Snap ditched its Pixy flying selfie camera drone after a short four months, but here’s the twist: the company managed to sell around 71,000 drones. Now, they’re recalling every single one because the batteries are a fire risk. Yep, the whole drone is on the recall list, not just the removable battery, probably because Snap isn’t in the business of making those batteries anymore.
Snap and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission are telling users to “stop using the Pixy Flying Camera ASAP, remove the battery and stop charging it.” Why? Well, there have been four instances of the battery bulging, one fire, and even a “minor injury,” so better be safe than sorry.
Well, here’s the good part: you can snag a full refund for the whole drone and any batteries you’ve got. That’s potentially putting at least $185 back in your pocket, unless you snagged it on a killer sale. No need to dig up a receipt either – even if it was a gift, you can still apply for that refund.
To cash in on that dough, you gotta send back the whole drone, but keep the batteries out of the package. Go to this link, pop in your drone’s serial number, and Snap promises to shoot you a prepaid return label via email. Oh, and don’t ditch those batteries at your local hardware or Target – Snap says it’s a no-go. Check out this website they’ve got for guidance on how to dispose of them properly.
Snap taking a plunge into the drone scene was quite interesting for the company. Before this, they had tried their hand at hardware with Snap Spectacles. Those were mainly geared towards providing a unique angle for video content on the platform, but Snap has also been exploring augmented reality (AR).
Evan Spiegel, the big boss at Snap, once hinted that the drone market might be even more massive than the one for video-capturing glasses. Well, that was before the Pixy hit the scene. This is the first time we’re getting the lowdown on Pixy sales numbers. The CPSC spills the beans, mentioning that Snap moved “about 71,000” units. Just a heads up, though – that figure includes separately sold batteries, so the actual drone count is a bit less.