We're big fans of Parrot's AR Drone, but we're also the first to admit that the thing is big. It's also not all that cheap a toy. Parrot is hoping to address our concerns with its latest invention, the MiniDrone. As you can probably guess from its name, the MiniDrone is a smaller drone. It's also going to be cheaper (though Parrot wouldn't say how much).
This little guy actually comes in two parts: the main quadricopter piece, and detachable wheels that transform the drone into a rolly toy that sort of resembles a TIE fighter (sort of). Remove the wheels, and the MiniDrone flies just like the larger quadricopter we've come to know and love. The whole thing is controller via an iOS application, and Parrot has focused on making the MiniDrone really easy to use, since it is targeting much younger users this time around. This also means that "bigger kids" with particularly bad hand eye coordination will find the toy pretty easy to use. One way that it differs from the larger AR Drone is that it doesn't have a camera, so you can't see what the drone "sees."
Jane McEntegart is a writer, editor, and marketing communications professional with 17 years of experience in the technology industry. She has written about a wide range of technology topics, including smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. Her articles have been published in Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, MobileSyrup, and Edge Up.
