Snapchat is still one of the top social media services, and its owner Snap has tried more than once to capitalize on that with limited-run hardware accessories. Snap has sold 'Spectacles' over the years that integrate with Snapchat, and now a new product is on the way: Pixy. And if you recall, it's the same "cheerios" selfie drone that we spotted earlier in the year.
Snap revealed in a press release, "we’re introducing Pixy, your friendly flying camera. It’s a pocket-sized, free-flying sidekick that’s a fit for adventures big and small. [...] With the simple tap of a button, Pixy flies in four preset flight paths. It can float, orbit, and follow wherever you lead, without a controller or any set-up. And, Pixy finds its home in your hand, landing gently at the end of the flight."
Snap says that videos from flights are sent to your Snapchat Memories, where you can edit them with Smart Edits (like Hyperspeed or Jump Cut) and crop to fit smartphone screens. After that, you can share them with Chat, Stories, or Spotlight, or export them to share outside of Snapchat. There's a single 12MP sensor on the drone, which can store up to 100 videos or 1,000 phones on its integrated 16GB drive.
Pixy is priced at $249.99, which puts it in competition with many other small and lightweight drones, like the $300 DJI Mini SE. Notably, the $250 package only seems to include a single battery, so you'll have to wait between flights for the battery to charge. You can buy additional batteries for $19.99 each.
Snap Pixy
Snap's new drone starts at $249.99, and is designed to integrate with Snapchat. It's only available in the US and France right now.
The Verge had a limited hands-on with the drone, which mentions a full charge will get around 5-8 flights, ranging from 10-20 seconds each. This is definitely intended for quick shots, rather than the minutes-long adventures that more expensive drones are designed for. The Verge also talked with CEO Evan Spiegel, who mentioned Snap has been interested in drones since at least 2016. He said, "The goal is really just to get it in peoples' hands and have them play around with it, and maybe we would make more with version two if people love the original product."