There are plenty of quadcopters out there that you can buy if you want, but they tend to have one or more of the following downsides: they are expensive, fragile, difficult to fly. Just one can be a bummer, any pair is twice the drag, and all three just all out sucks. The pair of Arial tricksters Air Hogs rolled out for Toy Fair 2013 soar above those troubles.
When it comes to quadcopters, Air Hogs’ Elite Helix X4 is put up with plenty of shenanigans. Between its frame, constructed of a durable, oh-god-no-not-into-the-wall resistant foam, and its stabilising “beginner” mode, the X4 can help you help yourself master the art of crash-free flying, and soak up the damage when you don’t pull it off.
And when it comes to not quadcopters, Air Hogs is pushing a nifty little flying orb puntastically called the Atmosphere. Boasting none of that “remote control” stuff its cousin quadcopter relies on, the AtmoSphere is simple; stick your hand (or whathaveyou) under it and it flies. As the globe detects something solid below it, it kicks the turbine up to high-gear and gives itself a boost, bobbing with a frenetic sort of aerial buoyancy. And should it somehow slam into a wall or two, it’s body is conveniently one huge roll cage. Someone is bound to turn flying this into a tricking-based sport activity.
Both fliers will be available later this year, the X4 for $US90, and the AtmoSphere for a cool $US25. Start saving up now, and you could probably afford a small army.