Just after 16 days of its launch, GoPro recalled its Karma drone. Some units were faulty and users had faced power failure issues. GoPro announced on its official website that the drones were being recalled because of performance issues arising out of power loss malfunction. In a statement about users experiencing irregular Karma drone behavior, CEO Nicholas Woodman had told – “Safety is our top priority. A very small number of Karma owners have reported incidents of the power failure during operation. We have moved quickly to recall all units of Karma and provide a full refund while we investigate the issue. We are working in close coordination with both the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Federal Aviation Administration.”
A piece of Tape can fix battery issue
According to CEO Nicholas Woodman, the power malfunction issue can actually be fixed with just a piece of tape. The problem of power malfunction is attributed to the battery popping out a few millimeters, causing the power failure in the drone. Speaking during TechCrunch session at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES started in Las Vegas, NV on January 5 and will go on till January 8, 2017), the CEO told that all those who didn’t return the drone can fix the power issue by keeping the drone from losing the connection. “If we have a mechanical issue where the battery backs out, if you came out with a way to keep that battery from backing out a couple millimeters, you’ll be fine”, Nicholas Woodman added.
GoPro To ReLaunch Karma Drone This Year
The recall of the drone seems to have hit GoPro badly. The recall prevented the company from launching its flagship drone ahead of the Christmas holiday season. This eventually led to lower-than-expected sales. The company missed revenue expectations by nearly 23% in latest quarterly earnings. Restructuring of the company led to 15% of the workforce being laid off. During CES, GoPro revealed that the Karma drone testing is almost complete and that the company will reveal more details on the re-launch the coming month. We don’t know about the specific date of the re-launch yet. Given that the company is facing tough competition from DJI Mavic Pro and going by company’s current situation, it looks like the company would want to get the re-launch done as soon as possible, to boost revenues and meet sales targets.