The Parrot AR.Drone quadricopter was one of the first smartphone-controlled RC toys ... and it won't be the last. This example called BlueDrone (which isn't from Parrot) is an RC car in the form of Nissan GT-R 1:20 scale model, controlled by an Android-based device via Bluetooth connectivity.
Controlling the BlueDrone requires any Bluetooth-enabled Android device equipped with a free control app, to be available at the product launch. It will allow users to steer the car either with a touchscreen, or with motion control utilizing the smartphone's accelerometer. The RC car is Bluetooth 2.1 +EDR compatible, pairing with up to 8 devices, with around a 30-foot (9.14 m) range. It requires three AA batteries, offering three hours of battery life, and a phone or tablet with Android 2.1 or higher on board. It weighs 0.6 lb (0.27 kg) and measures 8" x 3.2" x 2.75" (20.3 x 8.1 x 6.9 cm).
For comparison, the Parrot AR.Drone is WiFi-controlled, and comes with two cameras attached to it. Initially designed for iOS, it's now also compatible with Android-, bada- and Symbian-based devices. It was released in October 2010, priced at US$299 ... and of course, it flies!
BlueDrone is not a retail product yet. Stephen Mark, who submitted BlueDrone to Kickstarter, is seeking a sum of US$200,000 (there's been only US$3,660 at the moment of writing) to cover the cost of mass production.
The car is said to be production-ready with appropriate molds and tooling. BlueDrone's team points out it needs approximately 8-12 weeks for the product to be shipped provided the funds are completed. The price for pre-orders has been set at US$59.
