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Drones and explosives and tin foil hats

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zzm9980
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Post by zzm9980 » Thu, 24 Jul 2014 1:42 pm

How timely:
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014 ... ai-prison/
The Bangkok Post reports that guards at the Khao Bin Prison in Thailand took possession of what appears to be a DJI Phantom drone laden with cell phones and accessories. The drone was snagged on a tree limb inside the prison compound.

Taped to the drone were two Nokia cell phones, four SIM cards, a pair of Bluetooth devices, and headphones. Also attached to the aircraft was what appeared to be a system on a board—about the size of a Raspberry Pi computer. The gear was concealed in a plastic bottle.

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Post by x9200 » Thu, 24 Jul 2014 2:05 pm

Strong Eagle wrote:
x9200 wrote:The problem with the cheappo ones is that they really require a bit of skills to fly them (at least the helicopters). They are typically meant for indoors with no air of any sort moving around. Simply too light and prone to any air movement.

I have a slightly bigger one (max span of ~50cm), with a camera on board (live video feed to android/ios) and yet have to learn how to fly it. But it is a very cool toy for the price ($94 from groupon SG).

For indoors I can recommend this smaller guy:

SYMA S107G, S$35 (including delivery) via ebay from a UK seller.
Ideal for a gift (target group vary).
This is really crappo stuff... very little radio distance, poor equipment... I had one... upgrade.
I believe you are wrong. Firstly, why do you want to have a long radio distance for indoor (it's IR in this case, not even the radio)?

Secondly, this is just a children toy, but for the price this one beats all the generic Chinese crap. Maybe you have the later or a counterfeited one? - I have one non-branded and it does not come even close - looks the same, performs differently. If someone wants to try this sort of toys and later get more serious (few hundred bucks minimum?), this is IMHO a very good candidate.

Lastly, you may search youtube for videos of it (SYMA S107G) and you will see some more serious hobbits very positively surprised with the S107G. For example: http://youtu.be/tzQJHiSjqFw - just watch the beginning and last 2 minutes of the video.

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Post by x9200 » Thu, 24 Jul 2014 2:16 pm

Sporkin wrote:Are there any that are programmable? Not just the camera. If stability is an issue maybe with rotor and gyroscopic access one can rig a auto stabilization system to it. Or the more hardware savvy folks might be able to pair a Raspberry pi to it.
It is just an inexpensive, quality toy. I doubt it would manage to lift an RPi board from the ground.

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Post by ecureilx » Thu, 24 Jul 2014 3:28 pm

zzm9980 wrote:
ecureilx wrote:
x9200 wrote:I am heading in the right direction - bought recently 2 RC helicopters "for my son" and I am very tempted to buy a quadcopter Groupon has right now in their offer (ca S$70).
saw one near Sim Lim, the next block, a quad that can lift 400 grams .. but the flying time of 20 mins wasn't interesting ..

the guy claimed you can program pre defined flight pattern using GPS coordinates and up to 2 km remote control ... comes with stabilized turret ... remote viewing camera ...

tempting .... :evil: :evil:
His claim is right. Check this one out:
http://www.dji.com/product/phantom-2

Amongst its many possible add-ons and options, it has a bluetooth capable flight controller. You plot out an entire flight plan (speed, altitude, rotations and even banking for the camera) on your iPad (and android? don't know). You then send it via bt to the flight controller and let it fly on its own. The thing is GPS guided so it compensates for winds and everything. They're really quite amazing.

And 20 minutes is pretty decent considering some can reach ~100km/hr. The flight time is mostly constrained by weight. If you strip it down you can hit 30 minutes, but that would likely require removing the camera. Not as much fun.
the demo I saw was bundled with a GoPro cam, which can do a decent job minus the stabilized turret ...

in which case in can fly longer

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Post by zzm9980 » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 12:11 am

ecureilx wrote:
zzm9980 wrote:
ecureilx wrote: saw one near Sim Lim, the next block, a quad that can lift 400 grams .. but the flying time of 20 mins wasn't interesting ..

the guy claimed you can program pre defined flight pattern using GPS coordinates and up to 2 km remote control ... comes with stabilized turret ... remote viewing camera ...

tempting .... :evil: :evil:
His claim is right. Check this one out:
http://www.dji.com/product/phantom-2

Amongst its many possible add-ons and options, it has a bluetooth capable flight controller. You plot out an entire flight plan (speed, altitude, rotations and even banking for the camera) on your iPad (and android? don't know). You then send it via bt to the flight controller and let it fly on its own. The thing is GPS guided so it compensates for winds and everything. They're really quite amazing.

