This thread will serve as the continuation discussion for our review series on the Parrot BeBop quadcopter. Part #1 is posted here: https://www.droneflyers.com/2014/12/parrot-bebop-review-part-1-3/ Put your experiences, questions, tips and other information in this forum thread. Thanks!
From MDgrubb over at RCG: https://www.droneflyers.com/2014/12/parrot-bebop-review-part-1-3/ Parrot Bebop, The Other Controller I picked up a Parrot Bebop over Thanksgiving and so far have been quite pleased with it. One of the first things you will notice are that touch screen controls don't provide the tactile feedback we have become accustomed to in our RC endeavors. To get around this I paired an Xbox One controller to my Android phone, and use it to pilot the quadcopter. My setup:1.) Parrot Bebop quadcopter 2.) Moto X (1st gen) rooted android phone 3.) Xbox One controller 4.) OTG Micro USB cable 5.) Nyko Smart Clip - Xbox One 6.) Ape Cases ACWP6025 watertight hard case Controller selection:When researching controller options for the Bebop I came across a couple obvious options and a few less obvious ones. 1.) Parrot Skycontroller: Presumably the best controls experience for the Bebop however it is large and expensive. 2.) Gaming controller paired to your Android phone: Provides a compact solution however it does require some familiarity to rooting an android device. There are many gaming controller options out there to choose from with the most common being either a Playstation or Xbox controller. The Playstation controllers have better support on Android and can be connected either wired or wireless, however I can't get used to their joystick placement. Xbox One controller has the highest quality joysticks in my opinion and can be connected wired over a USB OTG cable, but they do not seem to support a wireless connection to an android phone. 3.) Trouchscreen joystick: The Brick Joystick Bend Type looks to be the best option on the market. On Amazon: here 4.) Invisible Gamepad: Provides at least some tactile edges to reference your fingers to. On Amazon: here Attaching an external controller to your Android phone:There are a number of methods to accomplish this. I will rough out the steps that I used to connect a wired Xbox controller to an Android phone. 1.) Install USB/BT Joystick Center from the Google Play store here 2.) Research how to root your phone without bricking it. Many phones have one click options over on the XDA Developer Forums, however there are still pitfalls, so understand the risks you are taking. 3.) Root your phone. 4.) Connect your controller using the micro USB on your phone and the controller. You will need an OTG USB cable and a normal micro USB cable to accomplish this. 5.) Launch the BT Joystick app. 6.) Search normal - Your controller should be detected. Verify the button mappings look correct and adjust if needed. 7.) Change IME to JoyFree. 8.) Turn J>T on. 9.) Click Joy> two more times to be in 360 emulation mode. 10.) Launch FreeFlight 3. No more onscreen control icons, however the onscreen controls are still active so don't accidentally maneuver your quad when you are trying to use two fingers to pan the camera. Control Inputs:Left Stick: Up/Down, Turn Left/Right Right Stick: Move Forward/Back/Left/Right A: Launch/Land B: Flip - if selected Y: Take Photo
hey im looking at buying a bebop but its $799 NZD which is $604 USD without the controller and this will be my first drone but i'm a pc gammer and know lots of technical stuff, but im not sure if this is the drone for me. I want one that is small/medium/portable bebop looks great but concerned about flying over water because i live on a beach and bebops FPV which i want. Is this the drone for me..... are there any to wait for (at most 3mnths) thanks
Without the extra controller the range is VERY short, so that may not be to your liking - it can lose wifi as close as 50 meters. Also, there are many who have said they would not trust the BeBop over water. This is somewhat true with all quadcopters, but more so when a model has not been out in the field for a long time. I don't know about anything new on the way - in that price range. GoPro is rumored to be working on one - so that could happen.
whats the noise on the bebop like, is it noisy like "a lawn mower" or ........... is it any good for going places and just carrying it in my bag then pull it out and fly for good footage. Or is the phantom 2 vision or h3-3d a better option. i intend to use it often and on trips for good quality footage. THANKS
If it doesn't fly away, record some of the sound if you would...at some point. Speak a bit while you are recording it so we know the levels. Others have said it's fairly quiet - but I guess that's relative. I think the DJI Phantom is mid-level as far as quads. I can't hear it once it's about 25 meters away (given normal background noise).
I know I have to do the follow ups......and will get to soon. Been slightly busy with my commercial drone business........but a big opportunity has come along that I am pursuing and my workload will drastically drop after it goes through. But I did manage to find a video with sound so you can hear it....
There have been major updates that may address many of your concerns: http://blog.parrot.com/category/firmware-updates/ Still looking for 2 of 3 and 3 of 3 when you can... Thanks.
We had a fellow forum member doing this review - and, frankly, the BeBop (and our earlier AR and our Rolling Spider) all exhibited behavior that made us hesitant to suggest them. I have read dozens of other reviews and experiences that seem to point in the same direction. Parrot has some neat technology - but they have never gotten really serious about quality control and user experience in the mid-level camera drones. This is weird because they seem to do well with the little toys AND with the higher end (agricultural) stuff. If the BeBop would have come out with a small controller like the new DJI Mavic - and done it for the right price - they'd have something to sell. But device (phone tablet) control just hasn't worked out and the pricing (and size) of their add-on for R/C control do away with the BeBop advantages.
Many of those ill behaviors may have been corrected by the firmware updates since his review. Fortunately device control and the Skycontroller aren't the only options by far: 3rd Party Controllers for the Parrot Bebop I appreciate your reply though.
Looks like the prices have come WAY down too! I say the BB2 on Amazon for $270 yesterday (http://www.dronesavings.com )... Also, the small controller with the new FPV BeBop looks great. I think Parrot are starting to get the idea....maybe I can get them to send me a review model.
