Snap Inc. is apparently halting future development of its Pixy drone. This comes just four months after the Pixy made its debut. While this might come as a bit of a surprise to some, the company has not had a good track record when it comes to hardware releases. According to The Wall Street Journal, Snap Inc. co-founder and CEO Evan Spiegel informed staff during a company question and answer session. The company has had a rough year, and its recent move is part of an effort to shift company resources and mitigate losses.

While the price of drones has come down quite a bit in recent years, there is still extra effort required by the consumer after the initial purchase. On top of trying to learn how to pilot it, drones weighing over 250 grams require registration with the FAA. For a long time, these hurdles made it difficult for the average consumer to get into drone photography or videography. The Pixy tried to lower the barrier to entry by making things as intuitive as possible.

Rather than having a traditional controller, Pixy used a mode dial that allowed users to choose a flight pattern. Once selected, Pixy would automatically perform the pattern, take photos, and shoot videos. When it completed shooting, it would automatically return to the owner and shut down. If users needed more control over the drone, they could access these features through Snapchat. Of course, convenience doesn't always yield the best quality, with the Pixy drone offering decent photo and video quality.

As mentioned before, this isn't the first time Snap Inc. has had a bad experience with hardware. In 2016, the company introduced its first piece of hardware with Spectacles. A set of glasses allowed users to record photos and videos and send them to Snapchat. Although it had a unique rollout using pop-up vending machines, it took several months to become available through proper retail channels. A year later, Snap Inc. would report that it had lost $40 million due to Spectacles. Despite this, the company would try repeatedly, releasing second and third iterations of Spectacles. Unfortunately, the hardware has yet to catch on with the public. But the company is still experimenting, even teasing its next-generation augmented reality Spectacles on its website.

For now, Snap Inc. will continue to sell Pixy drones on its website. The drone starts at $229.99

Source: The Wall Street Journal