Man Destroys Drone, Then Chases Pilots With Hatchet. (Really)

Man Destroys Drone, Then Chases Pilots With Hatchet. (Really)

Gear up on five IoT news bites for Wednesday.

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Hatchet Job We've warned you that not everyone loves drones, particularly if they feel a drone is spying on them near their home. Or even, apparently, near a golf course. One man got so upset about a drone flying near the Rio Salado Golf Course in Tempe, AZ that he unsheathed his homemade two-foot long hatchet, and chased a man and woman across the course when he saw them flying their $1,500 drone last week. His reason? The couple was trying to hit him with the drone. Luckily no one was hurt. (Of course the drone didn't survive). And yes, the hatchet man was arrested. (Via ABC15)


Watch Your Baby Baby monitors? A dime a dozen. A baby monitor that records your baby, then makes a highlight reel of their day—and sends it to you while you're at the office? That made us take a look. Called Invidyo, the connected camera is now on Kickstarter. The device uses face recognition tech to actually tell when your baby is smiling. Why? The developers assume you'd rather see a happy child rather than the tantrum they had before lunch. The video is then viewable on the Invidyo iOS and Android app.

Uber Drivers Dinged More than three-fifths of all ride-sharing drivers, like Uber and Lyft, pay for some of their own vehicle maintenance, says a new report from vehicle services provider Runzheimer. Because they're 1099 employees—which makes them independent contractors—the expenses for their vehicles often falls on them.

Smart Home Head Scratcher Installing a smart home product can feel like a stretch even for those with experience around IoT devices. Not surprising then that about one-third of those who own smart home devices have had trouble installing them, says a new report from market research firm Park Associates. Further? 10 percent end up with issues when trying to connect to their router. Smart sprinkler systems, smart security cameras and water leak detectors are the products cited as the most problematic. As consumers are expected to fill their homes with more smart devices, Park Associates notes that the fewer steps a homeowner has to take to install a product, the better. Smart home developers, take note.

VR Headsets Looking for an affordable VR headset that you can use with your smartphone? We have nine. Yep, nine. Whether you have a iPhone or Android smartphone, we'll walk you through the options to help you find one that works for you—and details on where you can find them.

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