Best beginner drones 2024: Get started with the best.
The best beginner drones range from basic and inexpensive models to those with professional-level features. Enjoy frustration-free flying with one of our favorites.
Everyone has to start somewhere, and drones are no exception. Sure, even high-end models can be incredibly beginner-friendly, drone technology is amazing, but it’s true beginner models that deliver a wealth of accessible advantages. Moreover, there’s something suitable for every budget so almost everyone can enjoy the best beginner drones.
While beginner drones can be versatile, you may require something more specialist, advanced, powerful and feature-packed. So, if you’re looking for something slightly different, check out our best camera drones, best beginner drones, and best FPV drone guides, where you'll find many alternatives that will undoubtedly suit your requirements.
Moving back to beginner models, one of the most common features you’ll find is that many fall within the popular and regulator-friendly sub-250 g category. So, not only are these types of drones small, lightweight, and less restricted than larger models, but they can, in some cases, come packed with features that also help to elevate some of the best beginner drones to the coveted best drones category.
The Quick List
Best overall
Best entry-level drone overall
The DJI Mini 3 offers the best image quality available in a beginner model, with the ability to rotate the camera 90° for portrait format shooting.
Best premium entry-level drone
Best premium entry-level drone
Sitting between the DJI Mini 4 Pro and the DJI Mavic 3 Pro in all areas, the DJI Air 3 offers an incredibly versatile camera alongside great all-round performance.
Best cheap option
Best cheap entry-level drone
If you're looking for the best entry-level drone on a budget, the Potensic Atom SE is exactly what you need with up to 4K video and great build quality.
Best cheap 3-axis gimbal drone
Best cheap 3-axis gimbal drone
The Potensic Atom is an inexpensive sub-250g model capable of capturing up to 4K video and photos in both Raw and JPEG while rivalling the DJI Mini 3.
Best FPV
Best FPV drone for beginners
The BetaFPV Cetus Pro Kit comes with everything you need to get started with FPV flight including FPV goggles, a controller, drone, batteries and accessories.
Best FPV drone for video
Best FPV drone for video
The DJI Avata may be a professional-level FPV drone, but it’s also incredibly easy to fly and capture immersive 4K video when controlled with the DJI Motion Controller.
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Best affordable lightweight drone
Best affordable lightweight drone
The DJI Mini 4K is DJI's first entry-level model to offer 4K video capture. Image quality is impressive for the lowest cost DJI model available, with commendable performance thrown in for good measure.
Best indoor entry-level drone
Best indoor entry-level drone
The Potensic A20 may not have a camera, but robust flight controls and flight speeds ideal for indoor flight make this a great option for children and beginners.
Best for children
Best drone for children
The DJI Ryze Tello is an extremely basic indoor drone that comes with propeller guards and can be controlled using a smartphone. Plus, it's inexpensive.
Best budget model for features
Best powerful entry-level drone
The Holy Stone HS900 is Holy Stone's best drone to date and marks a significant improvement in image quality, features and flight performance to provide a drone that's a great option for beginners.
Best entry-level drones we recommend in 2024
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Best entry-level drone overall
DJI Mini 3
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You're a social media content creator: It has excellent image and video quality, plus it can shoot vertically, which is ideal for social media content.
✅ You don't want to register it: It's in the sub-250g category, so no registration needed!
❌ You're on a tight budget: While it's certainly very affordable for a drone of its caliber, anyone working with a tight budget might need to consider something slightly cheaper.
🔎 With identical image quality to the Mini 3 Pro, the DJI Mini 3 comes with a more beginner-friendly price at the cost of a handful of missing features. ★★★★
The DJI Mini 3 is an incredibly easy to use drone and is capable of capturing high-quality landscape and portrait format photos and videos. What's more, its foldable design makes it easy to carry around and the sub-250 g weight make it much less restricted than larger drones, which is perfect for beginner pilots just getting started.
The Mini 3 uses the same camera as the more advanced Mini 3 Pro, albeit with some reduced functionality. But the key point here is that image quality and the main features the camera has to offer are identical, as we found in our DJI Mini 3 review. The camera offers a 24mm equivalent focal length, a fixed f/1.7 aperture, a 1/1.3-inch 12MP sensor and the ability to rotate the camera 90° to shoot photos and videos in both landscape and portrait orientations.
