Cheap Drone Recommendations

You can get thrird party insureance
Is there any sort of insurance required or available in case the worst happens. Also whats the position on overflying people and property. Spoke to a friend last night about drones and he said that someone was flying one over his village and residents were up in arms some threatening to shoot it down if it came over their property.
You can get third party insurance up to £25million by joining the British Model Flying Association (BMFA) for aroud £35 a year.
A cheaper option is to buy secondhand and get more for your money. I have been flying drones for about nine years and had a lot during that time.
Personally I think a secondhand DJI Spark would be ideal. It does everything the Mavic Mini does and can be picked up on eBay for about £200 with extra batteries etc which are really essential. Ihas GPS so is easy to fly and has some auto features as well. However the Mavic Mini is the best bet as you will be able to fly it with less restrictions under the new EASA rules which come in at the end of this year. Existing drones will have more restrictions about how you can fly.
A few things to be aware off are where you can actually fly. NATS have a dedicated website showing where it is prohibited and there a rea lot of places where it's a nono. The Drone Code will tell you how to fly and what you can and can't do. You can't fly over any built up areas (residential or commercial) and you should really have permission from the landowner where you are taking off from. You can't make money from it unless you have a licence from the CAA (this is completely different to the CAA registration). You need to be aware of peoples privacy, a lot of folk get really upset about this with good reason in some cases.
This all sounds compicated but it really isn't. Just follow the rules (which are law, not guidleines) and you will be fine.
Incidentally it's a criminal offence to shoot at drones. If someone objects the best thing to do is stop flying and walk away to prevent agro.
Hope this helps.
Re flying abroad, yes things can be different in different countries. There are new rules coming in at the end of this year which will affect where and how you fly in this country and in any country which follows the EASA rules. A good idea is to register your drone in France as well as the UK (the test is basically the same as the UK and is in English) and this will cover you to fly in any EASA country. Yes, the actual flying heights etc may be different in othere places and it is down to the individual to check. A really good site for France is here. I think it's better than the NATS site as it actually shows built up areas. In some countries it's illegal to fly in national parks.
 
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My Cheap & Cheerful drone ! (£40)
No GPS but it has a "One key return button"
You can fly in "Headless mode" as well as FPV
Camera OK saves to phone (awkward to find !)
So have to connect phone via wireless !
Camera has 4 angles vertically
Default = horizontal also can go up 1 notch and down 1 or 2 notches but not vertically down
Rechargeable lithium in drone..recharges in lless than 30 mins off usb
4 AA batteries needed for remote
Can contral from phone as well as remote
Still learning how to fly........(Have already learnt how to crash) !
 
not surprissingly my "Cheapo Drono" has proved unfit for purpose
so 3 questions re
https://www.dronesdirect.co.uk/p/cp.ma.00000121.01/dji-mavic-mini-2.7k-quad-hd-drone
3 questions
No 1 Can you fly it in " No heading Mode "

No 2 supposing there are trees about..you can obvioisly make it go higher
SO if you press return mode what will ir do
will it remain at height for most of its return journey

No 3 does the remote allow yoo to take pictures videos ?

THEN what about others..
I am confident I can get the licence
What other drones are ther circa £200 or so ? that will do a similar job to
15 mins flying time could well be enough !

Thanks
 
After a good deal of investigation
Holy Stone HS510 GPS Drone With Camera HD 4K Anti-shake Optical Flow Positioning 5G FPV Quadcopter Brushless Motor With Bag
US $ 219.99
 
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I have ordered the one in this review.


Not good
  • Flight time
  • Video..Only do 2.5 K I do not plan too much video but it is 25fps at 2.5K
Good
  • Photos Good resolution
  • Screen on the contoller
  • Headless mode
  • Return home
  • Can set distance and height parameters/limits
  • Circle mode (also follow me)
  • Waypoint mode (on phone)...you can plot a path
  • Cost
  • Size and weight (£120 and under 250gm)
 
not surprissingly my "Cheapo Drono" has proved unfit for purpose
so 3 questions re
https://www.dronesdirect.co.uk/p/cp.ma.00000121.01/dji-mavic-mini-2.7k-quad-hd-drone
3 questions
No 1 Can you fly it in " No heading Mode "

No 2 supposing there are trees about..you can obvioisly make it go higher
SO if you press return mode what will ir do
will it remain at height for most of its return journey

No 3 does the remote allow yoo to take pictures videos ?

THEN what about others..
I am confident I can get the licence
What other drones are ther circa £200 or so ? that will do a similar job to
15 mins flying time could well be enough !

