Suggestion for drone with a camera

masterboy123

So I am planning to go to California and looking for a reasonably good drone with a camera.
Budget is 120 euros max.
Any suggestions are welcome.

toe_knee

masterboy123 wrote: »

So I am planning to go to California and looking for a reasonably good drone with a camera.
Budget is 120 euros max.
Any suggestions are welcome.

Doubt you will get anything decent for that price. Would need to spend up around 400 to be honest

Bluefoam

I have a DJI Spark & it is the cheapest I would recommend. It has it's flaws, such as two axis gimbal but it's the best bang for buck you can get.

DJI Spark _ Flymore Combo

I managed to get the combo kit for about $300, but haven't seen prices that low since.

Homer

There is a newer and smaller DJI drone called the Tello which doesn't have the gimbal, only has 5mp camera for stills but might suit your needs?

ED E

An old and not so great GoPro camera will cost €100+ never mind something to fly it and something to control that. Not a realistic budget.

Hubsans at €200 would be the closest you'd get.

masterboy123

This is very expensive.
But thanks

Bluefoam wrote: »

I have a DJI Spark & it is the cheapest I would recommend. It has it's flaws, such as two axis gimbal but it's the best bang for buck you can get.

DJI Spark _ Flymore Combo

I managed to get the combo kit for about $300, but haven't seen prices that low since.

masterboy123

I see many drones on amazon website for under 100 euros.

Such as this one with many reviews :

WIFI FPV Version DROCON Cyclone X708W Drone with HD Camera for Beginners Kids Training Quadcopter with Headless Mode One Key Return (X708W WIFI FPV VERSION) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B073FKY3FN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_NvYEBbGBB89CT

I don't know if they last very short though.

ED E wrote: »

An old and not so great GoPro camera will cost €100+ never mind something to fly it and something to control that. Not a realistic budget.

Hubsans at €200 would be the closest you'd get.

ED E

Those are cameras designed for FPV transmission.

Totally different game to drones for photography. Toy vs tool.

masterboy123

Ok, so these don't have image stabiliser or the capability to revolve around an object smoothly.

ED E wrote: »

Those are cameras designed for FPV transmission.

Totally different game to drones for photography. Toy vs tool.

GBX

masterboy123 wrote: »

Ok, so these don't have image stabiliser or the capability to revolve around an object smoothly.

For your budget the spec on a drone is going to be very limited. In that price range you are effectively looking at toys as ED E said. For anything decent you need to adjust your budget upwards. The Xiaomi for around €400 is a good start.

pete4130

Any cheap drone from Amazon will be useless. Camera quality will be awful, the battery life will be so short and it won't have GPS to keep it stable. Waste of Money.

I bought a used DJI Phantom 4 for about AU$1200 in Australia. It's still expensive and its large and cumbersom to travel with. It's a fantastic piece of kit for video. The RAW images out of it still leave a lot to be desired. Perfectly fine for web purposes though.

The best drone for your budget is the DJI Tello.

PROS:
It's cheap
It's small & portable
Well made
Easy to fly
Good resale value


CONS:
No GPS
10m height restriction (this can be worked around to get it to about 30m)
100m range (can be extneded with a Xiaomi type brand wifi extender for about
E10 and a USB battery charger for your phone to run it)
Camera only faces downward/forwards.

masterboy123

Very informative. I feel I need to postpone buying the drone for the moment and look at it again maybe next year when I can afford a better one.

Thanks everyone.

pete4130 wrote: »

Any cheap drone from Amazon will be useless. Camera quality will be awful, the battery life will be so short and it won't have GPS to keep it stable. Waste of Money.

I bought a used DJI Phantom 4 for about AU$1200 in Australia. It's still expensive and its large and cumbersom to travel with. It's a fantastic piece of kit for video. The RAW images out of it still leave a lot to be desired. Perfectly fine for web purposes though.

The best drone for your budget is the DJI Tello.

PROS:
It's cheap
It's small & portable
Well made
Easy to fly
Good resale value


CONS:
No GPS
10m height restriction (this can be worked around to get it to about 30m)
100m range (can be extneded with a Xiaomi type brand wifi extender for about
E10 and a USB battery charger for your phone to run it)
Camera only faces downward/forwards.

copperhead

the laws regarding flying of drones in are also alot stricter in the us
it might be worth looking into this before you purchase, they take it very serious over there

pete4130

masterboy123 wrote: »

Very informative. I feel I need to postpone buying the drone for the moment and look at it again maybe next year when I can afford a better one.

