As you may have noticed from our social channels, Vantage had the opportunity to join TechCrunch at CES for its Hardware Battlefield competition. It was a busy week of introducing Snap to CES attendees, giving flight demos, preparing for our TechCrunch presentation and checking out other emerging technologies.
TechCrunch gifted us a booth space in Eureka Park — where hundreds of other startups were exhibiting— and gave us six minutes to present on the main stage with 14 other startups.
The judging panel included Mark Fields, CEO of Ford; Helen Greiner, Founder/CEO of CyPhy Works; Matt Turck of First Mark Capital; and Susan Paley, Innovation Expert of General Motors and others. You can read TechCrunch’s write up, here. Or you can watch a brief demo of Tobin flying Snap, below:
**For the astute observer you might notice that the pods look slightly different and Snap’s design is now white. We will go into this design in a future blog post (and only this prototype is white, the real deal will not be)**
It was exciting to introduce Snap to a larger audience and get feedback from a panel of prominent industry experts. We enjoyed walking the show floor and checking out other emerging technologies like Nikon’s new, 360-degree camera and the machine that will allow you to create custom latte art — we’re a team of avid coffee drinkers.
But in looking at the competition within the drone market we’re more confident than ever. Snap brings a unique combination of portability, safety and ease-of-use, not to mention the 4K sensor and custom micro-gimbal, which will allow for exceptional footage. Snap is extremely well positioned within the market and we’re working tirelessly to bring the product to your doorsteps this spring.
On that note, one of the most frequently-asked questions at CES was:
How do FAA regulations impact Snap?
According to the FAA, owners must register their Small Unmanned Aircraft System (sUAS) if it weighs more than .55lbs (250g).
Snap weighs 1.1lbs (500g), which means that if you pre-order or purchase Snap you must register with the FAA.
To register, visit this website and create an account. Until January 20, 2016 the registration process is free. After that date the registration fee will be $5. We encourage all of those who have pre-ordered Snap to register now in order to avoid those costs.
As always, thank you for your support! We look forward to giving you more updates about Snap in the coming months.
— The Vantage Robotics Team
© 2024 Vantage Robotics
Assuming registration will be free until Jan 20 of this year 2016?
Correct. Jan 20, 2016.
Thanks for the heads up on free registration. Done!
Does FAA regulations apply in Korea?
I can not access the site.
And if i do not register, can not buy a snap?
I am pre-order.
FAA guidelines are for US based customers. There will be no change with your order!
That’s for US based customers only? Will you still be able to ship internationally?
Yes, for US-based customers only. We will still be able to ship internationally. No change on that front!
Nice presentation. Great answers to some tough questions on the big stage, too. Keep the updates coming!
Hey guys,
Really love the idea of the product. The two things that concern me are the distance of video live link (you mention an upgrade module which is awesome) and then details on the video side in terms of recording formats, codecs, bitrates, flat profiles for grading- are these things you are concerned with and going to implement or speak about before shipping? Just need for details on this front then will jump on that pre-order 🙂
Hi Martin – I would recommend that you contact customer support at support@vantagerobotics.com. We would be happy to talk through your questions. Thank you.
It also appears snap has gained a noticeable bow in its design reminiscent of the relationship of the four thrust assemblies in the tried and tested Altura Zenith ATX4. Is it safe to assume this increases stability and helps maximize the lift created by each individual thrust assembly by creating dynamic separation? Although it might be looking to far ahead for a company not yet in production of its first design but could this design and concept could easily lead to development of a coaxial eight using LaunchPoint Dual Halbach Axial Flux Motors with of course prop length and motor speed maximized for position to gain maximum benefit of the efficiency provided by a coaxial design and just enough increase in relative size to provide for a fully stabilized micro four thirds 4k sensor and mount with lift capability for most available lenses and interface and control to match the ease expressed in the overall existing concept. The result would be airborne for an incredible length of time on a charge while providing market demanding capabilities. I know I’d own one.
one of the questions that came up were about production and having a factory ready to go. At the time the answer was that you had no production ready to go. It is now April how are things looking with regard to production? Do you have a factory ready to go yet?
We are coming along nicely and are in the tooling review process of production.