You can take photos in both RAW and JPEG formats with this camera, and it can record video at up to 4K resolution at 30 frames per second using the Normal color profile. However, it doesn't support the flat D-Cinelike profile for video.
The Mini 3 is an outstanding drone in many ways for beginners, but with the low cost it naturally doesn't feature collision avoidance which is an extremely beginner-friendly feature. It does, however, offer Quickshots automated flight patterns for professional looking video capture at the touch of a button.
- Read our full DJI Mini 3 review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Small and lightweight folding design. |
Performance | Easy to set up and fly. |
Functionality | Up to 4K 30fps video. |
Best premium entry-level drone
DJI Air 3
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You need multiple focal lengths: This versatile drone is equipped with dual cameras offering 24mm and 70mm equivalent focal lengths, making it suitable for photography and video.
✅ You need more power: Sub-250g drones are great for beginners, but they can't handle winds as strong as more powerful drones such as this.
❌ You need a small and lightweight drone: At 25.4oz / 720g, it's not the lightest option out there.
❌ You'd like the best image quality: The Air 3's image quality is excellent, but it's not as good as that of the Mavic 3 series drones.
🔎 With dual cameras, a mid-size folding design and enough power to handle windier conditions than smaller and lighter mini drones, the DJI Air 3 is an excellent and, indeed, versatile drone for beginners and more experienced drone pilots alike. ★★★★½
The DJI Air 3 is an impressive mid-sized model featuring a dual camera offering focal lengths equivalent to 24mm and 70mm. These two cameras have their own 1/1.3-inch sensor, which is the same sensor used in the DJI Mini 3 and Mini 4 Pro, meaning image quality is fantastic. So, as well as being able to capture more distant subjects, the Air 3 can also shoot vertically, record 4K footage in slow motion and capture photos at 48MP resolution.
Medium-sized drones such as the Air 3 offer much more power and greater wind resistance than sub-250 g models, topping out an an impressive 27mph. The Air 3 weighs in at 25.4oz / 720g, and thanks to DJI's tried and tested folding design it's highly portable.
Larger capacity batteries provide flight times of around 35 minutes before return to home is automatically initiated when the battery reaches 20%, which we found in our DJI Air 3 review.
You might think all these features are too much for a beginner, but with GPS positioning, collision detection from all sides and advanced return-to-home capability, this drone is incredibly safe and simple to fly. Of course, you still need to be cautious, but it's packed with top-notch safety features.
On top of that, it captures great photos and videos, tracks subjects well and you won't outgrow it as your skills grow.
- Read our full DJI Air 3 review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Classic DJI folding desgin. |
Performance | Up to 46 min flight time. |
Functionality | Quick shots, Hyperlapse, slow motion video, omnidirectional obstacle avoidance sensors. |
Best cheap entry-level drone
Potensic Atom SE
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You're on a budget: This is one of the more affordable entry-level drones on this list.
✅ You don't want to register it: It's in the sub-250g category, so it doesn't need registering.
❌ You want lots of camera controls: The only camera setting you can control is exposure compensation, everything else is automatic, plus it's FPV style.
❌ You want collision avoidance: This drone doesn't have it, so you'll need to be careful when flying.
🔎 The Potensic Atom SE redefines what inexpensive entry-level drone models are capable of alongside great build quality, but camera control is limited despite producing reasonably sharp images. ★★★★
DJI may be the best-known drone manufacturer dominating the market, but there are some strong contenders out there for beginners and the Potensic Atom SE is one of them. Weighing in at just 245 g and sporting a folding design, this is a highly portable beginner drone is a great alternative for beginners on a budget looking for a small and lightweight drone without obstacle avoidance.
The Atom SE delivers several useful features despite its competitive price including GPS positioning, Return to Home, and some basic automated flight modes for easy video capture. The controller features a unique yet highly functional design that holds smartphones conveniently, although we did find controls were on the sensitive side in our our Potensic Atom SE review.
Considering its price, the camera on this drone is pretty good. It uses a 1/3-inch 12MP Sony CMOS sensor with a wide 118-degree field of view. With this setup, you can record 4K video at up to 30FPS and take still photos in both JPEG and RAW formats. However, if you're a more experienced photographer, you might find the camera's settings somewhat limited, as most of them are automatic.
