Drone Magazine November 2017

Drone Magazine November 2017

WELCOME
To Issue 26 of Drone Magazine !

Given how far UAV technology has come over the past few years, it’s quite a sobering thought to consider that there’s still some way to go before drones could be considered truly ‘mainstream’. Some could argue, and with good reason, that they already are and that the revolution is already upon us, but this issue raises a few interesting areas where there’s clearly more work to be done.

Speaking with William Reddaway for our article on the construction industry, it’s clear that there’s still a sense of trepidation about accepting and embracing drones for what they can do, as well as a scepticism based on what they can’t. Years of negative press have likely had an impact here, but it’s also about proving to big business the value that UAVs can offer, and turning all that positive talk about saving time, money and risk into cold, hard cash. There’s little doubt that the technology will continue to adapt and evolve, and likely more tailor-made solutions will emerge to better resolve some of those concerns.

That said, I have found it interesting that Parrot’s latest announcements are both  upgraded versions of existing models – following on from DJI doing likewise last month. It could be easy to dismiss these as minor steps forward, with a Phantom 5 or a Bebop 3 being where the real innovation lies, but I’m quite content to see these major players simply improving on what they have, rather than feeling compelled to wrap up a ‘new’ model with a host of enforced bells and whistles just to meet a preprescribed marketing window.

Having previously worked in videogames, I’ve seen too many gaming franchises  suffer as a result of an obligatory annual update – and perhaps we should feel grateful  that we’re not being pressured into spending another chunk of cash on a brand new and possibly half-baked drone we probably don’t need…

Enjoy the issue!

Ian Collen , EDITOR