'GPS glitch' grounds GoPro Karma drones

Image source, Getty Images

  • Author, Sam Shead
  • Role, Technology reporter

GoPro's first and only drone - the Karma - has been grounded by a technical glitch.

The issue is GPS-related and it prevents the camera-carrying drones from starting.

The drone was discontinued in 2018.

However, GoPro pledged to keep supporting existing machines with the necessary software updates.

A GoPro spokesperson told the 大象传媒 that the company has identified the issue.

"We've identified the cause of this issue, are in the process of implementing and testing a fix, and expect to release a firmware update for Karma that will address the issue within the week," they said.

"We apologise to anyone who was inconvenienced by this issue."

Tech website that the issue is linked to the recent GPS clock "rollover" phenomenon, which happens once every 1,024 weeks, or every 19.7 years.

Software needs to be programmed to anticipate the rollover to zero weeks, otherwise it may stop working.

The majority of tech firms have averted problems with software updates over the last few months but since September 2018.

GoPro Karma owners started complaining about the issue last Thursday.

"I recently got a Karma and am having an issue with compass calibration,"

"For some reason this doesn't work: as soon as I select compass calibration in the controller, within half a second (not enough time to pick up the drone and start calibrating), I get the message 'calibration failed, try again'.

"It also gives a message about not being able to calibrate the compass without a GPS signal."

Another owner said they had the same problem and it was stopping them working.

Video caption, Watch: Dave Lee gets hands on with GoPro's Karma quadcopter

The backpack-sized Karma drone, which has a dedicated slot for the company's Hero action cameras, was launched by GoPro in September 2016.

The product, which competes with DJI's camera drones, proved popular with snowboarders, surfers, and other extreme sports enthusiasts who want to film themselves performing from the air.

Some YouTubers and Instagrammers also bought the device, which retailed for 拢720 at launch.

However, shortly after the devices went on sale, some owners complained about them losing power mid-flight,

for the Karma drone in February 2017 while it tried to address the issue.

In January 2018, and it laid off hundreds of staff who worked on Karma.

At the time, it said it would continue to provide service and support Karma customers.