chopper

Personal rocket copter for your commute

With $4 gas prices looking like a permanent fact of life, consumer interest in jetpacks and other forms of personal air transport might soon go from whimsy to reality. That seems to be driving the engineers at Tecnologia Aeroespacial Mexicana, whose latest project is the "Libelula Rocket Helicopter."

Don't laugh. This may look like something from a '50s sci-fi movie, but its creators have already produced a "Rocket Belt" built to custom specifications. The personal chopper could be also be more reliable than its full-size counterparts because, Dvice says, "by using tiny rocket motors … Read more

'World's smallest' RC copter is no less annoying

What could possibly be more annoying than buzzing your friends and co-workers with a "PicoZ Micro Helicopter"? Try the new "PicoZ MX-1 Extreme," which makes the bold claim of being "the world's smallest remote control chopper."

The difference might seem minuscule to the untrained eye--4.6 inches vs. the original's 5.3 inches--but if you're of Lilliputian origins, the discrepancy is massive. Other than that, Coolest-Gadgets says the quarter-ounce copter has many of the same features as its older and larger sibling, including twin channels, a built-in lithium battery, adjustable trim … Read more

Chrome modders take a shine to iMacs

This may be the best news all year in the flawed world of gadget fashion: Gold could be facing a serious challenge as the luxury look of choice. And the pretender to the throne may not be a precious metal at all.

Witness this brewing battle in custom Macs. Only a few months ago, an outfit called Chromac offered some fetching photos of an iMac with a mirrored patina worthy of the company's name. But now there's a rival service from Computer Choppers, which showed off its Midas touch with the MacBook around the same time but has … Read more

For some MacBooks, only gold will do

Perhaps chrome isn't the new gold after all, where Macs are concerned. An outfit called Computer Choppers, which has gotten some attention recently for its Digg case mod on eBay, will also customize your Macbook Pro in gold plate and a diamond-encrusted Apple logo. If that's not enough, you can also choose sapphires or other precious stones to make your statement.

Luxist says pricing for the gold plate costs $1,200 to $1,500, though the diamond logo alone can run the bill up another $2,400. But remember, all of this is a drop in the bling … Read more

Copter cam has too many enemies

If it weren't for the rocket cam, we might just be tempted to get the new "Radio Control Recon Camera Helicopter" spotted on the Discovery Store. After all, we can think of no better way to irritate friends and loved ones while recording their flush-faced reactions the whole while.

The temptation to fly in every direction to avoid furious swats is almost irresistable, especially when viewed on the 2-inch LCD of its remote control from a safe distance, with two sets of blades to boot ("beginner and pro"). The video duration isn't specified, but … Read more

Battle of the flying pests

In posting an item on what may be the most annoying toy of this holiday season, it seemed only natural to compare the remote-controlled helicopter with a mosquito. Now we learn that a competing mini-chopper is actually named after the pest and is designed to look like one to boot.

The "Micro Mosquito," which also comes with its own launchpad/charger, claims to be more maneuverable than its rivals because it has two sets of "counter-rotating" blades. It is sold on Firebox.com but at last sighting was listed as "not available"--which either … Read more