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AirDog tracking drone could be the ultimate GoPro sidekick

AirDog tracking drone could be the ultimate GoPro sidekick

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If you're heavy into GoPro and the world of live-action video, you may want to start saving up for AirDog. It's a new flying drone that promises to automatically track its owner with the help of a massive wrist-worn remote. You simply strap your GoPro camera to the drone, send it skyward (at ranges of up to 1000 feet), and AirDog's creators promise a hands-off experience from that point on. The aircraft will automatically zero in on the "AirLeash" tracker — which can also be worn on a helmet — and keep it in frame at all times. "We spent countless caffeine-fueled hours hacking intelligent flight code algorithms," AirDog's creators say on its Kickstarter page. "The result is functionality that allows AirDog to follow you while you’re riding down the slope or flipping around on a halfpipe."

Built-in sensors help keep footage stable, smooth, and straight. Users can pick between six different modes that determine exactly how and where AirDog flies, with everything coordinated through a companion smartphone app. AirDog can stay in the air for up to 20 minutes, but can also run out of power after just 10 if you're using it at its max speed of 40mph. It's foldable, durable, and weather resistant — all things you'd hope for in a $1,000 GoPro sidekick. AirDog will need to reach $200,000 in funding to enter production, but it's already blown past the halfway point. Backers quickly snapped up the $995 early-bird special, so now you'll have to kick in at least $1,195 to secure one. If and when it launches commercially, AirDog will be priced at $1,500. Backers can expect to receive it in November if the Kickstarter campaign proves successful.