GoPro cameras, made by Woodman Labs, pioneered the idea of small, almost disposable digital cameras in 2006 and has since become a very large HD and later 4K camera manufacturer. So when the company released the revolutionary idea of a camera-drone-in-a-box last November, called Karma, the action sports world was wafting at its doorstep.

Until it crashed.

Just 16 days after its launch, GoPro recalled the whole Karma fleet.

“In November 2016 we had to make the difficult, but necessary, decision to voluntarily withdraw Karma from the market,” said GoPro Founder and CEO, Nick Woodman. “Safety is our biggest priority, so this decision came after we learned that a small number of Karma units were experiencing power loss mid-flight. We knew we had to move quickly. Really, it was an easy decision but difficult news to share.”

It turned out that a few Karma drones had been reported losing power in mid-flight due to a faulty battery latch. Instead of making excuses or blaming others, GoPro took it on the chin and called the whole production run of Karma’s home.

It cost them the lucrative 2016 Holiday sales, but many say it was the right thing to do.

Now, the problem is fixed and Karma is back on the market. 

The new Karma drone

Karma is an out-of-the-box experience that only takes minutes to go from backpack to flying with the camera mounted on a 3-axis stabilizer. The complete system consists of the foldable Karma drone, the stabilizer unit called the Karma Grip which doubles as a hand-held camera grasp and the game-style controller with an integrated touch display.

GoPro HERO5 Session and HERO4 Black and Silver cameras have separately available harnesses so they can be mounted on Karma to take 4K videos from a bird’s eye view.

Karma comes pre-programed with four auto flight patterns to capture shots: dronie, orbit, reveal, and cable cam, so even beginners can come back with amazing shots. As your skills improve, the sky is the limit (of course only within local legal restrictions).

Welcome back, Karma, a company that cared enough to admit their mistake and then improved the product.