back to article Drone captures shots of budding APPLE SPACESHIP HQ

An amateur drone video is shedding new light on Apple's future headquarters. Shot in August with a GoPro Hero 3 camera mounted onto a DJI Phantom 2 Quadcopter drone, the video shows construction on the iStuff maker's new Cupertino headquarters. The creator of the video said that footage was shot at the FAA-approved altitude of …

  1. Spaller

    Behold! The Applitron!

    Where's the beam line?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Behold! The Applitron!

      Where does the Master Control iPanel sit? In the middle?

  2. frank ly

    Interesting form of words

    "The creator of the video said that footage was shot at the FAA-approved altitude of under 400 feet and was timed for shooting when no workers were at the site."

    Did he ask the site owner's permission though?

    1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge

      Re: Interesting form of words

      Does he need to?

      I have never had a letter of imaging companies in my mailbox.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Interesting form of words

      United States v. Causby 328 U.S. 256 says he doesn't have too.

      1. Tom Samplonius
        Stop

        Re: Interesting form of words

        "United States v. Causby 328 U.S. 256 says he doesn't have too."

        Actually, no it doesn't. The way United States v. Causby is applied in the US, is that the navigable airspace is public domain. But that airspace also requires compliance with FAA. But this drone was flying below that limit, so technically it is was trespassing. Unless, they obtained permission from the land owner to fly there.

        Even Causby obtained compensation from the US gov't, as the aircraft were flying at 83 ft, as the US gov't had to obtain an easement to fly planes through the immediate airspace about his property.

      2. frank ly

        @AC Re: Interesting form of words

        I just had a look at that judgement - it was about low flying military aircraft in 'navigable airspace' under the 'minimum safe altitude'. Causby was claiming damages for injury to livestock due to intense stress on them. The court determined that the government had taken an 'easement', a property right defined in law, which they have the power to do but which they must pay compensation for. That judgement would not seem to apply to this situation on a variety of counts.

        [edit] Tom beat me to it.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Interesting form of words

      Do Google and everyone else seek it when they film private property? Nope thought not.

      What comes around....

  3. This post has been deleted by its author

    1. amanfromMars 1 Silver badge

      Re: Tons of foil & garlic for me.

      Immediate thoughts of a GCHQ v.4.2 Operations Base crossed my mind too on sight of that site construction, AC, therefore it is and/or if not presently, most certainly can be and therefore definitely will be.

      Crikey ..... Is that Spooky Blighty Boffinry already cracked and hacked into Coffee and Cocoa for Bigger and Better Beta Future Live Operational Virtual Environment Productions with Media and IT Presentation of Virtual Reality or is that a Private Proprietary Pirate Programming for AI and Virtual Machinery into NEUKlearer HyperRadioProActive IT Generation for Sublime Command and Control of Heavenly Powers and always readily available on the most attractive and sensitive of novel affordable terms to CyberIntelAIgent State Leaderships?

      And Double Crikey and Jumping Jehosophats, Batman, what if it is at least both of those at the same time in space and therefore something else and completely different too.

    2. HipposRule

      Re: Tons of foil & garlic for me.

      Strange that GCHQ was designed by American architects and this by a British one.

    3. VinceH

      Re: Tons of foil & garlic for me.

      "That looks too much like GCHQ."

      Quite. I'm beginning to wonder when Apple will be suing them.

  4. Charles Manning

    walled garden

    nuff sed.

  5. Hero Protagonist

    Looking for...

    ...the thermal exhaust port?

    1. MyffyW Silver badge

      Re: Looking for...

      ... at that speed do you think you'll be able to pull out in time?

      1. Slabfondler

        Re: Looking for...

        Said the actress to the bishop?

    2. TitterYeNot

      Re: Looking for...

      "...the thermal exhaust port?"

      Now witness the marketing power of this fully armed and operational Applestation...

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Shrine

    Have they already built the underground bunker?

    You know, the Apple Core.

  7. i like crisps
    Facepalm

    So this is Steve Jobs 'Legacy'?

    Mine would have been ' REPLACABLE BATTERIES'.

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    DJI Phantom 2 Quadcopter drone

    DJI Phantom 2 Quadcopter.

    TFTFY.....

  9. xyz Silver badge

    Is that slot...

    ....where the aerial is going to go?

    Obviously they're building a pyramid with round edges (tm) to bury Steve Jobs in.

  10. MyffyW Silver badge

    Most impressed

    I was waiting for the 'copter to come down on the wrong side of the fence.

    "Please, Mr Cook, can I have my drone back?"

    1. Hans 1
      Joke

      Re: Most impressed

      @ MyffyW

      You forgot the "r"

      "Please, Mr Crook, can I have my drone back?"

      there fixed it

    2. d3vy

      Re: Most impressed

      I know this was posted as a joke, but seeing as it can fly wouldn't he just.. you know, take off again and land it in the right place?

  11. Timmay

    Apple connector

    Will they fit a lightning conductor?

  12. Mike Wilson

    Mic on drone

    I'm wondering about the idea of putting a microphone on a drone. Would it ever record anything but engine noise?

    1. VinceH

      Re: Mic on drone

      "I'm wondering about the idea of putting a microphone on a drone. Would it ever record anything but engine noise?"

      It's probably there simply as a result of being a standard feature of the camera - pointless, really, but it just is. If you (as the operator) are bothered, you can just replace the audio with a nice (suitably licenced) piece of music, or other audio.

    2. d3vy

      Re: Mic on drone

      The mic is not on the drone its on the GOPRO camera strapped to the bottom of the drone.

    3. Franklin

      Re: Mic on drone

      So I just got my first camera-equipped quadcopter, and on watching the video from my first test flight I was like "hey waitaminnit, there's no sound!" Then I thought about it for a second and realized why.

  13. lurker

    Although I'm not a fan of Apple on the whole..

    It must be admitted that "1 Inifnite Loop" is quite a cool postal address :).

    1. Roj Blake Silver badge

      Re: Although I'm not a fan of Apple on the whole..

      Seagate's Northern Ireland office used to be (and may still be) at 1 Disc Drive

  14. hammarbtyp

    So that what Tim Cook has been working on..

    When do they install the iHyperDrive engines?

  15. Julian Taylor

    iTorus?

    Ah, now we can see where all those Surface fondlesofts ended up ...

  16. Captain Queeg

    Jokes aside, this does look like the mother of all vanity projects

    I'm sure there's a business case for a big campus site, but not for one that's as much form as function.

    History records many examples of hubristic companies who massaged their own egos out of existance. BSkyB took on the undeniably chic Marco Polo House as their (expensive) head office, while Sky took on a functional "shed" somewhere near Romford. Both were suited to the companies needs but one was built to a reasonable budget while the other was more or less pure excess.

    Activities like these don't condemn a company but they do signpost the management mindset.

    If I were Cook, I'd be spending less on head office and more on testing/R&D or other activity that benefits end customers and therefore Apple's competitive position...

    1. Rastus

      Re: Jokes aside, this does look like the mother of all vanity projects

      I think they have enough cash in the bank to do both!

  17. Fungus Bob

    that is going to be one big-ass stargate...

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