Thanks
In Mavic mini you set the return to home altitude to be higher than the surrounding obstacles. Then when you return to home using the automation it first climbs to the specified height fly's back to the home point and drops vertically.
Yes you can remotely initiate photos or videos. You can control the exposure value. The pics and vids are saved at high resolution on the SD card in drone and low res on the phone you are using as remote control screen.
Over 20 min flying time
It is a amazingly easy to fly and very addictive. It is more than your proposed budget. I bought the fly more comb with the extra batteries.
There are some presets that fly round and away from you whilst taking video that are quite cool.
Really suggest you search for Mavic Mini to see reviews an demos on YouTube.
 
Thanks @Wrighpm
Minor change of plan.
From this Bugs 7
This was as the Company in Thailand rang me up .........................yes we are still in thailand (Covid-19 travel issues).
They advised the lack of gimbal on this Would cause poor photos and videos
So
Syma W1
Not received it yet
Very few youtube reviews. But one shows it hovering OK
However it does seem to have all the software and flight parameter settings as with the Mavic (maybe more !)
B$6000 is pretty well £150 !
Disadvantages
  • lack of folding !
  • Flight time and range... Not a concern for me
The Syma W1 has a downward camera which takes pictures (medium quailty). The camera is to assist with hover andd landing capability.
The main camera is on a gimbal so very good for stability and directing.
Video can be 4K but lower res probably better.
Video and photos saved to onboard SD card
It has the very similar "safe to fly home parameter settings" as the Mavic.
But also headlesss mode
It has beginner mode which limits altitude and distance to 30m..This can be turned off
Once turned off you can set limits to suit .
No not as good as the Mavic but maybe fine for me !
The app looks really good as I have installed it already !

I will post up photos and links to videos in due course

youtube link
 
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@jagmanx the drone i had was a Syma not certain but think model was X5. It looked a decent spec at the time and had a massive price reduction. I am fairly sure it cost me under £50 but retail was three times that. A DJ Mavic (I think) was retailing in Maplins back then fir just short of a grand.
The video was okay, you used a controller to fly it and it was supposed to have real time back to phone but delay meant you couldn’t fly using phone display. Mine had no fancy fly home or anything but would take a breeze okay. I was absolute rubbish flying it but step son didn’t have any problems at all.
 
Hi
Considering getting a DJI Mavic Mini but concerned that it does not have collision avoidance. How do you ensure that when it is automatically returning home that it doesn't fly into something?
 
Hi
Considering getting a DJI Mavic Mini but concerned that it does not have collision avoidance. How do you ensure that when it is automatically returning home that it doesn't fly into something?
The return home function includes a height parameter so this will help but no guarantee
The SYMA turns round and flies home forwards and I believe has collision avoidance.
BUT wait until I confirm. The product has not arrived yet..I will do a mini-review.
PS I would not expect any collision avoidance to deal with tree branches and the like..height will help with trees. But nor cliffs or buildings or pylons etc. One reason I do not need/want the extended range of Mavic mini
 
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Even if yout drone is uder 250g you will need to register after the end of the year. The new EASA regulations which come into force then state that if you fly any drone fitted with a camera regardless of weight then you will have to register.
 
Hi
Considering getting a DJI Mavic Mini but concerned that it does not have collision avoidance. How do you ensure that when it is automatically returning home that it doesn't fly into something?
You just set the RTH height to make sure it clears everything. Look around to see what there is and set the height accordingly. Legally to have to keep the drone in sight so you should be able to see any obstructions.
 
SYMA W1 appears Same as W1 Pro !
Excellent tutorial here
Youtube volume poor
Better volume from here
Click on the image for video.
PS I have no connection with either "SYMA" or "Lazada"......Just posting up info to assist others in their deliberations !
PPS I will post up a link to my experience with the drone once I have used it !
 
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Kids are buzzing them all over the place here and no one gives a sh-t,and if you said or told on them you would be in for it big time. :eek:
 
SYMA arrived and testing !
Device has 2.4GHZ wi-fi and 5GHz.
My phone only 2.4Ghz..so wi-fi works like a dog :unsure: (or even a dead dog !) Time lag not slow more like stopped !
My phone over 3 years old so ordered a new phone. This will have other advantages as well !
(larger memory card better cameras, faster processing etc)
A bit windy today so no flying ! Also I want to see where it is going even though I will keep the "beginner limits for now"
With the Phone connection it is easier to ensure calibration and also check "return to home" location has been reset !
Onwards and upwards !:unsure:
-----------------------------------------UPDATE------------------------------------------
Wind died down so some practice flying using the remote.
So bright difficult to see the phone screen. But remote worked well. Fling circles and squares.
Also headless mode and chec te "Fly home feature". All worked very well.
Both manual landing and autoland worked well both with gentle controlled landing.
Thec drone responded well to flying using the joystsicks.
I founf vit best to reselas thyem both and so let the drone hover again before flying again.
Best not to move the sticks fully for more orecise handling
 
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