The Dronebrella: Dumb Idea or Dumbest Idea?

Drones are exciting and cool, we get it. That does not mean anything you combine with a drone also automatically becomes exciting and cool. Even if your new drone-thing is exciting and cool, it doesn’t mean it’s a good idea. Just consider drones with handguns and flamethrowers as an example.

So I was really bemused to see reports of a Japanese inventor who decided what we really needed was a Dronebrella: the unholy marriage of drone and umbrella.

Hat’s off to the guy for getting that poor drone to fly with a parasol glued to its top, but there are a number of problems I foresee.

Other People

For this to work, it has to fly low enough to cover you. That means it could be bumping into other people with parasols and snagging on all sorts of things. So you can really only use this in an open space like a field and probably not on a beach or sidewalk.

The Wind

Congratulations, you’ve hooked a parachute to your drone. “Bye, bye drone!” you yell as a light gust of wind hurls it over the horizon. You’ll notice none of the videos show it flying outside, which is generally where you’d want to use a parasol.

The Noise

Sorry, what? WHAT? WHAAT?

The Haircut

Seriously, you can’t fly that inches over someone’s head.

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Sydney Butler

Sydney Butler is a prolific technology writer with a knack for digital gadgets and a love of flying things. He's been messing with tech since the early 90s and dreams of the day that quadcopter hoverbike finally goes on sale.

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