OT: Recreational Drone Recommendations

TEXASBGE2018

Ya I know it's a bbq forum. But we have a diverse group of folks on here. I'm looking at getting a small drone for fun. Definitely want to keep it under the 250gram FAA registration requirement as this is just going to be for taking on vacations and messing around with it around town. Looking at the DJI Mavic Mini or the DJI mini 2. Any of you fine upstanding citizens have experience with either of these or perhaps something else to check out? I don't want a cheap $80-$100 drone that's going to break on me after a month so I'm willing to spend up to $1,000. And go......

buzd504

TEXASBGE2018 said:

Ya I know it's a bbq forum. But we have a diverse group of folks on here. I'm looking at getting a small drone for fun. Definitely want to keep it under the 250gram FAA registration requirement as this is just going to be for taking on vacations and messing around with it around town. Looking at the DJI Mavic Mini or the DJI mini 2. Any of you fine upstanding citizens have experience with either of these or perhaps something else to check out? I don't want a cheap $80-$100 drone that's going to break on me after a month so I'm willing to spend up to $1,000. And go......

You can't go wrong with either of the DJI options, IMO.

Langner91

I agree.  Both very solid drones.  I have the (discontinued) Spark, and it is fun.  The two you mention are light years ahead of that one.

Also, don't forget the extra batteries.  By the time you get where you are going, let it get a GPS lock, get everything set, the first battery is already partially drained.  I have two batteries and if I could justify more, I would have them.  Buy as many batteries as you can.

BigreenGreg

DJI Phantom 4 Pro, has a mile range, excellent camera and stability.

ChrisSonn23

I have had a DJI Phantom 3 Pro and recently upgraded to the Mavic 2. Anything DJI is top notch

stlcharcoal

ChrisSonn23 said:

I have had a DJI Phantom 3 Pro and recently upgraded to the Mavic 2. Anything DJI is top notch

I have the Phantom Pro 3 too.......works great for real estate photos.  Gotta have a big Pelican case to transport it though.  The mavics are cool since you can throw them in a suitcase or backpack.

nolaegghead

Those are both good choices.

PigBeanUs

Got my 80yo father a drone for father’s day, and he loves it. 

I don’t know anything about these things, so I went on reddit and asked for recs, mentioning he (and I too) was a beginner. 

I wanted:

-One that would come back when out of range or battery power

-decent camera

-easy control 

-easy “tech” (connectivity etc. bc he’s 80 and although he can manage his iphone, and conputer, he still hates them)

-small, not expensive (he’d feel bad if it tanked in the pond)

Got numerous suggestions for the Holystone 720/720e


he loves it. 

I am sure many others come with these options. But he was happy that it:

Comes with two batteries which run about a half hour each. 

Has one-button take off and landing. Return-to-home (and lands) when out of range or battery, or when you push the return button).

Has a 4k camera

Is totally friggin stable. All gps, so no drifting in the cross wind or anything. 

Has easy control. When he lets off the stick, it hovers in spot. 

Will follow his cellphone.

Allows him to mount the cellphone to the controller and “drive” the drone by watching the drone camera

Allows him to control the drone both by reference to its own left/right (i.e. when it is coming back to you, your right stick makes it go to your left (its right), as well as always moving relative to him, regardless of how it is facing. So, moving to or away from him, right stick means the drone moves to his right. (Good for newbies).

Folds up to fit in your hand. 

Comes with extra propellers, charger, two batteries. 

Is VERY quiet at short distances. I have heard some a hundred feet up that sound like a garbage disposal. This thing just hums. 

It was $289, and falls under the FAA weight requirements. 

nolaegghead

PigBeanUs said:

Got my 80yo father a drone for father’s day, and he loves it. 

I don’t know anything about these things, so I went on reddit and asked for recs, mentioning he (and I too) was a beginner. 

I wanted:

-One that would come back when out of range or battery power

-decent camera

-easy control 

-easy “tech” (connectivity etc. bc he’s 80 and although he can manage his iphone, and conputer, he still hates them)

-small, not expensive (he’d feel bad if it tanked in the pond)

Got numerous suggestions for the Holystone 720/720e


he loves it. 

I am sure many others come with these options. But he was happy that it:

Comes with two batteries which run about a half hour each. 

Has one-button take off and landing. Return-to-home (and lands) when out of range or battery, or when you push the return button).

Has a 4k camera

Is totally friggin stable. All gps, so no drifting in the cross wind or anything. 

Has easy control. When he lets off the stick, it hovers in spot. 

Will follow his cellphone.

Allows him to mount the cellphone to the controller and “drive” the drone by watching the drone camera

Allows him to control the drone both by reference to its own left/right (i.e. when it is coming back to you, your right stick makes it go to your left (its right), as well as always moving relative to him, regardless of how it is facing. So, moving to or away from him, right stick means the drone moves to his right. (Good for newbies).

Folds up to fit in your hand. 