Thanks everyone.

If you want a cheap drone then a Tello is the way to go. It's maybe E100 and you are good to go. So many people rave about their abilities for such a cheap drone. I've considered getting one just to have for fun. It's going to be better than anything else you can buy right now for the price.

I've said the Phantom 4 leaves a lot to be desired but in reality, for a flying camera that can go 500m high and 5km away and fly for 25 minutes....its really good. I'm just used to having the best camera and best lenses I can afford.

Here are some pics from my "obsolete" Phantom 4 drone.....

masterboy123

pete4130 wrote: »

If you want a cheap drone then a Tello is the way to go. It's maybe E100 and you are good to go. So many people rave about their abilities for such a cheap drone. I've considered getting one just to have for fun. It's going to be better than anything else you can buy right now for the price.

I've said the Phantom 4 leaves a lot to be desired but in reality, for a flying camera that can go 500m high and 5km away and fly for 25 minutes....its really good. I'm just used to having the best camera and best lenses I can afford.

Here are some pics from my "obsolete" Phantom 4 drone.....

Wooo
Those are awesome photos! Just checked the price for Phantom 4 and my phone 📱 almost slipped out of my hand
Well, enjoy the toy!

Chavways

pete4130 wrote: »

If you want a cheap drone then a Tello is the way to go. It's maybe E100 and you are good to go. So many people rave about their abilities for such a cheap drone. I've considered getting one just to have for fun. It's going to be better than anything else you can buy right now for the price.

I've said the Phantom 4 leaves a lot to be desired but in reality, for a flying camera that can go 500m high and 5km away and fly for 25 minutes....its really good. I'm just used to having the best camera and best lenses I can afford.

Here are some pics from my "obsolete" Phantom 4 drone.....

I have a Phantom 3 Advanced myself with the 12mp sensor and always thought it was just the settings I was using to capture photos that made my images seem not sharp. But it seems that you're having the same issue with the 4. Sharpness doesn't even seem to be on the same level as a cheap APS-C DSLR with kit lens unfortunately.

CabanSail

I have the Phantom 3 Standard. It's camera is limited but you can still get some good results from it. The range is limited but I cannot see the point of having more when they can only be flown (here) while you can see it and orientate it. That limits it to within about 150m.

Have also just bought an Inspire. It is much larger and more stable. Photo's from it are better. I have the licence to fly it. I think the limit for recreational is under 2kg and it's over 3.5kg.

Considering a Tello too. While it is very basic being under 100gms you can fly it in most areas without restrictions.

masterboy123

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and reviews.

In short, is it worth investing approx. 100 euros in a drone? It's for USA trip only and hoping to get clear enough photos of scenery and of people.

Homer

CabanSail wrote: »

Considering a Tello too. While it is very basic being under 100gms you can fly it in most areas without restrictions.

The height limit is still 50ft pretty much anywhere in Dublin regardless of weight.You don't have to register drones 1kg or under but the same rules apply.

CabanSail

Different rules here (Australia)

The classes are;

<100gms
100gms to 2kg
2kg to 25kg
>25kg

Under 100gms There is no location restrictions.
100gm to 2kg is where the recreational units are. They can be flown up to 400 ft but there are prohibited and restricted areas.


As far as I can see the rules in Ireland are;



Which would mean that most of Dublin would be a No Fly Zone being within 5km of an aerodrome and/or flying over urban areas.

Reati

masterboy123 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and reviews.

In short, is it worth investing approx. 100 euros in a drone? It's for USA trip only and hoping to get clear enough photos of scenery and of people.

Probably not unless you look up the exact area and ensure you can use a drone there. I travel to the states for work a few times a year and have a mavic pro. I've yet to find a spot to use it. Pretty much every tourist area has big no drone signs. Without driving for hours out into the sticks I'm not sure where I'd go! As some said the rules are strict there and the police (as I'm sure any video of US police will show) take life very seriously and don't really like drones.

Reati

CabanSail wrote: »

Different rules here (Australia)

The classes are;

<100gms
100gms to 2kg
2kg to 25kg
>25kg

Under 100gms There is no location restrictions.
100gm to 2kg is where the recreational units are. They can be flown up to 400 ft but there are prohibited and restricted areas.


As far as I can see the rules in Ireland are;



Which would mean that most of Dublin would be a No Fly Zone being within 5km of an aerodrome and/or flying over urban areas.

From North Dublin to bray requires permission from the IAA above 15m. It's all class C controlled airspace