Hello, I'm from Germany and I live in France. Sorry, my english is not very good! Maybe you can help me? I'm looking for a drone in the low cost range (250 dollar)that is stable to make good videos to make without stutter! Regarding the camera, I think the XTC 300 VP4 should be ok. A live stream should be possible to be able to control the recordings immediately. Can you suggest me something, and the model alsauch the distributor? Thank you very much Frank
Hello! Your english is fine! I'm sorry to say that there are no RTF (ready to fly) quadcopters near that price range which will take accurate video and have FPV (first person view). What you call a "live stream" is called FPV - that is, you are looking at the stream as it is recording. Also, unless you spend a lot more money you will not get semi-professional video. This is due both to the quality of the camera and the controls of the quadcopter (good ones have GPS and other stabilization) Here are some price ranges of the currently available mid-sized quadcopters and also what they can achieve..... 1. Parrot AR Drone - $300 (with camera) This is made by a Parrot, a French company and has most all the features you mention - except the camera is not of a very high quality, the range (without modification) is not very far (maybe 40 meters). 2. DJI Phantom- $700 (without camera) This is probably the best-priced full featured quadcopter for hobbyist video and pictures. It has GPS and self-leveling and a lot of other features. You would have to add hardware for the camera and the FPV - that would cost $500 more! 3. DIY Drones Arducopter - $700 (without camera - depending on options selected) This is a quadcopter based on an open source flight controller and has many stock and optional features. It has a sonar unit available which allows it to track the terrain closely. That is needed for good ground-level video. Even if you build one yourself you will not be able to get what you need for $300. That is the price of a good camera alone or the price of the FC alone (flight controllers with GPS)... In a few years, you probably will be able to buy such a machine in that price range - but not today.
Hello, that's really nice of you to respond in such detail! Yes you are right, for 300 dollars you don't get so much I have looked at the ArduCopter 3DR Quad D. Here is the link: http://www.udrones.com/product_p/acrtf2.htm There are a lot of options to choose from. What would you recommend? I think I need: Replacement Telemetry electronics? Sonar sensor? I think the battery should be enough? Camera Mount, which is also the stabilizer, or just the fixture? Radio Control and OSD / FPV? And then I still lack the camera. The GoPro has this lens effect I do not like? Sonar sensor? I think the battery should be enough? Camera Mount, which is also the stabilizer, or just the fixture? Radio Control and OSD / FPV? And then I still lack the camera. The GoPro has this lens effect I do not like Have a nice day !! Frank
Well, if you have a big budget you could also consider a spreading wings DJI and other stuff like that.. I'm a beginner myself - but I plan to work up slowly to all of that equipment. In my experience, none of it is "plug and play" - so I would rather take some time and spend some money learning more and more so that I don't get in too far over my head. But, yes, you are somewhat correct about needing a lot of those parts. Telemetry is advanced communication between you and your quad - that is, rather than a one-way street from you to it, it talks back and tells you a lot about what is happening. The site says the Sonar is for better terrain following. So if you intend to fly along the ground and want to stay the same distance above it, it is probably a good thing. All in all, since this is a beginner site, I'd say you are better off asking some of those questions on the DIYDRONES, RCGROUPS or MULTIROTORFORUMS sites. We are going to stick to the low end for at least the first year and maybe forever, because those other sites do a great job of helping people with more advanced needs. As you see, the sky is the limit. If I was going to get very serious about carrying expensive cameras, I would look into hex and octo copters also for the larger payloads AND for the fact that they don't drop out of the sky when they lose one motor. For now I'm staying small and then maybe having fun with a Phantom and no FPV.
I'm also a beginner at this, but I've been doing some software work for a client who's also working on building a "video drone", and I can share some of the lessons they've learned. It's very important that you choose a camera that's proven to work in the air. Many cameras that seem "good" when used for recording birthday parties or weddings work horribly when attached to a ground or air vehicle. The problem is that the vehicle can move a lot during a single video frame, and many cameras "scan" the image as they go, instead of snapping the whole frame at once. This leads to an effect that's called "jello" in the U.S., because the picture wiggles like gelatin. Do a google search for the "Seawolf" camera chipset: that seems to be the best for good quality in a low-cost camera. And check sites like youtube for videos posted by people who have flown the cameras you're interested in. Decide what distances you'll be flying. This is important because most of the radio gear you'll be using is very high frequency, and has limited range. If you're going to be flying far, you may need to invest in fancier antennas, and a tracker to keep them pointed at the copter. The cheap radio control gear isn't usually "bad", but it's usually not as reliable, especially at long distances, as the more expensive name brands. Telemetry might seem like a luxury, but it has the advantage of letting you get a detailed GPS log of where the camera was when you were shooting. Get one of those toy quads to learn on: unless you're a genetic anomaly, or have more RC experience than your post suggests, you'll crash a lot while you're learning the skills needed to fly safely. It's best to do that with a machine that's cheap and easy to repair. Ran
Nice info - it seems that just the cam aspect of quads is a field in itself. I think that a lot of the upcoming packages (Phantom is coming out with a stock cam for theirs soon) will take some of this into account. CCD vs. CMOS (sensor chip types) seems to be one important part. This link shows some footage that is pretty good taken with an inexpensive CCD cam - no wobble and no fish-eye wide stuff: http://www.artofthestory.com/the-perfect-actionquadcopter-camera/ I'm not big on the ultra wide angle GoPro look. It's great for sailing and some ground sports, but I find the bending of the image to be weird when looking at the earth's horizon, etc. from on high. That's another neat thing about this hobby/pursuit. The be-all, end-all will never be obtained, so the journey will continue for decades.
