It seems that Snap’s discontinued Pixy drone is a fireplace hazard.
The alarming information got here through a discover issued by the U.S. Shopper Product Security Fee (CPSC) recalling all 71,000 of the flying machines.
“Customers ought to instantly cease utilizing the Pixy … take away the battery and cease charging it,” the CPSC stated in its recall discover
Snap’s dalliance with drones solely lasted 4 months, with the corporate ending gross sales of the $230 machine in August 2022. And now, 18 months on, the CPSC is urging Pixy pilots to cease flying their drone or danger it catching hearth in midair as a consequence of a probably faulty rechargeable lithium-ion battery. Up to now, Snap has obtained 4 stories of the battery overheating and bulging, leading to one minor battery hearth and one minor harm.
Full directions on how to answer the recall are offered on Snap’s web site. They differ relying on whether or not you ordered it straight from Pixy or from Amazon.
House owners might want to return their drone for a full refund, and ought to be cautious to eliminate the lithium-ion battery in a protected method (directions on how to do this can be found on-line).
Clients who solely have a Pixy battery or charger, however no Pixy unit, may be eligible for a refund. If that’s you, contact assist@pixy.com.
The Pixy weighed a mere 0.22 kilos (100 grams) and launched and landed within the palm of your hand, with protecting guards safeguarding your fingers. Throughout its time on sale, Snap marketed the camera-equipped copter as “a pocket-sized, free-flying sidekick that’s a match for adventures massive and small.”
Whereas Snap’s social media Snapchat app has loved notable success, the drone disappeared into the abyss after solely a short while, with Thursday’s recall offering the ultimate chapter of its turbulent existence. Snap’s different {hardware} effort — camera-equipped good spectacles — has fared slightly higher in that it nonetheless sells the machine, but it surely hasn’t been up to date since 2019.
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