Despite this, the pictures generally come out well, with only a slight darkening around the edges in photos and none in videos. Overall, we think most beginners would be satisfied with how well the camera performs on this drone.
- Read our full Potensic Atom SE review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Small folding design (similar to DJI). |
Performance | Image quality ok but not amazing. |
Functionality | Limited controls and flight patterns. |
Best cheap 3-axis gimbal drone
Potensic Atom
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You're on a budget: This is simply the best inexpensive sub-250g drone available that can capture up to 4K video.
✅ You want a lightweight model: Sub-250g drones that fold for transportation and storage are incredibly comfortable to carry.
❌ You require a flat video profile: Professionals and advanced enthusiasts may want to color grade their video footage, but the Atom doesn’t offer a flat color profile.
❌ You need to fly in strong wind: While every drone has a maximum wind resistance, smaller drones typically have a lower resistance than larger and more powerful models.
🔎The Potensic Atom may not be quite as slick as its DJI Mini counterparts, but it’s the closest inexpensive competitor that blows the other competition out of the water thanks to a 3-axis gimbal, clear 4K video and smooth flight. ★★★★
The Potensic Atom builds on the popularity of the Atom SE to deliver a similar drone but one that features a 3-axis gimbal and greatly improved camera functionality. It set a new benchmark for drones of its type, being one of the first beginner models to offer 4K video capture alongside photos in both JPEG and Raw, all for an affordable price.
Its sleek dimensions of 3.5 x 5.6 x 2.3 inches (88 x 143 x 58mm) when it's folded up and 8.3 x 6.0 x 2.3 inches (210 x 152 x 58mm) when unfolded also make it a great portable option, while it weights under the critical 250g mark. And with a flight time of 25 minutes on a single charge, you will get reasonable purchase from the Potensic Atom. Plus, it has a level 5 wind resistance, meaning it can withstand winds of up to 24mph.
In use, the Atom is easy to set up and fly, with GPS positioning holding the drone in position when hovering and providing a reliable return to home and subject tracking functionality. There’s no collision avoidance, which is unsurprising given the low cost of the drone. But, with careful flying this won’t be a problem — we found it an absolute breeze to fly in our Potensic Atom review.
Video capture is always an important element of drones, and you'll be pleased to hear that the Atom can capture 4K at 30FPS, 2.7K at 30FPS and 1080p at 60FPS. This offers undeniable flexibility for beginners alongside the option of capturing photos in both RAW and JPEG formats. This is an impressive drone that's a competitor of the DJI Mini 3, but at a more affordable price.
- Read our full Potensic Atom review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Small folding design with a 3-axis gimbal. |
Performance | Manual control over the camera for photos and video. |
Functionality | QuickShots automated flight patterns. |
Best FPV drone for beginners
BetaFPV Cetus Pro
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You're on a budget: This is a very affordable beginner FPV-style drone and comes with a host of extras and accessories.
✅ Your priority is learning how to fly: This drone is aimed at those looking to improve their flying skills first.
❌ You want to capture photo or video: It can't record videos or shoot photos, so photographers will find it useless.
❌ You want to fly for a long time: The battery life is only up to 5 minutes, so you'll need to have either a lot of patience or a lot of spare batteries.
🔎 With a low cost and a complete kit with everything you need to get started, the BetaFPV Cetus Pro provides a low-risk entry point to learning how to fly FPV drones when compared to more expensive models. ★★★★
If first-person view (FPV) drones are something you'd like to try, with the ability to fly in manual/acro mode, the BetaFPV Cetus Pro is perfect for beginner FPV pilots. Coming in at less than $300 for a complete kit with everything you need to get started, the Cetus Pro is one of the best options for learning how to fly FPV drones, where you can dive, flip and roll the drone.
The Cetus Pro, however, is a good option for an entry-level drone, particularly because it comes with everything you might need. This includes a Cetus Pro Brushless Quadcopter, a LiteRadio 2SE Transmitter, VR02 FPV Goggles, two batteries, a USB battery charger with cable, four spare propellers, a propeller removal tool, a USB-C cable and a convenient carry case. Spare parts are also available for replacements if you ever have a crash.