Comes with extra propellers, charger, two batteries. 

Is VERY quiet at short distances. I have heard some a hundred feet up that sound like a garbage disposal. This thing just hums. 

It was $289, and falls under the FAA weight requirements. 

That's a Mavic clone.  Has great reviews on Amazon, good choice.

TEXASBGE2018

Pulled the trigger on a dji mini 2 from Costco. Came with an extra battery, carrying case and 32gb sd card for around $430. I figure I'll buy a couple more batteries and maybe propeller guards and be set for awhile.

alaskanassasin

Check your HOA bylaws before flying the hood, I’d hate for some 
 1. Vag

2. Vajayjay

3. Box

4. Nether regions

5. Lady business

6. Lady V

7. Hoo-haw

8. Cha-cha

9. Lady bits

10. Crotch

11. Muff

12. Kitty

13. Cooch

14. Cooter

15. Snatch

16. Snapper

17. Beaver

18. Cookie

19. Cupcake

20. Coin purse

21. Lady flower

22. Honey pot

23. Poon

24. Punani

25. Twat

To call the police or hoa on you.

fishlessman

theres a bass rod on my boat now loaded with spiderwire to take out the drone that was harrassing me last year. 3-4 miles out and this thing was ten feet from the boat. one cast and bye bye drone. im not sure this was a new tactic by the men in green or just some joker but if it was an officer that drone should be marked

RyanStl

It was the Taliban.

alaskanassasin

I just got the DJI FPV Combo, and it is awesome, absolutely having a ball with this thing.

alaskanassasin

Langner91

alaskanassasin said:

Are those the propeller tips in the shot?  I don't think I have ever seen that.

nolaegghead

alaskanassasin said:

I just got the DJI FPV Combo, and it is awesome, absolutely having a ball with this thing.

Those are bad-ass.  And they haul ass.  Makes them kick-ass.

Since they will do 70-80 mph and weigh over a pound, they have almost the same kinetic energy as, like a 9 mm at 40 yards.  Be careful you don't plow into any loved ones.  Ones you don't love, that's ok.

lkapigian

nolaegghead said:

alaskanassasin said:

I just got the DJI FPV Combo, and it is awesome, absolutely having a ball with this thing.

Those are bad-ass.  And they haul ass.  Makes them kick-ass.

Since they will do 70-80 mph and weigh over a pound, they have almost the same kinetic energy as, like a 9 mm at 40 yards.  Be careful you don't plow into any loved ones.  Ones you don't love, that's ok.

totally curious and now want something I really never though of wanting, how foolproof are these , do they fly themselves for the most part and you just point them?? I tried many years ago flying a gas helicopter and destroyed it right away 

alaskanassasin

@Langner91 yep those are the props, I know I can crop them out but I haven’t figured it out yet. I have no idea what I’m doing when it comes to photography but I was able to Brighten the shot by adjusting something ;-) ev or something 

alaskanassasin

nolaegghead said:

alaskanassasin said:

I just got the DJI FPV Combo, and it is awesome, absolutely having a ball with this thing.

Those are bad-ass.  And they haul ass.  Makes them kick-ass.

Since they will do 70-80 mph and weigh over a pound, they have almost the same kinetic energy as, like a 9 mm at 40 yards.  Be careful you don't plow into any loved ones.  Ones you don't love, that's ok.

 When it comes to safety I’m your guy, everything I touch could mangle me. That said I haven’t flown it in badass mode yet

nolaegghead

alaskanassasin said:

nolaegghead said:

alaskanassasin said:

I just got the DJI FPV Combo, and it is awesome, absolutely having a ball with this thing.

Those are bad-ass.  And they haul ass.  Makes them kick-ass.

Since they will do 70-80 mph and weigh over a pound, they have almost the same kinetic energy as, like a 9 mm at 40 yards.  Be careful you don't plow into any loved ones.  Ones you don't love, that's ok.

 When it comes to safety I’m your guy, everything I touch could mangle me. That said I haven’t flown it in badass mode yet

Good to know.  I lost control of an RC car at around 60 mph and it skipped across the road into my buddy's foot.  He had a couple bloody toes from it.  I felt terrible.  It was one of those 1:10 scale nitro cars made for the track.

Langner91

lkapigian said:

nolaegghead said:

alaskanassasin said:

I just got the DJI FPV Combo, and it is awesome, absolutely having a ball with this thing.

Those are bad-ass.  And they haul ass.  Makes them kick-ass.

Since they will do 70-80 mph and weigh over a pound, they have almost the same kinetic energy as, like a 9 mm at 40 yards.  Be careful you don't plow into any loved ones.  Ones you don't love, that's ok.

totally curious and now want something I really never though of wanting, how foolproof are these , do they fly themselves for the most part and you just point them?? I tried many years ago flying a gas helicopter and destroyed it right away 

Not completely fool proof.  But, if you have a GPS lock (outside) and you let off the sticks, it should hover.  It might drift a bit in the wind, but it should maintain position.

