Flying drones had become increasingly popular not only among photographers but also among hobbyists who find a lot of thrill and challenge in flying an unmanned aircraft. Most of today's drones are quadcopters or drones with four propellers which people find more appealing because of their mechanical simplicity.
People should remember that flying a drone has its own set of rules. They can try to check if there's a locally organized drone flying club in their area where they can meet other flying enthusiasts and become more aware of the circumstances involved in flying.
When choosing the best drone, there are only a few things to consider. These include battery life, camera, and of course the budget.
Here are the best drones to buy in the market.
DJI Phantom 2 Vision+ Quadcopter
DJI drones are known to be packed with professional level features. This model is the latest drone from the company which features a built-in super high quality camera. It can shoot stills at 14MP and 1080p for video. Other camera features include Adobe's lens profile support, 3-axis camera stabilization and tilting capacity for easier aiming. Flight time has a maximum of 25 minutes. While the range is Wi-Fi limited, it can extend up to 700m with the help of one's smartphone. It also needs real joysticks for the control. When it slips out of range, the drone can simply detect a signal break and will automatically start to fly back to its owner.
Turbo Ace Matrix
Designed with professional grade filming and photography, the Turbo Ace Matrix is the daddy of drones. It features a wingspan of 1 meter, triple carbon fiber deck build, 8-inch monitor and 8,000mAh battery that allows it to stay in the air for 25 minutes. The range is measured at 1.2 miles. Each unit can carry gimbals and cameras on top for those who are keen on high definition filming and photography. It's also a "transformer drone" since it can be folded down for extra convenience during transport.
EHANG Ghost
While this type of drone has no built-in camera, it does have a gimbal for attaching a GoPro shutter. Its most impressive feature is the tilt controls. It can easily be manipulated through a mobile app. Users can steer the drone simply by tilting the mobile app in back and forth motion.
Hubsan H107D Quadcopter
At $158, this drone is one of the cheaper ones available in the market today. Still, it offers a number of the same features found among its counterparts. Its most premium feature is the ability to transmit first-person-view (FPV) video. This means that the user can view it directly on the controller. Moreover, videos can be captured straight into an SD card.
Parrot MiniDrone Rolling Spider
This mini drone from Parrot sells for $99.99. It's a handheld compact drone that can fly up to a range of 20 meters with speeds reaching up to 11mph. It's great for both indoor and outdoor flying. The drone can be manipulated through the phone's Bluetooth 4.0 LE connectivity. It can also take pictures at a small resolution of 300,000 pixels.
Nano QX RTF with SAFE
This drone model is the perfect practice drone for new enthusiasts. It uses the Sensor Assisted Flight Envelope (SAFE) technology which can limit the drone controller's ability. The result is flying the tiny aircraft with the needed stability and agility.
Blade 350 QX V2
This quadcopter is ready to fly right out of the box and has been designed to carry a camera such as the popular GoPro. It's also good for aerobatic flying since it can flip and roll. This model is equipped with an anti-vibration GoPro mount, is GPS enabled, and can be easily sent home with just a single button. Flight time is estimated to last between 9 and 14 minutes which could vary if it does not carry too much weight.
