We first saw Parrot's fantastically futuristic looking augmented reality gaming experience, the AR.Drone, at CES back in January. And now, the boys' toy has been given an official launch date.

On 18 August you'll be able to pick up one of these iPhone / iPod Touch controlled quadricopters at HMV. But it will cost you £299. Ouch.

However, you may consider the expense to be worth it. It is pretty jaw-dropping after all. On board the flying machine, which is controlled using the accelerometer in your chosen Apple device, is two cameras that provide live images to your controller's screen.

You can either choose to fly around in the real world, or you can take on one of the augmented reality courses. You can even dogfight with another AR.Drone. That's if you can find another person willing to pay nearly £300 for one.

They work by hooking up to the same Wi-Fi network your iPhone / iPod Touch is on and they've got a 50m range. Battery life isn't great though - only 12 minutes per charge.

We've harked on about the price a bit, but it is expensive. But in its defence it has got some pretty neat tech on board and we loved the look of it in action at CES.

If you've got £299 to burn and you want a cool toy, get down to HMV on 18 August and nab yourself one.