The Parrot AR.Drone was the darling of CES 2010, managing to garner the biggest crowd's at the show's CES Unveiled event. And with good reason, too – this was the ultimate accessory to your iPhone, a flying quadricopter which could be controlled by your iOS device.
Skip to CES 2012 and even though the original AR.Drone still has the shock and awe factor, its maker Parrot has decided to tweak a number of features and come up with the imaginatively titled Parrot AR.Drone 2.0.
You can check out our Vegas video of the Parrot Drone in action below:
This new quadricopter keeps a similar chassis (albeit streamlined) to version one, but it comes with an added 720p camera, a painted makeover, increased stability and it will also crunch flight data for you.
In short, this looks to trump the original in every way and the new camera means that you will be able to film your flights in a lot more detail.
There's a new feature which allows you to create your own flight path and the AR.Drone will follow your co-ordinates and film its flight for you. Once you have the footage, you can then upload it to YouTube and share your flying experience with others.
This is a small but significant change from the original AR.Drone and could be something which builds up a community.
With the new update, Parrot has added to the gamification of having an AR.Drone. There's no denying this was always an executive that would get you noticed but with the new features now you can compete other like-minded 'droners'.
When it comes to stability, the demo we were shown showcased just how durable the new AR.Drone is – it was even doing flips in the air which was impressive.
The Parrot AR.Drone is the most expensive accessory you will ever get for your Android or iOS device – the original costs around £300 – but you'll be having so much fun flying the thing you'll soon forget about the crippling debt.
TechRadar is unsure when the AR.Drone 2.0 will take flight to the UK but expect it sometime soon.
