Parrot's new minidrone comes with a cannon

Parrot Mambo drone

Has flying drones lost its thrill for you? What if there was a way to bring some of the fun back by, say, shooting small objects at people?

Parrot's angling for just that with its Parrot Mambo minidrone. We first told you about the pellet shooting, grab claw quadcopter in July, but now we have word that it goes on sale next month for a reasonable price.

The Mambo is a tiny thing - it only weighs 2.2oz on its own - but it includes two accessories that will delight you/annoy everyone around you.

The first is a cannon that lets you shoot pellets at a range of up to 6.5 feet (2m). You're not going to take down enemy aircraft with it, but it lets you pop bubbles and bother your friends, which has a joy all its own.

Mambo's other included accessory is a grabber that lets you do things like carry a note or drop a cube of sugar into your coffee (extreme!). Not included but available for an extra $15 (about £15, AU$20) are two LEDs for "nocturnal missions."

Though it's puny compared to Parrot's fixed-wing Disco drone, the Mambo can fly at speeds of up to 18mph and has a neat "throw to take-off" trick where its engines engage after you've tossed it into the air.

Priced at $119 (about £95, AU$159), the Mambo includes the cannon and grabber. Compared to quadcopters that can reach upwards of $450 (about £345, AU$600), the Mambo is a relative steal.

Swing time

Parrot is also launching its Swing minidrone next month for $139 (about £110, AU$135), a price that includes the Parrot Flypad, a new dedicated gamepad for the fliers.

The Swing looks like an X-wing Starfighter, and Parrot says it's the "first plane minidrone which takes off and lands vertically." It will basically rise straight up using its four propellers, then turn them horizontally so it can fly forward. When it's ready to land, it switches back to quadcopter mode to bring it down in a straight line.

Capable of reaching the same 18mph speeds as the Mambo, the Swing can perform a bevy of aerial acrobatics, from U-turns to half-flips to loops. It also features autopilot in plane mode to keep it at a steady altitude.

Both drones can be flown with the Flypad (sold separately for the Mambo at $39/about £30, AU$55) along with a new dedicated app, the FreeFlight Mini.

Michelle Fitzsimmons

Michelle was previously a news editor at TechRadar, leading consumer tech news and reviews. Michelle is now a Content Strategist at Facebook.  A versatile, highly effective content writer and skilled editor with a keen eye for detail, Michelle is a collaborative problem solver and covered everything from smartwatches and microprocessors to VR and self-driving cars.

Latest in Drones
The DJI Mavic 3 Pro in flight over some mountains
Upcoming DJI Mavic 4 Pro premium drone could deliver new camera skills and LiDAR – here’s what the latest leaks tell us
V-Copter Falcon Mini drone in flight over the ocean alongside cliff
Zero Zero Robotics unveils world’s first sub-250g bi-copter drone with 'lightning fast acceleration' and 'unmatched agility'
Potensic Atom 2 drone on a car bonnet, with user in background holding controller ready for takeoff
The new Potensic Atom 2 is a DJI Mini 4K-rivaling beginner drone with impressive flight features
DJI Flip alongside DJI Neo drone with split purple / cyan background
DJI Flip vs DJI Neo: which of these new type of multi-use drones is best for beginners?
DJI Flip drone in flight, snowy mountain backdrop, person piloting using the RC2 controller in foreground
DJI is trusting users to fly their drones safely, and it's as bad an idea as it sounds
The DJI Mavic 3 Pro in flight over some mountains
DJI Mavic 4 Pro leaks show it could improve my favorite camera drone with a redesigned triple camera module
Latest in News
UK Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer
UK PM says AI should soon replace civil servants
Eight Samsung TVs mounted to the wall showing different basketball games
Samsung is offering you 8 new TVs in one bundle for March Madness, in case you want to watch all games at once like a Bond villain’s lair
The Steam Logo on a mobile phone in front of a wall of games.
Today’s Steam Spring Sale features my absolute favorite game of all time - here's when the sale starts and all the key info
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max REVIEW
The latest iPhone 17 Pro Max leak may have given us another look at its upcoming redesign
Half-Life running on a smartwatch
This Redditor installed a game engine on their smartwatch, and now it runs Doom, Quake, and Half-Life
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 could be in line for a Galaxy S25 Ultra-level camera upgrade