What drone is right for you?
It may seem like every second article you read on the internet these days is about drones or UAV's, and it's true that they are gaining popularity at a staggering rate, in fact they say that the commercial drone industry will be worth over 80 Billion Dollars in the next five years, drones dominated the headlines at C.E.S this year with all the big players and loads of new start-ups emerging into the market, even the mighty GoPro are rumoured to be in the advanced stages of developing their very own drone.
There are a vast array of different types of drones available out there and if you are interested in getting into flying the sheer volume of choices available to you is probably quite daunting
I have compiled a list of what I believe to be the best options available to you in the market right now. The list that I have created is from the mid to high level consumer/prosumer type drones, hope it helps you to make the right choice.
DJI
www.dji.com
- The most popular and well known consumer grade drone is the DJI Phantom range, they have been around for a while now and DJI have created an excellent product that is not only affordable but also very easy to fly due to the built in GPS hold technology.
- DJI Phantom 2
- DJI Phantom 2 Vision +
- DJI Inspire 1
- S1000
- S900
The standard Phantom 2 does not come out the box with a camera, but you can add a Zenmuse gimbal and that allows you to film using one of the most popular action cameras on the market today, the GoPro Hero 3 or Hero 4. All of these options are extras though and can be complicated to setup and use for those of you that are not technically inclined.
The latest model to emerge from the DJI line-up is the new Inspire 1, the inspire 1 is the most advanced prosumer drone on the market right now, it has a built in 4K camera and can be used with dual remote controls allowing one operator to fly the drone and a second person to move and control the camera, the Inspire 1 is the drone to get if your pockets are deep enough as they currently retail for around $2 899. I would say that for a normal consumer or hobbyist this option would be pushing the budget limits and for the professional aerial photographer the Inspire1 would not be great either due to the limitation of the built in camera.
You can purchase the DJI Phantom range of quad-copters from Action Gear, www.actiongear.co.za as well as all the accessories such as extra batteries and props, Action Gear also stocks a full range of action cameras and accessories for GoPro, Drift and loads more, their service is also excellent.
3. Another heavyweight contender in the consumer drone market is 3DR or 3D Robotics, they have a couple of awesome drones that use the Pixhawk flight controller, this controller is an advanced autopilot system that has a number of cool features such as, follow me, way-points and GPS home autopilot landing and take off to name a few. Follow me technology allows the drone to film the user from a number of heights and angles pre-set in the ground station software, so for the ultimate "selfie" video this is the drone for you.
The current range of 3DR drones includes the following models:
www.steadidrone.com
You can purchase the DJI Phantom range of quad-copters from Action Gear, www.actiongear.co.za as well as all the accessories such as extra batteries and props, Action Gear also stocks a full range of action cameras and accessories for GoPro, Drift and loads more, their service is also excellent.
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| www.actiongear.co.za |
Blade Helis
www.bladehelis.com
2. Another contender in the entry level drone market is the Blade 350 QX, the 350 QX is arguably one of the easiest and cheapest systems to take out the box and get flying, with advanced safety features using the built in GPS and software. In safe mode the pilot creates a buffer zone around them and the drone will not fly into that zone, this can be great for beginners and children learning to fly but limiting for the more competent flyers out there.
Using the blade 350 for aerial photography is not quite as refined as other models out there due to the fact that there is no gimbal, you can however attach your Gopro camera and still get some fairly decent shots.
The one area where the Blade takes the lead and that's on price, out the box and ready to fly it's less than half the price of the equivalent DJI Phantom or 3DR but this is reflected in the overall quality of the product and limited expandability. In saying that, for the price this is one excellent product and perfect for starting or those not wanting to get into some serious aerial photography.
Blade 350 flight modes:
- Smart Mode: For Safe Zone, Position Hold and Stick Relativity.
- Stability Mode: For Safe Zone and GPS Position Hold.
- Agility Mode: For acrobatics and aggressive flying.
The QX is fully GoPro compatible and allows for a GoPro Hero camera to
be mounted onto the base of the copter for aerial filming. This feature
includes anti vibration mount for clean, stable footage.
3D Robotics
www.3dr.com
3. Another heavyweight contender in the consumer drone market is 3DR or 3D Robotics, they have a couple of awesome drones that use the Pixhawk flight controller, this controller is an advanced autopilot system that has a number of cool features such as, follow me, way-points and GPS home autopilot landing and take off to name a few. Follow me technology allows the drone to film the user from a number of heights and angles pre-set in the ground station software, so for the ultimate "selfie" video this is the drone for you.
The current range of 3DR drones includes the following models:
- IRIS+ - shown above
- X8+
- X8-M
- Aero-M
The video below was shot using the DJI Phantom 2 with the optional Zenmuse H3-3D Gimbal and the Gopro Hero 3+ Black edition. Some of the extras that I have fitted to my Phantom include the live video downlink and FPV system as well as the new Phantom props and upgraded compass recently launched by DJI as an upgrade to the Phantom2.
Steadidrone
4. An innovative South African company, based in Knysna, SteadiDrone is building and designing some advanced drones for the prosumer and professional markets. Steadidrones range topping X model can lift up to an 8kg payload for 20 mins and a smaller Gopro for over 60 mins flight time.
Their entry level drone, the Flare is the baby brother to the Mavrik, both the Flare and Mavrik are equipped with a custom rail mounted gimbal system that allows users to fly a range of cameras from the GoPro to larger compact digital cameras. An awesome feature of their front mounted gimbal systems is the ability to rotate the camera from facing down 90degress to facing up 90 degrees, this is a unique feature and allows for inspection work from underneath structures that most other drones are unable to achieve.
Other features of the Mavrik and Flare include SteadiDrones Rapid Deploy folding carbon fibre airframes that allow for easy and quick deployment while taking up minimal space when not in use as well as their unique anti-vibration motor mount technology that isolates motor vibration for smoother video footage.
Steadidrone advanced GPS features:
Their entry level drone, the Flare is the baby brother to the Mavrik, both the Flare and Mavrik are equipped with a custom rail mounted gimbal system that allows users to fly a range of cameras from the GoPro to larger compact digital cameras. An awesome feature of their front mounted gimbal systems is the ability to rotate the camera from facing down 90degress to facing up 90 degrees, this is a unique feature and allows for inspection work from underneath structures that most other drones are unable to achieve.
Other features of the Mavrik and Flare include SteadiDrones Rapid Deploy folding carbon fibre airframes that allow for easy and quick deployment while taking up minimal space when not in use as well as their unique anti-vibration motor mount technology that isolates motor vibration for smoother video footage.
Steadidrone advanced GPS features:
• 3DR Pixhawk GPS Flight controller with advanced GPS Features
• 'Follow Me' Have the FLARE follow you or your subject around
• 'Loiter' Accurate GPS position and altitude hold modes keep your drone where you want it
• 'Return to Home' With a flip of the switch have the drone return home and land autonomously
• Advanced Way-point navigation, mission planning and more!
