a mattress review Audi taken to court for using defeat devices Court fines Jetstar, Virgin $750k for 'drip pricing' Ticket resale websites letting illegal scalpers operate with impunity Hands-on: Parrot AR Drone 2.0 packs new features and better hardware 01.10.2012 :: 3:13PM EST @russellholly In many ways, you could attribute the current rush of toys accessories powered by our smartphones to the Parrot AR Drone. The ability to fly a really cool looking quad-copter through the office with your smartphone was enough to excite any geek, and Parrot made that happen. The eventual growth to include both iOS and Android software to control the drone meant a massive market of people to enjoy the device. Now, as other smartphone-controlled gadgetry, like Sphero, is hitting the market, Parrot felt the need to refresh the AR Drone and give it some new bragging rights with the Drone 2.0.

New and Improved Hardware The original AR Drone is still incredibly fun to operate, but the first thing anyone does with one is crash it into something. Unfortunately, for some, that’s the last time your AR Drone 1.0 is intact. Parrot redesigned the hulls for the Drone 2.0 to handle much more stress. When using it indoors, the foam composite hull that goes around the blades has been improved, without being any heavier. In the demonstration, the AR Drone 2.0 rammed the wall of the convention center as fast as it could go, and bounced off without a scratch. When you take the Drone 2.0 outside, you remove that outer hull and let the new aerodynamically engineered EPP hull protect the quad-copter without risking it being blown away. EPP is a damage resistant plastic commonly used in car bumpers. The Parrot guys weren’t quite as willing to crash the AR Drone 2.0 with the foam core off of it, since your blades are exposed in that configuration. The camera on the AR Drone 2.0 took a big boost as well, offering a 720p view of the world from your controller.

The camera records at 30 fps, and allows you to upload the videos to YouTube as soon as you are finished recording them. Since your only rage limitation is how far your point to point WiFi connection with the Drone 2.0, the end result is a high definition aerial view that you have complete control over. The App Store and the Android Market are now serving up the AR FreeFlight 2.0 app to complement the new hardware from Parrot. This update includes a significant UI update and several new features to play with. With FreeFlight you can control the drone and record your flights or take pictures as you fly around, but you can also take the flight data and share it with other AR Drone users. Altitude, duration, location, and speed information are all recorded and easily shared through the app. To compliment this ability, the AR Drone Academy function lets you see how-to videos and location data for the best flight zones in your area. Firmware updates for the AR Drone 2.0 are also handled through the app.

When an update is available for your drone, the icon will light up, and you can install the update with a tap. The update is sent over the WiFi connection with the Drone, so everything can be done quickly and efficiently. As more developers take advantage of the open development platform for the AR Drone, the AR Games section of the app will fill with more augmented reality, tag, and other inventive ways to play with the Drone. When you fly the AR Drone, you can do it by looking at the drone and piloting with the FreeFlight controller, or you can use Absolute Flight, and use just your smartphone or tablet. The app will show you from the camera how the world looks from the drone’s perspective, but there are a few more things going on here. Absolute Control uses a 3D magnetometer to keep itself oriented. Using your controller as the orientation point, you no longer need to worry about how level the Drone is. However, if you’re an experienced Drone pilot, you can make the Drone 2.0 do aerial somersaults and exert much more control over how this version performs.