3 ms·

Immediate use: presentations, accurately tracking the speaker without having to hire someone to keep camera on subject the whole time. Even moreso when multiple

Immediate use: presentations, accurately tracking the speaker without having to hire someone to keep camera on subject the whole time. Even moreso when multiple cameras. Just need one A/V control booth person, much cheaper to buy several of these than hire several cameramen. Think TED Talks, Apple Keynotes, anything fairly big-budget where chasing the random motions of the speaker just doesn't look on par with the money going in & out of the presentation.

davnicwil 11y ago
Yes, agreed, this pro use case is an instant, no-questions-asked sell.
frik 11y ago
Some Cisco cams can do that. And it would be a use case for the defunct(?) Microsoft Kinect 2.
cbhl 11y ago
Except this product is outdoor-only.
- msandford 11y ago
  Care to explain? Does it have a GPS that makes it stop working when it gets inside?
superuser2 11y ago
Live production is ALL about reliability. A boring lights-up lights-down corporate show ALWAYS has 2 $100,000 light boards in active/hot standby even though one $50 DMX controller would do. We always opt for wired where possible, even if wireless exists. We are paranoid about secure and safe cable runs. When wireless is necessary, we transmit on multiple frequencies with smart frequency-hopping algorithms so that if two of them get interference, the content still comes through on the third. We have a visceral distrust of rechargeable batteries. We swap out AAs and 9-volts (only the brands we trust) obsessively. A good sound engineer is made very uncomfortable by (and thus obsessively monitors) battery-powered devices in the critical path. In short: there's no way you're going to get respectable production companies to trust this thing. One, it flies, Two, it's battery. Three, it's RF. Under these circumstances, we proceed with EXTREME caution. We'd much rather build truss to get a camera where it needs to go, run cables to it, mat and tape them as appropriate. Automation is okay, but there is existing, battle-tested camera automation and it's not even that widespread yet. Film production, maybe. A blown take isn't free, but it's pretty cheap. A flying camera at WWDC hitting battery starvation, motor failure, RF interference, etc. is the end of the world in that line of work.
- tripzilch 11y ago
  Ok. Just noting that the product discussed here, doesn't actually fly. It's not a drone.

davnicwil 11y ago

Yes, agreed, this pro use case is an instant, no-questions-asked sell.

frik 11y ago

Some Cisco cams can do that. And it would be a use case for the defunct(?) Microsoft Kinect 2.

cbhl 11y ago

Except this product is outdoor-only.

msandford 11y ago
Care to explain? Does it have a GPS that makes it stop working when it gets inside?

superuser2 11y ago

Live production is ALL about reliability. A boring lights-up lights-down corporate show ALWAYS has 2 $100,000 light boards in active/hot standby even though one $50 DMX controller would do. We always opt for wired where possible, even if wireless exists. We are paranoid about secure and safe cable runs. When wireless is necessary, we transmit on multiple frequencies with smart frequency-hopping algorithms so that if two of them get interference, the content still comes through on the third. We have a visceral distrust of rechargeable batteries. We swap out AAs and 9-volts (only the brands we trust) obsessively. A good sound engineer is made very uncomfortable by (and thus obsessively monitors) battery-powered devices in the critical path. In short: there's no way you're going to get respectable production companies to trust this thing. One, it flies, Two, it's battery. Three, it's RF. Under these circumstances, we proceed with EXTREME caution. We'd much rather build truss to get a camera where it needs to go, run cables to it, mat and tape them as appropriate. Automation is okay, but there is existing, battle-tested camera automation and it's not even that widespread yet. Film production, maybe. A blown take isn't free, but it's pretty cheap. A flying camera at WWDC hitting battery starvation, motor failure, RF interference, etc. is the end of the world in that line of work.

tripzilch 11y ago
Ok. Just noting that the product discussed here, doesn't actually fly. It's not a drone.