PowerUp 4.0 Is World’s Smartest Paper Plane, Now With LED Lights & Landing Gear

PowerUp has been around on KickStarter for some time, already counting on 3 successful campaigns. This is the fourth of the kind, a sort of the ultimate kit for any paper plane aficionado. What it brings new to the table are a bunch of sensors, motors, an on-board computer, LED lights, landing gear and the flight analytics available straight on your phone.

That’s a lot for a paper plane, but the good people at PowerUp say their mission is to bring awesome into your life and turn you into the talk of the playground. They will deliver on that last count, at the very least: their module can make fly almost anything, from paper planes to planes made of cardboard of styrofoam, or even a piece of lettuce. It can even fly a piece of paper that you’re too lazy to fold into a plane.

What’s best, piloting the plane is done through the app, by simply titling your smartphone.

“Say goodbye to nosedives and choppy flights,” PowerUp says. “We’ve added a new on-board flight computer and 2 new sensors: gyro and accelerometer, combined with 2 thrust vectoring motors. That means flying PowerUp 4.0 is smoother than ever.”

The module also makes it easy to fly the plane in extreme weather conditions, like when it’s very windy. So, when everyone else has gone home, you can still play with your paper plane outside.

“PowerUp 4.0 can auto-loop. So you can master tricks and awesome aerobatics by simply pressing a button,” the description of the module further says. “We’ve added 2 high speed motors to PowerUp 4.0. That means you’ve got double the thrust, additional maneuvering possibilities, and sharper turns. And together with the flight assist, you can fly just about anything.”

Real-time flight analytics include thrust levels, turning angles and heading directions, and will prompt customized tips to help you improve on your next flight. For an extra touch of awesome, the kit now includes LED lights and an improved landing gear.

Clearly, the dudes as PowerUp have thought of all. Contributors to the campaign will get several paper planes and templates in the box with the kit, and also a desk stand to show off their work. The goal for the campaign was set at $40,000 but it already raised over $388,000 so, based on this response, we’d say there are a lot of people looking to become the Mavericks of the paper plane.