The Cetus Pro features powerful brushless motors that make it fast and nimble in flight. And since this is a compact micro whoop FPV drone with a weight of just 1.61 oz / 45.8 g, with propeller guards, the Cetus Pro is suitable for both indoor and outdoor flight. Not to mention, the three flight modes, including Acro/Manual, available help you to hone your flight skills at your own pace.
The camera on the Cetus is used purely to provide a live feed to the analog goggles so you can enjoy an FPV view. The Cetus and the VR02 FPV Goggles do not, however, have the capability to record video so this drone is purely a learning tool, as we mentioned in our BetaFPV Cetus Pro review. The only additional accessories you might need in order to get started are an additional four-battery set that costs $26 / £21, and a battery charger for six batteries that costs $20 / £16.
- Read our full BetaFPV Cetus Pro review
- Read more: What are FPV drones?
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Built to withstand crashes. |
Performance | Very short flight times (5 mins per battery). |
Functionality | Turtle Mode flips the drone when upside down. |
Best FPV drone for video
DJI Avata
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You want long flight times: Each battery has up to 18 minutes of flight time, which is impressive for an FPV drone.
✅ You want a drone you can grow with: It has specs and features to please beginners and more experienced fliers.
❌ You're a photographer: You can capture JPEGs, but as the horizon will almost always be wonky, there are better options for photographers.
❌ You don't want to register it: It weighs 410g, so it'll need to be registered.
🔎 FPV drones are notoriously difficult to fly, but with the DJI Avata anyone can capture immersive FPV video footage in stunning 4K resolution at up to 60 fps, and it’s a whole lot of fun to fly, too. ★★★★
The DJI Avata has been superseded by the Avata 2, but it's still available for sale and at a reduced price making it a compelling option for getting started with FPV. This drone features a cinewhoop design, which means it has propeller guards to help to avoid damage to the drone and obstacles in crashes.
It's also incredibly easy to fly with the DJI Motion Controller 2, and offers GPS positioning and downward sensors in some flight modes. Measuring 180 x 180 x 80cm and weighing 14.46 oz/410g with a battery, it has microSD card compatibility and comes with 20GB of onboard storage.
Even complete beginners with no experience flying FPV can pick up and fly with the DJI Avata, with this model making flying in Manual/Acro mode much easier than most. You can also capture stunning photos and crisp 4K footge without much of a hassle. As we highlighted in our DJI Avata review, you can use the DJI Motion Controller to fly the drone, with more advanced users also capable of picking up and using the DJI Motion Controller 2.
Thanks to a 48MP CMOS sensor and f/2.8 lens (offering a wide-angle 12.7mm equivalent, video quality is excellent as well as immersive. This can be captured in 4K at up to 60FPS, 2.7K at up to 100FPS and 1080p at up to 100FPS when using DJI Goggles 2. Although when using the DJI FPV Goggles V2, video capture is 2.7K and 1080p at up to 120 FPS. This drone is all about video, and it certainly delivers.
- Read our full DJI Avata review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Robust cinewhoop design. |
Performance | Excels at capturing video. |
Functionality | Features augmented reality home point and Return to Home function. |
Best affordable lightweight drone
DJI Mini 4K
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You're looking for your first drone: With most of the features you could need or want as a beginner, the DJI Mini 4K is a compelling option with solid flight performance.
✅ You want a drone from the market leader: DJI is the undisputed market leader, and although this is the company's cheapest model, it still manages to impress for the price.
❌ You want a better camera: The camera on the Mini 4K is great, but the best camera within the beginner class is found on the DJI Mini 3 with horizontal and portrait format shooting.
❌ You would like more features: This is a basic model that can shoot 4K video and photos in JPEG and RAW, but for more features consider the Potensic Atom and Holy Stone HS900.
🔎 The DJI Mini 4K is undoubtedly one of, if not the best entry-level drones in its price bracket. Flight performance is solid and although features are more basic than higher-end DJI drones, it remains a fantastic entry point for beginners. ★★★★★
The DJI Mini 4K is DJI's budget model, and is priced to squeeze the competition at the lower cost end of the market. DJI has traditionally avoided 4K video capture with its budget models, but the Mini 4K marks a shift for the market leader and puts the drone up against some stiff competition from the likes of the Holy Stone HS900 and Potensic Atom, which also features in our guide.
