News

According to the Wall Street Journal, people close to GoPro have said that the wearable video camera company is developing a line of consumer drones equipped with high-definition cameras that will be launched late next year. The WSJ reports that the sources suggested GoPro’s new drones might cost between $500 and $1,000.

The move can be seen as an indication of how mainstream the market for drones has now become—and how regulations on their use are struggling to keep up. Indeed, the popularity of consumer drones has already given rise to a new word: dronie—a selfie taken with a drone.

GoPro, which went public in June and is trying to maintain its lead in the videocam market, already supplies many of the small cameras carried aboard consumer drones. However, with the recent news that China’s SZ DJI Technology, the world’s largest maker of consumer drones, started bundling its own cameras on its devices, GoPro seems to have realised it’s time to explore other avenues.

Despite the commercial use of drones being largely banned in the U.S. by the Federal Aviation Administration, unmanned aerial vehicles have found uses in a number of industries, such as farming and construction. “Conservation drones” have also been used to enforce marine protection laws and to monitor the health and natural habits of whales.

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