Drones drown out allure of the selfie
THE hottest Christmas gift this year is a drone‚ while selfie sticks are so last year.
This is according to pre-Christmas trends as analysed by bidorbuy. Traditionally, online shoppers start their holiday shopping earlier than “regular” shoppers‚ usually at the beginning of November.
“The term drone is now among the 10 most frequent searches on the site‚ shoulder-to-shoulder with watches‚ smartphones‚ laptops‚ tablets‚ consoles‚ games‚ toys and hobbies‚” says bidorbuy chief executive Jaco Jonker.
Would-be buyers of drones need to know that this gadget is not for cheapskates.
If you want a drone to satisfy video or photographer fans around the Christmas tree‚ be sure to look for one that delivers decent quality footage and integrates easily with the monitor or smartphone they have at home.
The most affordable‚ decent-quality offering recommended by technology website Techradar.com is the DJI’s Phantom 3 series‚ which starts at R15 395 in South Africa.
Prices soar to over the R100 000 mark for many other makes. To make up for the price tag‚ hopefully the drone enthusiast you’re buying it for will be able to film something that brings a smile to your Christmas revellers‚ or astonishes in its artistry.
The bidorbuy CEO says the iPhone wins hands down among smartphones‚ with the majority of searches going specifically for the iPhone 6s.
Visitors to bidorbuy are four times less likely to search for a Samsung smartphone; however‚ when it comes to actually buying‚ the two best known smartphone brands are on a par.
In gaming‚ Xbox One and Playstation 4 enjoy equal popularity.
Currently‚ Fallout 4 leads the video game searches‚ closely followed by Call of Duty: Black Ops 3‚ Halo 5 and Fifa 16.
In the toys and hobbies section‚ the most popular searches are for Lego‚ Marklin railway models – and drones.
Internationally‚ Walkera’s Dragonfly, priced between R2 000 to R7 000, is one of the drones recommended for kids due to its GPS autopilot and up to 15 minutes flight time.
Another offering is the Parrot‚ which retails around the R4 000 mark. When price-checking any of the drones‚ find out if you will need to buy the controller separately.
“The drones made their way into the top searches almost a year ago‚ and are still safely holding their position on the list of most searched terms on bidorbuy‚” says Jonker.
“Wearable tech devices such as smartwatches‚ especially the Apple Watch‚ GoPro miniature attachable cameras‚ as well as health and fitness monitors are also enjoying undiminished popularity.”
However‚ selfie sticks‚ which were popular last season‚ seem to have fallen out of public favour. They are not even found among the top hundred.
A substantial number of visitors are also searching for big-ticket items such as television sets‚ fridges‚ air-conditioners and‚ increasingly‚ 3D printers. — TMG Digital