This is undeniably DJI's best-ever entry-level drone to date. Its 1/2.3-inch 12MP CMOS sensor can capture video in 4K up to 30 FPS, 2.7K up to 30 FPS, and 1080p up to 60 FPS. Photo capture is available in both JPEG and RAW formats, which is great for beginners and more experienced photographers alike.
Automatic Exposure Bracketing and Panorama capture are also available, alongside Quickshots automated flight patterns. As we stressed in our DJI Mini 4K review, we loved its overall performance.
The drone is palm-sized when folded and weighs just 8.7 oz / 249 g, making it both regulator-friendly and easy to carry. Wind resistance is rated at Level 5, which equates to up to 24 mph, while the advertised flight time of 31 minutes per battery charge comes in at a much more modest 21 minutes.
The Mini 4K is undoubtedly a disruptive drone that targets the inexpensive end of the beginner drone market, taking advantage of DJI's impressive technology, build quality and ease of use. And like most DJI drones, the Fly More Combo offers great value alongside additional batteries to keep you in the air for longer between charges.
- Read our full DJI Mini 4K review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Compact and lightweight folding design. |
Performance | Image quality is great considering the small sensor. |
Functionality | Offers basic yet useful features for beginners. |
Best indoor entry-level drone
Potensic A20 Mini Drone
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You would like a fun indoor drone: The A20 is undoubtedly a lot of fun to fly indoors and is designed to avoid damage to the drone and objects.
✅ You would like to learn drone controls before buying a more expensive model: This is an incredibly inexpensive drone with identical controls to camera drones.
❌ You would like a camera: With no camera, this is a drone that's mainly for fun and learning flight controls.
❌ You don't want to fly indoors: Indoor drone flight isn't for everyone, and the A20 isn't suited to outdoor flight.
🔎 The Potensic A20 Mini Drone may not have a camera, but it's an excellent indoor drone for children and beginners who would like to develop their flight skills. ★★★★
If you're looking for an incredibly inexpensive drone for you and your children, the Potensic A20 Mini Drone is a great option for getting started. It's designed for indoor flight since it lacks the power to handle wind, but with the same controls as camera drones, it's a great way to familiarise yourself with drone flight before splashing out on a more expensive model.
It's a great place to start flying, with a light on the front to show the direction it's facing. At 190g and measuring only 3.1 x 1.3 x 3.5 inches (78.7 x 31.8 x 88.9mm), you shouldn't expect this drone to cause any damage if it crashes inside, plus it has propeller guards that protect the drone as well as objects and people it crashes into.
There's no camera, so it won't suit anyone looking to take photos or videos with it, plus the features are quite basic and it isn't recommended for outdoor use, as we found in our Potensic A20 review. These features can either be an advantage or disadvantage depending on what you want to use the drone for. If you're purely looking to advance your flying skills, then it could be a great option for you.
The aspect of the A20 that makes it such an attractive beginner option alongside the low cost is its controls. These are identical to camera drones and it can hover so it's a great flight practice drone for building confidence and familiarity. What's more, with three batteries that take just 10 minutes to charge, you can essentially keep flying for as long as you like when cycling batteries.
- Read our full Potensic A20 review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Looks like a micro whoop FPV drone. |
Performance | Fun and easy to use with the same controls as camera drones. |
Functionality | Flies well and can perform flips for fun. |
Best for children
DJI Ryze Tello
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You're on a budget: It's incredibly affordable for those new to the world of drones.
✅ You want to learn the basics: It's a great option for kids or complete newbies who want to focus on learning the basics of flying.
❌ You're a content creator: The photo and video quality isn't particularly impressive, so content creators will want to look at other options.
❌ You want to fly it outside: It's not suitable for use in anything more than a light breeze.
🔎 The DJI Ryze Tello is the perfect drone for those only just starting out to fly drones, it's small, and easy to use and the propeller guards and onboard sensors make accidents much less likely, and therefore flying the drone even more enjoyable. ★★★★
The DJI Ryze Tello is an incredibly easy to fly indoor drone with a 5MP camera capable of capturing 720p videos. It's certainly not going to provide longevity in your drone flying journey, but as a starter model it's an easy drone to set up and use to familiarise yourself with drone flight controls. We were impressed with the drone in our DJI Ryze Tello review, pointing out it's perfect for beginners and children alike.
