GoPro had a rough couple of weeks with falling stock prices and weak sales of their action camera. Their new Karma drone is meant to be the save all for the company, showing investors they aren’t just a one-trick pony. Unfourntently, GoPro has recalled their new Karma drone because the device could lose power unexpectantly. As you might expect, a drone losing power mid-flight could cause a major safety concern.
In a video uploaded to YouTube, you can see the drone flight where it loses power mid-flight, causing it to free fall to the ground. If you’d like to skip the drone flight skip to the 2:05 mark.
https://youtu.be/i4nRalvmBhA
“Safety is our top priority,” GoPro CEO Nicholas Woodman said this week. “A very small number of Karma owners have reported incidents of a power failure during operation. We have moved quickly to recall all units of Karma and provide a full refund while we investigate the issue.” Woodman also apologized to GoPro’s customers and said he wants the recall process to go as smoothly and efficiently as possible. GoPro is working in “close coordination” with the USPSC and the FAA to resolve the issues.
Where GoPro goes next is the million dollar question for investors and customers. Their drone was a new product category, a stab at DJI, a way to let customers own a drone that’s not from another company. Now don’t get me wrong, the Karma drone is a well design, portable drone with a fantastic controller. The biggest problems I see with the drone is software, like flight avoidance and other features DJI offers on the Mavic Pro.
Tell us what you think about GoPro sinking sales, recall on the Karma, and overall wat you think of their action camera offerings in the comments below!