12/2/13 9:16 PM

"And you think mailbox baseball was fun"

12/3/13 4:09 AM

The Amazon "Smile" logo looks kinda sinister on those!

12/3/13 6:25 AM

My first thought was "can this deliver to my balcony?"

12/3/13 7:35 AM

No way those things can safely navigate the trees on my street. It's just a publicity stunt.

12/3/13 7:41 AM

I guess they could text you when they arrive, and you could walk out and sign a tablet attached to a robotic arm or something. That would be cool.

All I can say is I've owned Amazon stock a long time and I'm glad I have.

12/3/13 8:49 AM

Parkin is right. It is a stunt.

The drones won't have range or lift capacity. The loading of the package will take to much time. They are all about shipping cheaply and quickly. This is neither. A waste using current tech.

12/3/13 10:03 AM

I believe the report I saw said they have a capacity of 5 pounds and a range of 10 miles. A scooter would be just as fast and a lot cheaper to operate, even paying the rider.

12/3/13 10:05 AM

Delivery using drone would be analogy to delivery using private cars instead of vans. The economy equation is clear to anyone who can think.

But hey, it's marketing! The more outrageous the stunt, the more attention it gets. Ever look at the Geico ads using the "caveman"? It wasn't meant to be believable, just attention grabbing.

I found the whole thing rather entertaining.

But if anyone actually believe in it, well... harmless anyway

12/3/13 10:27 AM

The trees and powerlines would be hard to navigate around, but here in WV we love to shoot things. The reds would think it was an Obama drone spying on them and take target practice on them. Kinda reminds me of the Star Wars movie where the sand people take pot shots at the racing pods..

Not a lawyer, but the liability issues seem overwhelming. Could hit a pedestrian, a car, etc.

12/3/13 10:43 AM

quote:

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Not a lawyer, but the liability issues seem overwhelming.

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12/3/13 1:51 PM

Brilliant! Trees?!? Who needs trees? And powerlines? Clearly Amazon is trying to expand its business into new markets like desert states such as Afghanistan and Iraq. Drones will clearly be a hit there. Trust me. You can take that and the package it delivers to the house! Not for nothing, but it is no coincidence Amazon means genius in Farsi.

12/3/13 2:10 PM

No mistake it was fed to the media in the TG-X-Mas shopping window, no doubt...

Maybe it is a stunt to have their shippers lower prices to dissuade them from it... Pre-emptive vapor-ware anyway...


Still, I like imaging seeing all the bits on the curbs..

Last edited by Sparky on 12/3/13 4:40 PM; edited 1 time in total

12/3/13 2:47 PM

they're still negotiating with the FAA over how to mix drones with piloted aircraft in controlled airspace. nevermind the fact that drone technology is far from perfectly reliable and safe, so the risk/liability is a huge factor. everyone's made lots of great points about how impractical it is.

hell, the us gubment is still working all this out for the military services, with unmanned airlift into contested/unsafe airspace being the big draw. until they have that figgered out, civilian applications of airlift are a non-starter. here's an article about the K-MAX from last year. http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,241381,00.html

12/3/13 4:40 PM

Where did y'all see the whirligig?

60 Minutes for me

It's pretty rare for me to watch that show, so I was wondering if that's where everyone else saw it.

(I still would like a package delivered to my balcony!)

12/3/13 4:54 PM

yes, indeed. here's the link:
60 minutes interview

Very interesting piece indeed