Police drones are nothing new, but the Audi Patrone aims to take things to the next level. Unlike the others, this 4-rotor quadcopter drone boasts a jet propulsion system for emergencies, and comes equipped with powerful lights, cameras, as well as a VR system, which looks eerily similar to the PlayStation VR headset, that enables law enforcement officers to control it from a safe distance. Continue reading for more pictures.
There have been some drone incidents that nearly caused major accidents with aircraft, but IXI Technology's Dronekiller could change that. This jamming gun has a range of up to 800 meters, and is good for 4-hours of continuous use when fully charged, thanks to hot-swappable battery packs. When depleted, simply connect it to any 12-volt vehicle outlet. Continue reading for a hands-on video and more information.
Most drones, even commercial models, can only fly for 30-minutes on a full charge, but Impossible Aerospace claims its US-1 "flying battery" drone is good for 2-hours of continuous use when fully charged. How is this possible? According to Impossible CEO Spencer Gore, the US-1 can hover for so long because the power source doubles as its primary structure. "We realized that you can make battery packs that are structural, that integrate safety technology at the pack level to deal with the unpredictable characteristics of the lithium-ion battery. Our vehicle will be made with lots of really small cells, just like Tesla's battery pack is made of really small cells, and we use those as structural building blocks for our aircraft," adds Gore. Continue reading for two more pictures and additional information.
One of the US Air Force's RQ-4 Global Hawk surveillance drones crashed in the waters off Spain this past June, and earlier this week, US European Command officials managed to recover what was left of it. This Northrop Grumman-built aircraft was assigned to 348th Reconnaissance Squadron out of Grand Forks Air Force Base, and went down in the Gulf of Cadiz near the US Navy's base in Rota, Spain. It was used to provide a broad overview and systematic surveillance using high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and long-range electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensors with long loiter times over target areas. The RQ-4 can survey as much as 40,000 square miles (100,000 km2) of terrain a day, which is an area the size of South Korea or Iceland. Continue reading for another video and more information.
Potensic's A20 Nano Firefly Drone fits in the palm of your hand and great for beginners or just casual everyday use, all for $25.99 shipped, this weekend only. When you release the throttle stick, Altitude Hold Mode locks the drone at a certain height, which makes controlling it much easier. Speed adjustment also enables you to choose a speed according to your skill level. Product page. Continue reading for another hands-on video, more pictures and information.
Photographer Reuben Wu is no stranger to light-equipped drones, as he used them in a previous series to illuminate landscapes and create halos over rock pinnacles. Now, he's back at it again, and created glowing symbols, which were created by lighting rig-equipped drones tracing waters over the Pacific Ocean and Lake Michigan. Continue reading for more pictures and information.
It's official, the DJI Mavic 2 Pro ($1,449) and Mavic 2 Zoom ($1,249) drones are here, unveiled at a special press event at the Brooklyn Navy Yards in New York City. These new folding drones are faster, quieter, smarter, safer, have extended flight times, and capture mind-blowing aerial compared to its predecessor, the Mavic Pro. They both can shoot 4K footage at up to 100 megabits per second, have 8GB of onboard storage, a top speed of 44 mph and a flight time of up to 31 minutes when fully charged. Both also feature 10 sensors for obstacle avoidance and a new image transmission system (DJI's OcuSync 2.0) that transmits live 1080p footage to the remote using your phone. Continue reading for more detailed looks at both models.
The DJI Mavic Pro is great for capturing aerial footage, but when in the hands of a professional photographer, you may see mesmerizing top-down light painting portraits, like these by Russell Klimas. "Some people will attach LumeCubes to their drone and paint an environment with them or will fly a drone around the sky or an object and have the drones lights creating images in the sky. However, there is another way to use them that isn't widely used yet: using the drone's camera to capture light-painting from above," said Russell. Continue reading for more pictures and instructions on how you can try it yourself.
Say goodbye to delivery trucks, and hello to Toyota Gamaru. This smart cargo solution uses drones to retrieve packages from warehouses and directly deliver them to your front door. How does it work? It uses special barrel-shaped tracking containers, loaded on wheeled robotic platforms that can move autonomously throughout cities and neighborhoods, that protect packages as they make their way from the warehouse to consumer. Continue reading for more pictures and information.
DROCON's X708W Wi-Fi FPV Quadcopter Drone is great for beginners, and it's being offered for just $49.99 shipped after clipping the on-page coupon, today only, originally $99.99. Never lose your drone again, with the headless mode, as all you need to do is press one key for it to return. Want to continue flying it normally? Simply press the one key again and the drone will exit the function. Take things to new heights and enjoy a live video feed in high-definition straight to your mobile device with the all new FPV Wi-Fi feature. Product page. Continue reading for another hands-on video review, more pictures and information.
