The best tech for the cheapest $

Heres a big ask, but I think drone tech has advanced so much in the passed year, it's going to be possible. I'm looking for anyone with suggestions of the best drone bang for buck, the cheapest best drone with; great range, FPV, gps, altitude hold, follow me and return to base. Challenge on. Any ideas?

 

I'll be watching this.
The manufactures have dropped the $$$ and the specs and features have went up after CES. Probably much to the dismay of the retailers having some older stock and those users who found that this hobby is not for them, Xmas gift not a fit or wanting to upgrade or one I seen yesterday," I don't want to register with the FAA"

 

Agreed. Tech moves quickly, I thought my Syma xc5-1 was a bargain at $69. When I looked again I saw stuff like this coming out. Jxd 509 G, for under a $100!
I would love to see the features of the new Hubsan Quads h501s eventually coming in under $200. It's getting there.

 

So let's do this another way. Try beat this spec and $.
Here are some serious features for a pretty good price. No more lost drones with gps auto return. I love it.
Hubsan Quads H501S X4 5.8G FPV Brushless With 1080P HD Camera GPS RC Quadcopter RTF
https://bnc.lt/4Sug/oHMwcRkJkq

 

With the complaints of only five minutes flight time how far can it get that it needs gps auto return

 

They claiming 25 min flying time. Can you post a link of the complaint? Maybe it's just a battery issue.
I'm still very keen to see how all the manufacturer's compete. The trend is definitely more tech for less.
If they increase the flight time, what will beat this, at this price?

 

I just clicked on the link and went to the site and read the reviews. 25 minutes would be great. Even 15 in this class for $80
The feds just stopped a train coming into MN from Canada with a car load of hoverboards. Trying to stop those with bad batteries. The bad batteries have been a issue with tech for years. I have had a Nikon, HP laptop and a phone battery with recalled batteries.

 

Ah right, those reviews could be premature, a handful was sent out to reviewers, can't seem to buy these new hubsans yet, hopefully the feedback will help them fix the issue before mainstream production and delivery starts.

 

heres another contender, albeit a bit more pricey. The basic version is around the $300 mark, just strap your own camera.
http://www.Banggood.com/JYU-Hornet-S-HornetS-Racing-5_8G-FPV-With-Goggles-Gimbal-With-12MP-HD-Camera-RC-Quadcopter-p-1025118.html?utmid=379

 

even cheaper with gps http://www.Banggood.com/Flying-3D-Flying3D-X6-6-Axis-2_4G-GPS-RC-Quadcopter-RTF-p-945096.html

WITH telemetry!! http://www.Banggood.com/Flying-3D-X8-6-Axis-2_4G-8CH-GPS-FPV-RC-Quadcopter-RTF-p-934779.html
Claims this can go over 500m range

And another contender Cheerson CX20 - http://www.Banggood.com/Cheerson-CX20-Opensource-Version-AutoPathfinder-Quadcopter-RTF-p-932145.html

 

Yeah, the phantoms are awesome, just beyond my earnings at this moment. But yeah I could use it to make money and so pay for itself

I think my original link got messed up.

Check this out!! Hubsan Quads H501S X4 5.8G FPV Brushless With 1080P HD Camera GPS RC Quadcopter
http://www.Banggood.com/Hubsan-X4-H501S-5_8G-FPV-With-1080P-HD-Camera-Brushless-Motor-GPS-RC-Quadcopter-RTF-p-1004657.html

 

My link above posted the wrong thing, this is what I was actually trying to post!!!! Amazing!!! What you think?
Hubsan Quads H501S X4 5.8G FPV Brushless With 1080P HD Camera GPS RC Quadcopter
http://www.Banggood.com/Hubsan-X4-H501S-5_8G-FPV-With-1080P-HD-Camera-Brushless-Motor-GPS-RC-Quadcopter-RTF-p-1004657.html

 

Husban-X4, interesting smaller unit.
Was out looking again yesterday in Fargo at what was available somewhat locally and the two hobby shops, one only for RC stuff and both listing themselves as DJI dealers, at least" were", have given up on DJI for the time being. While they both said in effect the features are great the cloud in the room is the support from them sucks Only place in Fargo with DJI was BestBuy and getting info from the weekend warriors is "we can look that up on the computer".
Put some sharks teeth on a Typhoon and it might be like a A10 Warthog, a bit outdated but pounding everything in its path.

 

No spare parts.

 

I think you have to decide what it is you want in a quad...
If you're into speed racing, you don't necessarily want a quad with GPS, because it adds not only cost to the quad, but complexity (more things can go wrong), weight, which slows the quad down, and more things which can break in the event of a crash. Go to Amazon, search Quadcopter GPS, and read the reviews to see how many people had "fly aways" with their "return to home" GPS quads, because they made a mistake, or their quad lost connection to the satellites, or something went wrong!

You can get quads now that basically fly themselves... they'll take off by themselves, you can hit "return to home" and they'll come back and land at your feet, tap a few points on a map and they'll fly to the first point, then fly to the 2nd point, etc. then return home... you're basically an operator, not a pilot. Hey, a lot of people don't want to learn how to fly a drone, but they still want one. In this case, you'll want GPS, along with a decent camera and camera mount or gimbal.

I've only been flying drones for a little over a month, but LOVE to watch these guys flying their racer drones at insane speeds! I'm looking for a FAST drone, well built that can take a crash (everyone crashes eventually), has spare parts to make repairs quickly and affordably, brushless motors and reasonable (12-15 minutes) battery life.

Personally, I'd suggest learning how to recover your drone yourself, if it gets away from you and is a small dot in the sky, before relying on GPS, but that's me. I'd rather risk my $95 Syma X8-C or my sons X5-C getting lost then a $300+ quad with GPS, FPV, etc. etc. Lots of fly away videos on YouTube!

Hope you don't mind my two cents...

Oh, by the way, I saw on CNet that you can now get the DJI Phantom 3 Standard for $499! That sounds like a fantastic deal, if you want a quad with all the gizmos... I know it's more then you want to spend, but if you can save up, you'll have a fantastic quad!

 

I started with the Syma x5 recommended by webman. Already been flying couple electric helicopters. The sport or the products have progressed very nicely so that about anyone can afford to try now. Manufactures just need to step up with CS if they want to keep the field of buyers growing. Social media can now make or break a company.
B&H offering refurbished Phantom Pro for 900 or used for 799. Typhoons start at 829

 

This looks like a nice complete package for someone wanting to move up.

Eachine EC250 Racer Drone With RadioLink 2.4G 9CH AT9

Super slick transmitter with quadcopter specific tweaks too.

 

Sold out

 

This one is also quite complete, the radio is not as slick, but is one of the most sophisticated in it's price range (I have one and like it.)

Eachine Falcon 250 FPV Quadcopter with FlySky i6