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Drones for the Consumer Market: Parrot Unveils UAV with HD Camera
Baku, May 13 (AZERTAC). While the use of drones by the government has been a controversial issue, some in the private sector apparently see the sky is truly the limit for the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) market. On Sunday consumer drone maker Parrot announced that it had developed a UAV that is equipped with a Full HD video camera — and it could even be controlled with virtual reality technology.
The Bebop drone’s 14-megapizel camera system sports image stabilization and a fisheye wide-angle 180-degree lens. The drone utilizes built-in GPS, which allows it to hover in place even if the pilot on the ground takes his/her hands off the controllers. Other sensors on board, including an accelerometer, a gyroscope and a magnetometer, help ensure the stability of the video. Would-be drone pilots can live stream the video or record up to 8GB of video via on-board storage drives.
The drone’s MIMO Wi-Fi ac system offers both 2.4GHz and 5GHz support, SlashGear reported. Current battery life is about 12 minutes, so flights will be on the short end of the spectrum. Parrot, which already has produced hobby-level drones, confirmed that the Bebop can be controlled via an Android or iOS smartphone or tablet app.
The Bebop can also be controlled with an optional Skycontroller system, which uses four antennas that extend the Wi-Fi range of the drone for up to 1.2 miles (2 kilometers). Where the Parrot Bebop could be a true game changer in the drone market is in that it could further be used with the Oculus Rift headset. This would allow users to get a true bird’s eye view — or at least a view of what the Bebop’s camera is focused on. Panning the camera then becomes as easy as moving the head.