7/5/2026 at 3:49:18 PM
by amichail
7/5/2026 at 8:27:32 PM
Lacking a bit of sleep, I initially read this as “anonymous flying umbrella follows and shields users from rain” which certainly intrigued me more than the actual title.by beaker52
7/5/2026 at 4:42:06 PM
IMO it's worth watching the video rather than reading someone's writeup of it. My favorite part is this (written) list of everything that went wrong [1] ... and how much of it is due to the intersection of hardware, software, vendors, and linuxby 12_throw_away
7/5/2026 at 4:53:33 PM
[flagged]by tantalor
7/5/2026 at 5:04:05 PM
[flagged]by 12_throw_away
7/5/2026 at 7:22:18 PM
> and how much of it is due to the intersection of hardware, software, vendors, and linuxThey should have used Apple hardware.
by amelius
7/5/2026 at 4:58:10 PM
I saw this on Facebook before I saw it here. While it bears a superficial resemblance to 1000s of clickbaity tech stunts this one really delighted me. Some of these should be edited into a remastered release of Blade Runner.by Zigurd
7/5/2026 at 5:11:01 PM
I think this is in the category of excess application of technologyby zkmon
7/5/2026 at 5:21:01 PM
I don't know - I got an automatic garbage can that not only opens and closes, it also ejects the garbage bag when it is full and vacuums in another one into place.today's luxury is tomorrow's necessity.
things get normalized. pop-up ads, selfies, subscriptions, the cybertruck...
by m463
7/5/2026 at 7:46:10 PM
On the other hand, I used to have an automatic open garbage can. Absolutely hated it. Ended up replacing with a foot operated one. The benefits were:* Never ran out of batteries
* Didn't rely on an IR sensor that would work about 80% of the time, but would sometimes require waving more than once to get it to open.
* Didn't have a delicate gearing mechanism (automatic one eventually stripped a gear and broke).
* No set open time. God forbid you throw something in, turn to the counter and throw a second thing in...
* large lid, since it relies on foot power, not a motor / battery can only realistically open a certain weight lid.
My inlaws also have an automatic one -- last time I visited I saw that they also suffered from the stripped gear issue...
I wish public restrooms used foot-operated faucets instead of the existing "wave frantically for 3 seconds of water" sensors they have.
I am jealous of the auto-seal garbage bag option, but I am skeptical about long term reliability.
by hex4def6
7/5/2026 at 6:07:42 PM
> today's luxury is tomorrow's necessityIndeed, see stuff like fridges, cars, phones, internet access...
> pop-up ads, selfies, subscriptions, the cybertruck...
None of these are a luxury, or ever was; in a way, they are the opposite.
by nine_k
7/5/2026 at 7:25:36 PM
pop-up ads - existence depends on surplus technology, electricity, and global communications networks. - not required for food, shelter, water, or survival.ergo luxury
by mensetmanusman
7/5/2026 at 7:46:07 PM
I think there is some middle category between “required for survival” and “luxury”.by SequoiaHope
7/5/2026 at 5:27:31 PM
you got me, I am deadly afraid of the world in which any of these become a necessityby rf15
7/5/2026 at 6:02:54 PM
consider captain america, perhaps an autonomous flying riot shield that protects, and strikes out.by rolph
7/5/2026 at 8:17:52 PM
Reminds me of the floating umbrella that appeared on Caladan in the 1984 Dune movie.by asnelt
7/5/2026 at 5:59:21 PM
Following the Ukraine war has basically made me flinch at the sight and sound of drones.by SubiculumCode
7/5/2026 at 5:04:04 PM
And drenches them in soundby 4b11b4
7/5/2026 at 6:27:15 PM
That's cute. They need to be able to deal with other flying umbrellas nearby, if this is to be a product, of course.This would probably sell in Shenzhen.
by Animats
7/5/2026 at 7:23:58 PM
Next: why carry a phone or laptop when you can have a flying desk?by amelius
7/5/2026 at 5:52:41 PM
Bonus: free hairdryer!by mlmonkey
7/5/2026 at 5:08:23 PM
The kid would appear to have a future job opportunity at Cyberdyne Systems.by SoftTalker
7/5/2026 at 4:34:09 PM
That's really cool honestly. This took me back to around 2017 when everyone was into hardware startups.by ricardobayes
7/5/2026 at 5:03:56 PM
Interesting, not what I remember from 2017. To which hardware startups are you referring?by derwiki
7/5/2026 at 5:59:52 PM
One example of the peak of that craziness was in 2016, after Snapchat released glasses with an embedded camera, which were more or less received as as a gimmick by their user base, Snapchat changed their name to Snap Inc and told their investors that they're now a hardware company.by dlcarrier
7/5/2026 at 5:42:01 PM
Well that was the peak of the kickstarter era, tons of wearables and new projects. You know, like Pebbleby ricardobayes
7/5/2026 at 6:00:41 PM
Or the Nixie [1] (actually nixie was earlier, but went out of business in 2017)by tonymillion
7/5/2026 at 5:51:04 PM
noise, autonomy are real constraints. And the wind resistance is a safety critical issue. To make it wind resistant you need to increase the drone's power/weight ratio which works against battery life/autonomy and weight (more battery, more weight) This is a nice technical experiment but cannot work as a general public product in my opinion (I build drones since 2013 and know this topic in depth)by hdorchy
7/5/2026 at 7:37:24 PM
tangent: ridiculous that a site called designbloom has such an atrocious user experience. popovers, things that take over your reading space, and just general shiftiness all over the page that's unrelated to the content you are reading.by alphakappa
7/5/2026 at 6:15:45 PM
what about hydrogen or helium to extend battery life?by rg2004
7/5/2026 at 4:15:40 PM
Good for a haircut too.by comrade1234
7/5/2026 at 4:31:50 PM
Yeah, I can only imagine the stability when breezy weather hits that big sailby saltcured
7/5/2026 at 4:42:41 PM
>what was supposedly a small project ended up big and complicatedWelcome to the drone world! So many moving parts and one tiny mistake, you end up losing a $60k drone in the ocean (true story!)
That being said, regulations prevent flying drones of any size above people, unless the drone is high to certain altitude, because of all the dangers that bring, a small issues and the props will harm them.
Cool project tho!
by tamimio
7/5/2026 at 6:22:16 PM
Better than losing the expense vehicle prototype and the pilot as well.by projektfu