Most are smart enough to come home if the batteries are low or if they lose signal.  However, they all have quirks about what they will avoid.  For instance, mine can't see in reverse, so if you back away from an object, you can collide with something behind you.

I practiced by just lifting off, going straight up, coming straight down, etc.  If you can see the bird, you should be fine.  When you get them out of line of sight, you are flying by whatever you see on your phone.  That's a little scary (and can be illegal).

If you live near an airport or attempt to fly near an airport (or the Whitehouse), you won't be able to take off.  I lived near a hospital heli-pad, so I got a warning each time I flew.  But, I couldn't fly it at my buddy's house because he was closer to the small airport in town.

stlcharcoal

lkapigian said:

nolaegghead said:

alaskanassasin said:

I just got the DJI FPV Combo, and it is awesome, absolutely having a ball with this thing.

Those are bad-ass.  And they haul ass.  Makes them kick-ass.

Since they will do 70-80 mph and weigh over a pound, they have almost the same kinetic energy as, like a 9 mm at 40 yards.  Be careful you don't plow into any loved ones.  Ones you don't love, that's ok.

totally curious and now want something I really never though of wanting, how foolproof are these , do they fly themselves for the most part and you just point them?? I tried many years ago flying a gas helicopter and destroyed it right away 

Those were harder to fly than the real ones.....I was a career pilot and never could get the RC's down.

And yes, the new drones hold themselves stable, you just point where to go.  Think of it as directing an autopilot vs. actually flying them.

alaskanassasin

@lkapigian it is a piece of cake to fly, really cool tooling around with the goggles, its like your in the cockpit. Like what was mentioned before if you just let go of the sticks it will sit and hover, there is a brake button that locks it in place if you panic, and also a home button and you can preset the approach altitude to avoid trees and power line.

 I flew it in some rowdy gusty winds yesterday and it handled it no problem, with the gimbal you really have no idea how bad its getting tossed around.

 Also I can fly it around the barn lot and in between buildings with out losing signal

nolaegghead

Watch out for birds!

lkapigian

alaskanassasin said:

@lkapigian it is a piece of cake to fly, really cool tooling around with the goggles, its like your in the cockpit. Like what was mentioned before if you just let go of the sticks it will sit and hover, there is a brake button that locks it in place if you panic, and also a home button and you can preset the approach altitude to avoid trees and power line.

 I flew it in some rowdy gusty winds yesterday and it handled it no problem, with the gimbal you really have no idea how bad its getting tossed around.

 Also I can fly it around the barn lot and in between buildings with out losing signal

Thank you, just spoke with Carey , ordering one tomorrow....damn this place

alaskanassasin

lkapigian said:

alaskanassasin said:

@lkapigian it is a piece of cake to fly, really cool tooling around with the goggles, its like your in the cockpit. Like what was mentioned before if you just let go of the sticks it will sit and hover, there is a brake button that locks it in place if you panic, and also a home button and you can preset the approach altitude to avoid trees and power line.

 I flew it in some rowdy gusty winds yesterday and it handled it no problem, with the gimbal you really have no idea how bad its getting tossed around.

 Also I can fly it around the barn lot and in between buildings with out losing signal

Thank you, just spoke with Carey , ordering one tomorrow....damn this place

more fun than a barrel of titties

Botch

lkapigian said:

alaskanassasin said:

@lkapigian it is a piece of cake to fly, really cool tooling around with the goggles, its like your in the cockpit. Like what was mentioned before if you just let go of the sticks it will sit and hover, there is a brake button that locks it in place if you panic, and also a home button and you can preset the approach altitude to avoid trees and power line.

 I flew it in some rowdy gusty winds yesterday and it handled it no problem, with the gimbal you really have no idea how bad its getting tossed around.

 Also I can fly it around the barn lot and in between buildings with out losing signal

Thank you, just spoke with Carey , ordering one tomorrow....damn this place

What he said.  

alaskanassasin

Make sure you get at least one extra battery @lkapigian

WeberWho

lkapigian said:

alaskanassasin said:

@lkapigian it is a piece of cake to fly, really cool tooling around with the goggles, its like your in the cockpit. Like what was mentioned before if you just let go of the sticks it will sit and hover, there is a brake button that locks it in place if you panic, and also a home button and you can preset the approach altitude to avoid trees and power line.

 I flew it in some rowdy gusty winds yesterday and it handled it no problem, with the gimbal you really have no idea how bad its getting tossed around.

 Also I can fly it around the barn lot and in between buildings with out losing signal

Thank you, just spoke with Carey , ordering one tomorrow....damn this place

Double check you aviation restrictions on where you plan to fly it. My parents live within 3 miles of a smaller airport and my dad has to call in each time he plans on flying it. (He knew this prior) Just a heads up on that. 

lkapigian

Getting the extra battery and props for sure...should be interesting