First off lets get the elephant out of the room. Why are you writing an article about which drone to buy? Well, inevitably whenever people find out I fly drones they often ask which kind to get. Rather than continually repeat a fraction of the answer, I thought I would write an article to give people a concise answer. So here we go…
So Flying cameras seem awesome, but do you need one?
If I have to sell you on the idea, you probably don’t “need” one but here are some common uses for drones…
- Photography – Never miss another sunset regardless of where you are. Just go up! Also saves all that pesky walking around.
- Filming – Either filming yourself or anything else. These drones have intelligent flight modes so they can easily automatically film yourself while dodging obstacles.
- Surveying – Measuring land, 3d capturing buildings, taking crop health, etc. More along the commercial lines, but you can do a lot with these things now.
- Racing – Want to go faster than a race car can? Kind of like speed bike racing with less repercussions.
- Freestyle flying – Basically doing stunts in the air like backflips, barrel rolls and diving. Almost like skateboarding with less repercussions.
- Long range flying – Want to fly to the mountaintop? There’s a drone for that.
- Fun – If nothing else, it can be a lot of fun if you are into this kind of stuff.
Unfortunately with the exception of fun, you will need different drones to achieve the various uses mentioned above. Some can do a few, but none can do them all. I think of them as tools in a toolbox.
Not all drones are the same, so how do you want to experience your flight?
The first major fork in the road when it comes to flying a drone is how you experience it. Either…
A. Regular Camera drone with handheld remote – A controller you hold in your hand that is hooked up to your phone. Typically this is better for taking photos or fine tuning video settings as you can interact with your screen and/or remote. This is a definitely a more relaxing form of flying as these types of drones will have obstacle avoidance sensors, geo fencing (to prevent you from flying where you shouldn’t) and intelligent flight modes to prevent crashing or so you can even film yourself. Controls for this are pretty simple, forward is forward, up is up. You can figure out these controls in a couple minutes. The Drone figures pretty much everything else out for you and has obstacle avoidance sensors and smart return-to-home functions. These drones are great as they are pretty compact and can fold up.
or
B. FPV (First Person View) drone with Goggles – With FPV you are completely emersed wearing goggles so you only see what the drone sees. You have a similar handheld controller, but there is no screen and you have to remember what your various buttons do what. FPV is typically used for filming racing, freestyle flying, indoor flying and long range flying. It doesn’t take still photos for the same reason you don’t take photos while running. This method of flying is quite intense and will likely result in a few crashes. Scratch that. A lot of crashes. Best to spend at least 30 hours in a simulator before you attempt to take off in real life. The control for this bizzarro world at first, Left can be right, down can be up. Drone is basically handing you the reins and assuming you understand throttle, roll, pitch and yaw. If not, it doesn’t care as it is a mindless flying computer and now you are left googling “my drone doesn’t…” . All that being said, once you understand this method of flight, you have a lot more options and are only limited by your nerves. These drones come in a variety of sizes based on their propeller size. Longer range drones are 7 – 10 inches, whereas freestyle and racing drones are around 3-5 inches and cinewhoops are even smaller and have propeller guards to help prevent damage to the drone and those around it.
Where do you want to fly?
Typically people think of drones as in the sky above you, but there are some other options to consider.
Outside – Typical location for a drone, but be mindful of the laws in your area.
Inside – Yes, you can fly them inside, but you are likely going to want to use something with propeller guards like a cinewhoop or a tinywhoop and should probably learn in the air or in a simulator as opposed to in your house. Typically you would do this in an FPV setup due to the responsiveness required to maneuver through tight areas.
How much do you want to spend?
I know you may have seen some cheap drones at Costco, but that is a bit like buying a skateboard from Walmart (don’t do that either). If you are in the market for a camera drone and really want to save some money it is better to buy a second hand drone off Kijjii or Facebook Marketplace of the previous model. Many pilots upgrade when the new version of a drone comes out so you can often find last years model at a good deal.
What nobody tells you about drones
While drones are fun, there are some things to keep in mind.
- There are laws to abide by – You can’t just take off downtown and fly around buildings. There are rules on this stuff so best to check with your local authorities. Most camera drones have geo-fencing built in so it will automatically land your drone if you are near an airport, prison or military base. If your drone is under 250g you the rules are less restrictive but best to check with local governments website.
- There are citizens to deal with – Inevitably someone will advise that planes are flying above you. Since you will never take your drone to 30,000 feet you should be good but be prepared for comments like they were out of the Toronto Sun 🙂
- You can break them – 6 million ways to die, choose 1. Flying FPV will almost guarantee a crash. If it doesn’t, you are not trying hard enough.
- FPV is pretty stressful – My apple watch often asks if I am working out while flying some of my drones.
- They are a flying lawnmowers – What I am saying here is be careful. If your drone does not have propeller guards be mindful when bringing near excited kids, animals or unsuspecting seniors. Magnetic interference is apparently a thing to so be mindful of your surroundings.
- While you could build one from scratch, don’t – While you could, the time you would save is miniscule. Kind of like building your own PC.
My Recommendations for drones
Since this article is more likely directed at the enthusiast level, I would recommend starting with a Camera Drone
Best Camera drone for no budget constraint – DJI Mavic 3 Pro – Starting around 2K USD
Best Camera drone for size/budget – DJI Mini 4 Pro – Starting around 1K USD
If you want to go down the FPV route,
Best FPV drone for beginners who are not going to do anything too risky – DJI Avata2 – Starting around 1K USD including Goggles and Controller (make sure to get a proper remote too, not just motion controller)
My favorite FPV Cinewhoop drone for indoor flying – Happymodel Mobula8 03 version – Approximately $400 USD (does not include Goggles or controller) . This thing can take a beating and is relatively cheap/easy to repair
My favorite FPV drone company for most other stuff – GEPRC Starting from around $400USD (does not include Goggles or controller).
If you don’t even want to fly the drone, there are ones that fly themselves. Checkout the DJI Neo which just came out. It is less than $200USD for the drone and you can fly it via your phone or automatically by itself.
Wrap-up
Hopefully this article has provided some insight into the topic. Let me know if I missed something and I will add it.
