Sharper Image: Mosquito Drone

[McCoy2797]

Hello!

My girlfriend's mom bought me, and two other members of the family the Sharper Image Mosquito Drone for Christmas. We flew them right out of the box! It was AWESOME!

Then.... We charged them, or so we thought we did.

The directions say that it takes 45 minutes to charge, and that the light on the charger will shut off after its fully charged. Well, we had them on charge for an hour because the light wasn't shutting off.

We turned them on, and they buzzed for a second, but never left the ground, and died. It was like it never charged at all.

This happened to all three of them.

So, what's the deal? These were $50 a piece (it says that on their website)!

If I am to guess, I'm going to assume it has everything to do with Sharper Image quality. I've never bought anything from them before, but 3 out of the box being one-flight drones, then nothing at all doesn't make a good case for Sharper Image.

Anyway.... Even though we had a bad experience with these, that first flight was enough to hook me. So, I'm looking for some recommendations on a good starter. I found a list here:

http://uavcoach.com/cheap-drones-for-beginners/

I'm definitely starting out with the ones that are low cost.

Would buying 3-4 of the cheaper ones be a good idea so I can get a lot of flying in while the others are on charge?

Thank you for your time, and I'm looking forward to a fun new hobby.

 

[ringolong]

Welcome to the fun

The charge could take much longer than 60 minutes. I would let them go until the light goes out, and if it still does not charge then I would try contacting the company and let them know what is going on.

What was the source of power that you were using to charge them with?

I was having an issue with a camera that I got with a qx180 so I contacted the company and they sent me a new camera. They will address your issue if the are a reputable company.

 

[Michael Fenimore]

Hello!
Anyway.... Even though we had a bad experience with these, that first flight was enough to hook me. So, I'm looking for some recommendations on a good starter. I found a list here:

http://uavcoach.com/cheap-drones-for-beginners/

I'm definitely starting out with the ones that are low cost.

Would buying 3-4 of the cheaper ones be a good idea so I can get a lot of flying in while the others are on charge?

Thank you for your time, and I'm looking forward to a fun new hobby.

Welcome to the addiction LOL
Of the ones listed in the article, I am only familiar with the Syma X5C-1. Love this thing!
Easy to fly and learn and is VERY durable. (I can attest to it from the 20+ crashes I gave it in the beginning.)
Another one I have is a "nano" quad from Viper, the m200 Nano. $30.00 at Walmart and small enough to fly in the house to get experience.
The Nano is not really an outdoor flyer, but it can be done if the wind isn't too strong.

Good luck and great flying!

- Mike

 

[Quest]

I am assuming that you are charging from a USB port on your computer if that is the case some ports on some computers do not supply enough power to charge a battery try a different port. Follow the instructions that came with your quad light on USB charger will either go out or come on when charging is complete, check your manual. It is not uncommon for charging to take 1 to 2 hours. I agree with Michael the Syma X5C-1 is great for learning to fly. Welcome and good luck.

 

[Gramps]

Personally I never charge using a computer USB port. I use old cell phone bricks or something similar. Try the charger for your cell phone.

I will agree with others the Syma X5c-1 is a great quad for the money. Flies well and doesn't break easy. For indoor flying I like my Syma X11

 

[Jackson]

I am assuming that you are charging from a USB port on your computer if that is the case some ports on some computers do not supply enough power to charge a battery try a different port.

I use a USB passthrough (only the =/- wires are connected) to fire an ecig atomizer. I just plugged into my computer with a little meter I got.

No load I get 4.97V. Under load (1.6 ohms) my voltage drops to 3.9V and I'm pulling 1.66A. That's from a 2009 era build. The $4 2000mA power supply I use gives me 5.14V, no load, and under load I get 5.09V and 2.1A.

 

[McCoy2797]

Update:

First, I'd like to thank everyone for their feedback. I really appreciate it.

The drone works fine now. Allow me to explain. While reading the instructions, I noticed several things that seemed 'off'. So, I just did things a little backwards by putting the charger on with the light off, (I made sure the drone was powered on, and flipped the charger plug) and low and behold, the light came ON after it was finished charging. I blame a poorly made instruction manual.