And 20 minutes is pretty decent considering some can reach ~100km/hr. The flight time is mostly constrained by weight. If you strip it down you can hit 30 minutes, but that would likely require removing the camera. Not as much fun.
the demo I saw was bundled with a GoPro cam, which can do a decent job minus the stabilized turret ...

in which case in can fly longer
The whole point is the entire platform is modular and you can change whatever you want with it. Get the hex-coptor and mount a DSLR:
http://www.dji.com/product/spreading-wings-s1000

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Post by nakatago » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 7:36 am

zzm9980 wrote:
The whole point is the entire platform is modular and you can change whatever you want with it. Get the hex-coptor and mount a DSLR:
http://www.dji.com/product/spreading-wings-s1000
That would be sweet, not to mention great for a photography business.

Heck; even Martha Stewart enjoys drone photography http://www.newyorker.com/humor/daily-sh ... ains-drone
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Post by x9200 » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 7:49 am

Drone photography contest (first time this year) just announced the awards:

http://www.dronestagr.am/contest/rewards/

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Post by Max Headroom » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 3:57 pm

Those pix are way shiok.

No doubt about it, a lot of good can come of these drone thingies.

But I also foresee a fair bit of strife. I, for one, would be none to pleased if I see one of them even so much as doing a buzz by my window. Is it just a kid toying around or it is a camera-mounted one?

Not that I'm in the habit of parading around in the nuddie, but who needs some baskit taking a peek into your place surreptitiously? Recording it, no less.

Plenty of up-skirting and down-blousing going on here even without drones. Those pervertly-inclined must simply be drooling (sorry) at all the possibilities.

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Post by PNGMK » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 5:07 pm

Max Headroom wrote:Those pix are way shiok.

No doubt about it, a lot of good can come of these drone thingies.

But I also foresee a fair bit of strife. I, for one, would be none to pleased if I see one of them even so much as doing a buzz by my window. Is it just a kid toying around or it is a camera-mounted one?

Not that I'm in the habit of parading around in the nuddie, but who needs some baskit taking a peek into your place surreptitiously? Recording it, no less.

Plenty of up-skirting and down-blousing going on here even without drones. Those pervertly-inclined must simply be drooling (sorry) at all the possibilities.
A drone owned by an amateur found a lost old man in 20 mins - people had been searching for him 3 days!

http://www.news.com.au/technology/desig ... 7001697240

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Post by x9200 » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 5:16 pm

Max, you are completely right but this is just a tool as many other tools. From a longer time perspective I don't think people will frequently use it to violate someones privacy. The later can be also criminal offense. It is like with the miniaturized microphones and cameras, everybody can use it but hardly anybody does.

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Post by ecureilx » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 5:20 pm

Max Headroom wrote:
Plenty of up-skirting and down-blousing going on here even without drones. Those pervertly-inclined must simply be drooling (sorry) at all the possibilities.
there was a video of Nyc airborne chopper having IR recorded a couple having sex on their roof

and also an Apache crew watching on IR a 'west Asian' man making love to a baa baa ...... :evil:

I like the strap on range extender on the drone caught in Thailand .. forget aerodynamics ... :eek:


you can always laser the camera with a high powered laser if you spot the Drone ,.

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Post by Max Headroom » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 6:27 pm

Oh, chopper pilots are simply the worst :devil:

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Post by JR8 » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 8:05 pm

Max Headroom wrote:Oh, chopper pilots are simply the worst :devil:
German ones are wurst still
[getting coat]

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Post by JR8 » Fri, 25 Jul 2014 8:15 pm

Image

Image

'Battle for the latest Hello Kitteh collection was fiercer than anticipated...'


[downtown tonight]

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Post by ecureilx » Sat, 26 Jul 2014 11:57 am

JR8 wrote:[]

Image

'Battle for the latest Hello Kitteh collection was fiercer than anticipated...'


[downtown tonight]
iz zhat a Hawk? :eek: :eek:

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