If you visit an Apple Store from this week and hear a buzzing noise in the vicinity, don’t worry — it’s not a giant mosquito flying toward your head at speed. Instead, it’ll most likely be the Hover Camera Passport … in which case you might still want to watch your head.
The diminutive selfie drone, which launched toward the end of last year, will go on sale shortly at Apple Stores around the world, though from this week staff will be happy to offer interested visitors an in-store demonstration.
Apple inked an exclusivity deal with Beijing-based ZeroZero Robotics to become the sole seller of the Passport. The tech giant is offering a bundle (one drone, two batteries, a charger, an adapter, and an easy-carry bag) for $500 — that’s $100 cheaper than what it’s selling for on the Chinese firm’s own web store.
“We’re thrilled to bring autonomous flying photography into the hands of consumers who are excited by truly innovative technology that impacts their everyday lives,” ZeroZero Robotics’ CEO Meng Qiu Wang said in a release. “By selling in Apple, we want more customers to capture their memories in a near-effortless way through breathtaking perspectives that can only be achieved through Hover Camera Passport.”
The Passport drone is marketed as a fun way to take photos and is “like having a 65-foot selfie stick,” according to Digital Trends’ own review of the machine. Built-in features include face and body tracking, orbit mode where it circles around you, and a 360-degree “Spin” for panoramic video shots. It’s lightweight and small, and has protected propellers, too, so you can just grab it and go without fear of having your fingers sliced off. With that in mind, Enrique Iglesias will probably want the Passport.
Newly released software updates to coincide with the Apple Store launch include an all-new user interface for the companion iOS/Android app designed to offer drone novices simple control, automated media editing, and compatibility with iMovie and Final Cut Pro X.
You’ll find ZeroZero Robotics’ quadcopter flying around Apple Stores in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., China, and Hong Kong from this week, with Apple Stores in other countries also likely to have it buzzing about before too long.
