See like the birds

Leonard Goh | Apr 11, 2008

Ever looked up at the sky and wondered what birds see when they are in flight? One way of finding out is to scale the Himalayan peaks and you might get a rough idea. Over at CNET Asia, we prefer the slightly more high-tech approach--a camera mounted on a radio-controlled helicopter.

The Verhagen X2-Special 26Cam is not your typical toy R/C helicopter. Measuring 160cm in length, this "bird" can reach a maximum speed of 80kmh. It is powered by fuel, not batteries, and a full tank can let it fly for about 300km. A camera mounted at the front captures video feeds, which engineer Jan Verhagen said can be applied in various scenarios like rescue operations to documentary film-making.

However, the camera specifications are a little ancient. While the rest of the world has gone digital, the helicopter still deploys the super 35mm movie camera which requires special film cassette. The camera is mounted onto a pan/tilt head which can be controlled from the ground.

Although there is no indication on the pricing of this gadget on the Web site, it probably won't come cheap as each machine is hand-made. We think the Himalayas may be a cheaper option.

Filed under: Digital Cameras
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