Is this the best quad for me?

Harmony323

Member
I have been wanting a quadcopter for some time now and have begun some research into what the best one for me is. There are so many, though, that I'm worried I may be missing out on my perfect first quad! This'll be my first and there's a very specific reason I want one. It may sound silly, but I live by the ocean and want to be able to fly a drone and look for wildlife. It sounds simple but I know a lot go into that one small goal. Here are the features I'm looking for.

Absolutely necessary:
- Under $200. Closer to the $150 mark is probably better. I know I'm asking for a lot here.
- ~10 min fly time. The longer the better, obviously, but I'd like it to not be much less than this. I know some of the other features I want will cut into my battery life as well. The ability to purchase additional batteries that I can swap out would be great.
- Video recording. Does not need to be amazing video. 720p should be fine. I'm not using the videos for anything professional, just for my own viewing pleasure.
- Ability to watch video as I'm flying, either on the controller or an app on my phone. Since I'm new to this, I don't currently have a preference of a dedicated controller or controlling the whole thing from my phone.
- Ready to fly. I have a very low budget for this so it needs to be ready to go out of the box.

I'd also like:
- Relatively easy to fly. I'm a fast learner but this will be my first quad so I'm not trying to test my skills just yet.
- Homing. I'd really like to be able to either press a button and have it come back to me, or have it automatically come back at a certain battery level or something like that. Having it immediately come back if it gets out of range would be awesome.
- Decent distance. I don't know what the "professional" term for this is but I need to be able to get it out past the waves. I'm not talking miles, but a couple hundred feet at least.
- Wind resistance. I'm not gonna be taking it out to record hurricanes, but it can be a bit windy by the ocean.
- Hover mode. Either by pressing a button or by taking my hands off the controls.
- Adjustable camera angle. I'd like to be able to hover over something and point the camera down at it. Not a necessity, but it would be nice.

I found these and they seem like they may be a good fit for me. Are there any others I should consider? Are there any other features or considerations I should think about before making my decision? Any help, tips or advice would be appreciated =)

https://www.amazon.com/REALACC-Cheerson-Camera-Altitude-Quadcopter/dp/B01EABYTHE/ref=cm_wl_huc_item

https://www.amazon.com/U818A-WiFi-Quadcopter-Drone-Camera/dp/B00SH3MU0U/ref=cm_cd_al_qh_dp_t
 
Last edited:
Hi mate I dont know what country your in but look for a good second hand DJI phantom even the phantom one will give all you need ,gps hover , return home failsafe , you may need to buy a gimbal but it easy to fit and set up , my mate in the uk just go one for £100
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DJI-Phant...049089?hash=item4b0c6d7c81:g:zyMAAOSwXeJYJcKE

Really? Aren't those usually really expensive?

Of the 2 you linked, I'd rather have the Cheerson. Folks seem to like them. It's FPV is also 5.8Ghz, much better for range and interference compared to WiFi types.
http://www.banggood.com/Cheerson-CX...l-High-Hold-Mode-RC-Quadcopter-p-1028417.html

There are also many spare parts available, at least get some props and a battery or two.
http://www.banggood.com/search/cheerson-cx-35.html

Thanks for the advice!
 
Not if you find one like I linked to comes out at £170 and will do every thing you ask for , there are still old stock Phantom 1 out there but your need to look for them the Phantom 1 is the cheapest to run a battery is about £19 the new Phantom battery is £180 so this makes the Phantom 1 cheap to run
 
I wouldn't get a used drone, so if you don't find a new Phantom 1 then I would say just get a new model that is cheap to begin with, despite not having all the extra features of a Phantom.
I prefer the Parrot Ar Drone 2.0 more than the U818A as it has more features and is step above from the normal toy copters out there.
 
Back
Top