AR Drones...Invasion of Privacy?

The AR Drone.

Sounds like a cool concept. Fun too. But are there risks we deal with by releasing this item to the public?

Free Flight’s a good start, though. It gives you realtime access to the AR.Drone’s onboard video cameras, which let you see in front of or below the copter’s current location, plus controls: what looks like a left joystick is actually a button that takes the drone out of “hover” mode and into accelerometer control mode, while the right icon is a joystick that controls altitude (up/down) and rotation (left/right). At bottom center is a button that makes the drone land and take off. An Emergency button at the top is used to immediately cut off all power to the rotors, which will cause the copter to drop like a rock if it’s in flight; the landing button provides a more controlled descent. The battery level for the AR.Drone is also shown in the top-right corner as both an icon and a percentage, although the percentage can sometimes be hard to read while in-flight depending on what is being displayed by the on-board camera; a different font or black background would have been helpful here.

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Like I said, sounds like a fun concept but isn't a bit...invading?

You can fly with your friends AND spy on your neighbors at night by flying one by a window.

I don't know, maybe it's just me, but anyone else find this new "toy" troubling?

Thanks.

I think that as long as these drones are fairly expensive, it won't be much of an issue, because if something happens to the drone over some one else's property, they'll most likely lose it because the angry home/land owner will keep it.

If I saw one hovering outside my window over my house more than once, I'd shoot it out of the sky. Then if the pilots came to my house, I'd tell them I have no idea what they were talking about and to get off my property.

But if they get cheap, then perhaps cities will have to pass local ordinances banning the use of those over residential neighborhoods and/or private property without permission.