These Musical Drones Are More Talented Than Justin Bieber

Even the most skilled guitar god has nothing on these drones.

KMel Robotics created a swarm of flying hexrotors to play some sweet music. The perfectly synchronized robots float through the air to bang on drums and pluck strings to create famous classical compositions.

The band of drones perform three songs, beginning with Strauss' "Also sprach Zarathustra," leading into "Carol of the Bells" and finishing with a rendition of "Star Spangled Banner" that even Jimi Hendrix would approve of.

The musical machines will be rocking out live at the USA Science & Engineering Festival April 26-27 in Washington, D.C. After that, perhaps these drones should take their act on the road opening for Kesha.

VIDEO: YOUTUBE, THEDMEL

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Drone Shoots Epic Footage of SpaceX Rocket Launch and Controlled Landing

Elon Musk's space-faring company SpaceX has released the first test footage of its Falcon 9 Reusable (F9R) taking off, and making a controlled landing at the company's rocket-development facility in Texas.

The epic video gives us a 360-degree aerial view of the feat, thanks to the unique perspective of a camera-equipped drone.

The video, above, opens with the hexacopter drone already airborne, and swooping in to get a close-up view of the rocket as it begins to take off. After reaching a height of 250 meters (about 820 feet), the rocket hovers and then returns to earth.

The importance of the successful test was highlighted by the fact that Musk interrupted his Twitter stream of updates on the Friday SpaceX launch bound for the International Space Station to direct everyone's attention to the test footage.

The SpaceX controlled-descent tests are designed to aid the company in its efforts to make reusable rockets the norm, and therefore significantly bring down the cost of future space travel.

VIDEO: YouTube SPACEX

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Fingerprint and Eye-Scanning Drones to Make Deliveries in UAE

Amazon drones may make quick deliveries to your house in the future, but the United Arab Emirates government is looking to add similar technology to its skies much sooner — within a year.

The UAE government detailed a prototype of a drone that would deliver official packages and personal documents such as driver's licenses and ID cards right to citizen doorsteps, per a Reuters report on Monday. To keep the cargo secure, the drones would be equipped with fingerprint and retina scanners to make sure they are delivering to the correct recipients.

“The UAE will try to deliver its government services through drones. This is the first project of its kind in the world,” said Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, the Minister of Cabinet Affairs in the UAE government, according to Reuters.

Gergawi said the drones are battery-operated and measure about 1.5 feet. The casing is white and features a UAE emblem.

Drones have been tested in Dubai for the past six months and will likely roll out in the next year, the report said. Eventually, the government plans to make the service available across the country.

But the initiative faces a few challenges. In addition to safety and tech issues, it also must withstand the dessert's summer hear and dust storms.

In December, Amazon announced that it would send a million flying drones into the air to deliver purchases through an initiative called Amazon Prime Air. Although the company said it is anticipating a 2015 rollout, it is still awaiting FAA approval, which could take years.

IMAGE: WOLFGANG VON BRAUCHITSCH/BLOOMBERG/GETTY IMAGES

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Renault Concept Car Packs a Flying Drone in Its Roof

Renault's new concept car, the Kwid, is chock-full of futuristic ideas, including a flying quadrocopter drone that would launch from the car's roof.

The "flying companion," as Renault calls it, could be controlled manually (from a tablet on the car's dashboard) or fly autonomously in order to warn about traffic jams and other problems on the road ahead. It could also relay live video back to the car.

Kwid, first shown at the 2014 New Dehli Auto Expo, is a small SUV vehicle with a very modern design, which Renault thinks would fit in great into India's roads.

Its little flying buddy is not the only fun thing about the Kwid, though. The car's interior is unapologetically modern, with a centrally positioned wheel and a tablet on the left. Renault envisions a front-wheel drive and a 1.2-liter turbocharged engine for Kwid, but there's no word on when such a vehicle could actually hit the market.

Check out an additional video showing Kwid's flying drone in more detail, below.

Image: Renualt

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Flying Beer Drone Is Intoxicating, FAA Delivers Immediate Hangover

Although Amazon's drone delivery system isn't expected to launch until 2015, one enterprising businessman is trying to speed up the program's debut by offering something that might inspire a bit more urgency: beer.

Jack Supple, president of Lakemaid Beer, unveiled the idea last week on YouTube, showing off exactly how easy it could be for fishermen on Minnesota’s Mille Lacs Lake to get a frosty brew via flying robot.

Set to dreamy music, the video spot begins with a store clerk receiving a delivery order and writing down coordinates. Soon after, the clerk attaches a 12-pack of beer to a drone, which then flies off and successfully delivers the goods to a snow-covered fishing shack.

During initial testing of Lakemaid’s drone-delivery system, its robot failed to pick up a fully stocked 12-pack of beer. But after removing two bottles, bringing the overall weight down to 15 pounds and nine ounces, the drone was able to successfully take off, and land with its alcoholic cargo intact.

"We figured that we were smarter [delivering] on frozen lakes rather than in big cities like Amazon," Supple said in a recent television interview.

But don’t get too excited. It turns out that the Federal Aviation Administration has already grounded Lakemaid’s ambitious plans. The FAA contacted the company, and instructed it to stop the flights because they were deemed a commercial enterprise, according to Supple.

Supple added that the FAA also referenced a comprehensive document entitled "Integration of Civil Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in the National Airspace System (NAS) Roadmap," which outlines the current restrictions on commercial drones.

In the document, the FAA says:

"For a person wishing to design, manufacture, market, or operate a UAS for a commercial mission and seeking FAA approval for that aircraft, its pilot and the operations, existing rules have not been fully tailored to the unique features of UAS."

New rules that will be in place by 2015 could allow for some commercial uses of drones in the U.S., according to document. But until the law catches up with current technology, you’ll still have to hop in a car or walk yourself over to the nearest beer store to get your fix.

VIDEO: YOUTUBE, LAKEMAID BEER

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A Drone That Snaps Photos, Then Folds Up and Fits In Your Pocket

It's still unclear whether drones will become the home delivery service of the future or simply another footnote in the legal system, but that hasn't slowed down the race to create high-performance drones for the average consumer.

The Kickstarter-funded Pocket Drone is a foldable, flying "multicopter" that its creators dubbed "the GoPro of drones." It's equipped with an action camera for capturing aerial photos and video and a rechargeable battery allowing for flights of up to 20 minutes. Plus, the device folds up to the size of a small tablet for portability.

"Until now, most people could not participate in this awesome new technology revolution — the cost was too great, the drones too bulky, and the software too difficult to operate," creators Timothy Reuter, TJ Johnson and Chance Roth wrote on their Kickstarter page.

The creators claim that their drone is designed for easy use: It can be unpacked and launched within 20 seconds, and is controlled by an included remote, a third-party RC controller, or from any Android phone or tablet with a USB port. Additionally, the software is open source, so intrepid developers can add their own features.

The Kickstarter campaign presents the Pocket Drone as a relatively inexpensive tool for aerial photographers and videographers, as it's cheaper than your average DSLR camera. Backers can purchase a Pocket Drone for $445 without a controller, or $495 for the full package.

The Pocket Drone campaign finishes funding on March 9, and has already raised more than $300,000, far surpassing its goal of $35,000.

Image: Kickstarter

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