With its cannon and claw accessories, last year's Mambo drone from Parrot was more a toy than a photography tool. The latest version of the mini drone looks to be at least more fun, if not more useful, than its predecessor. The Mambo FPV comes with a camera attachment and a headset, so you can stream what the tiny flyer is seeing right into your eyes. Last year's Mambo came with a cannon that shoots six pellets up to six feet and a "Grabber" claw that picks up very small objects weighing up to four ounces. The new version isn't physically different -- it just comes with different accessories (the older ones are also compatible). Parrot increased the wireless range between the Bluetooth controller and the drone so you can now fly it up to 100 meters (330 feet) away, up from 60 meters before.

In August, DJI announced that it would be introducing Local Data Mode to its line of drones, a setting that would cut drones off from internet activity and stop information like flight location from being uploaded to the company's servers. Well that privacy mode is now available through a DJI Pilot app update for DJI CrystalSky monitors and some Android tablets. "We are creating Local Data Mode to address the needs of our enterprise customers, including public and private organizations that are using DJI technology to perform sensitive operations around the world," Brendan Schulman, DJI's VP of policy and legal affairs, said in a statement. While the announcement of the new setting noted that it had been in the works for some time, it did come after the US Army stopped using DJI drones due to "increased awareness of cyber vulnerabilities." The Australian Defense Force also ceased use of DJI drones temporarily, but began using them again following a two week security assessment.

BEIRUT (Reuters) - An air strike carried out by an unidentified warplane killed seven Hezbollah fighters in eastern Syria, three sources familiar with the incident told Reuters on Monday. The identity of the warplane was not confirmed, but the sources did not rule out the possibility that it was Russian "friendly fire". The sources did not say when the air strike happened. The air strike struck a Hezbollah position in eastern Homs province, where the Iran-backed Lebanese group is fighting Islamic State alongside the Syrian and Russian militaries. Asked about a report that a U.S. drone carried out the strike, the spokesman of the U.S.-led Coalition said the location was outside its area of operations.

Hackl wins the Red Bull DR.ONE event in Austria Video provided by Reuters A link has been sent to your friend's email address. A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Hackl wins the Red Bull DR.ONE event in Austria Video provided by Reuters Newslook

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – Yemen's Houthi forces shot down a U.S. surveillance drone in the capital, Sanaa, on Sunday, the Houthi-controlled state news agency SABA reported. The Houthi movement and its ally, former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, control much of northern Yemen, including Sanaa, and are battling a Saudi-led coalition that is trying to restore the internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The United States backs the Saudi-led coalition by providing it with intelligence and weapons. "A military source said (Houthi) air defenses shot down a U.S. MQ-9 surveillance drone in Jader area in the Sanaa province," SABA reported. A photographer said the drone came down at around 11 am local time in a crowded area on the outskirts of the capital, but there were no reports of any casualties.

The Houthi movement and its ally former president Ali Abdullah Saleh control much of northern Yemen, including Sanaa, and are battling a Saudi-led coalition that is trying to restore the internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

With the crisis in Puerto Rico unfolding--and expanding--daily in the wake of Hurricane Maria, the scale of the devastation is coming into horrifying focus. It's not just that the American territory has been, by many accounts, "destroyed." "We are dying here," San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Crus said Friday. Getting food, water, and medicine to and throughout Puerto Rico is a "logistical nightmare," former FEMA boss Michael Brown told CNBC. Which brings up the question: Where are the drones that could pick up the slack?

In the United States, around 200,000 manned U.S. general aviation aircraft have been registered over the last 50 years. By contrast, 750,000 unmanned aircraft systems -- aka drones -- have now been registered, including more than 40,000 in the last two weeks of December 2016 alone. It exemplifies the dramatic influx of "things," which carries unprecedented opportunity for digital disruption. They're typically full of sensors, increasingly connected, produce enormous amounts of data and can be the source of newer, smarter business models that touch every industry. For example, in the past decade, wind turbines have quickly evolved from isolated standalone machines to connected, sensor-laden, intelligent devices.

Coffee has been delivered by drone for the first time ever in a densely populated area. The test was part of a project in Zurich to deliver household items such as toothbrushes, deodorant and smartphones to Swiss homes by unmanned aerial devices this autumn. Big firms such as Amazon and Google have spent several years investing in drone delivery research, seeing it as the future of goods distribution. The test was part of a project in Zurich to deliver household items such as toothbrushes, deodorant and smartphones to Swiss homes by unmanned aerial devices this autumn. The experiment come as big firms such as Amazon and Google have spent several years investing in drone delivery research.

There are quite a few companies working on developing drones for human transportation, but a new one has just jumped into the fray. With an almost fully developed prototype and plans to start producing them commercially next year, the aptly named Passenger Drone introduced itself by showing off a manned flight on its first prototype. The company has been quietly working on its tech for the last three years and it has produced a lightweight, car-sized drone that can fly autonomously, be maneuvered remotely or be controlled manually. It's lifted by 16 rotors and produces zero emissions. Passenger Drone says it plans to build five more prototypes and log over 1000 hours of flight time before proceeding with commercial production. While Passenger Drone's rig may be inching close to real life flights, it's entering a crowded field.