GoPro, the struggling action camera company that posted a 40 percent year-over-year plunge for its third quarter revenue, has recently issued a recall order for its latest product, the Karma drone.
The recall order was released just 16 days after the Karma launched, which could prove to be a damaging turn of events for GoPro, especially as it was banking on the drone to help it recover from its recent financial struggles.
GoPro Karma Drone Recall Order
GoPro recalled its Karma drone because there were some reports that it was losing power while in flight, or that the pilot was suddenly losing connection to the drone.
The problem was causing the Karma to crash from the sky, though thankfully no damages to property or injuries have been reported regarding the issue.
One of the owners who experienced the issue was Brian Warholak, who uploaded the video that showed the Karma crashing on YouTube.
According to the description of the video, it was just Warholak's second time to fly the drone. He lost connection to the Karma once it reached a height of around 170 feet, causing the drone to fall to the ground.
The fall of the Karma drone damaged one of its arms and a pair of props. According to Warholak himself in the video's comments, his footage was actually the one that started the entire process that eventually led to the recall of the Karma.
There are several other videos that can be found on YouTube that show the Karma losing power or connection while in flight, all of which end up with the drone helplessly crashing to the ground.
Why Is The Karma Drone Losing Power?
According to a report by The Verge, several sources who are familiar with the design process of the Karma believe that the placement of the drone's camera and gimbal could be the culprit. While most drones have their cameras located underneath for a solid center of gravity, the Karma has its camera placed out front, which makes it much more difficult to balance the drone.
According to the sources, early testing of the Karma showed that the design resulted in greater vibration, which sometimes resulted in the detachable battery being shaken loose and cutting off power to the drone. It is unclear if this is the same issue that is plaguing the Karma currently, but whatever the case may be, Karma owners need to send back their drones as soon as they could.
Return The Karma Drone Now
Customers can choose to return the Karma through GoPro if they bought the drone directly from the company, or through Best Buy. They will be refunded for their purchase, with the Karma drone to go back on sale once GoPro has ironed out the problems.
GoPro is now working with the Consumer Product Safety Commission for the recall, but there will inevitably be some customers who will stubbornly keep their Karma drones. Owners should return the drone now, as similar to the Galaxy Note 7, which can have its battery explode and cause physical injury and property damage, a Karma drone falling out of the sky can be just as destructive.
