Core77

Spheres That Fly

"Boomerang Balls"

By Rain Noe - January 25

in Toy

The simplest of children's toys, the ball, has received a technological upgrade. Everyone from Amazon to Walmart now sells "boomerang balls," spherical plastic cages containing a tiny drone with two counter-rotating propellers. You shake the thing to turn it on, and then you have a ball you can essentially use to play catch with yourself:

They take about 25 minutes to charge, via USB-C, and have a runtime of 8-10 minutes. Prices run $20 to $30.

While they do look oddly compelling…

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…one does wonder whether a flying ball, which might have seemed like magic 20 years ago, is enough to get children outside, away from consoles, social media and screens.

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Juan Cano

11 months ago

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My nephew got one last christmas and we found it impossible to use. Like the golden snitch in quidditch.

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Richard Schneeman

11 months ago

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We got two for christmas, for kids 6 and 8. I like them. We’ve gone to the park a few times with them and some other toys (like frisbee). I wish charging was USB C and the runtime doesn’t quite feel like 20 min if that’s what they are advertising. P

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david copeland

11 months ago

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I've seen our future, and we will be more and more unathletic, tech dependent and unable to enjoy the simple things.

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