Controlling this drone is also as easy as downloading an app onto your smartphone and pairing the two up. It offers smooth and responsive controls without being too sensitive, like others out there, and it's also a great option for indoor flight given its slender size. In fact, we'd probably recommend flying this indoors given winds tend to knock the DJI Ryze Tello off course quite easily.
The Ryze Tello is an extremely basic drone but it does have a handful of useful features including propeller guards, which are perfect for indoor flights. The drone also features basic downward facing sensors and provides a maximum flight distance of 100m over WiFI, which is impressive. Not to mention, it has some fun flight tricks built-in, too.
Of course, to keep the cost down, they had to make some trade-offs. For example, it doesn't have a gimbal for really smooth video, and the battery life is a bit disappointing — it takes about an hour to charge but only gives you 11 minutes of flight time. However, if you're ok with these drawbacks and don't need the best camera quality, this could be a fantastic, budget-friendly drone to start learning how to fly.
- Read our full DJI Ryze Tello review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Incredibly lightweight — only 80g. |
Performance | High speed for its size with very responsive controls. |
Functionality | Some cool 'trick flight' features. |
Best budget model for features
Holy Stone Sirius HS900
Our expert review:
Specifications
Reasons to buy
Reasons to avoid
✅ You're on a budget: The HS900 is competitively priced considering the features on offer, so you get quite a lot for your money.
✅ You're looking for a DJI alternative: Not everyone loves DJI drones, so if you fall into this category the HS900 is worth considering.
❌ You need advanced features: The HS900 is incredibly feature-packed for the price, but it doesn't offer obstacle avoidance like the DJI Mini 4 Pro.
❌ You would like a larger drone: Being a sub-250 g model, the HS900 lacks the power of larger drones and the higher wind resistance of these models.
🔎 The Holy Stone HS900 is an impressive drone that's reasonably priced. Image quality is good and plenty of features are on offer, while overall flight performance can’t be faulted. ★★★★
Holy Stone has been around for quite a while and with the Holy Stone Sirius HS900, the Chinese company has greatly exceeded all of its previous drone models. The HS900 is a sub-250 g with a fantastic camera, impressive flight performance and a range of features that will appeal to different types of pilots.
Image quality from the camera featuring a Sony 1/2.3 in 48MP CMOS sensor can't be faulted. Photo capture is available in 4K dimensions (3840 x 2160 px) and 48MP with image dimensions of 8192 x 4608 px. Video can be captured in 4K at 30 fps and 1080p at 60 fps, while the 3-axis gimbal and Electronic Image Stabilization effectively smooth out footage. We were impressed by the overall performance of the HS900 in our full review.
Flight times typically average around 22 minutes per battery before Return to Home is initiated automatically when the battery level reaches 20%, which isn't class-leading and sits closer to the lower end of the scale. It's still not bad though and marginally beats the DJI Mini 4K.
Wind resistance is rated at level 5 which equates to wind speeds of up to 24 mph, which is good for a drone that's palm-sized when folded. Other features include Cruise Control, Time-lapse and automated flight patterns which include Point of Interest, Spiral up, Tap Fly (waypoints), Gesture Selfie, One-key Ascension and Catapult.
- Red our full Holy Stone Sirius HS900 review
Attributes | Notes |
---|---|
Design | Lightweight folding design. |
Performance | Image quality is a huge improvement over previous models.. |
Functionality | Time-lapse and Quickshots among many others. |
Buying advice
Many drones aimed at beginners are basic models in terms of camera functionality and overall features. But they offer the same basic controls as larger and more expensive models, so you can get a feel for how they work without fearing losing a small fortune if you're unlucky enough to crash.
Even if you have a large budget, it doesn't hurt to buy a cheap model that costs less than $250/£250 to get started, some even cost less than $50/£50. Then, once you feel confident with the controls and have inevitably outgrown the camera functionality and overall features, you'll know when it's time to move up to the next level.
One crucial point you must consider as a beginner is the weight of the drone you're aiming to buy. Drones that weigh less than 249g don't require you to register with the FAA (US) or CAA (UK) to fly them legally which removes one small hurdle in the path to drone flight. So, once you've chosen the model that's right for you, get ready to see the world in a completely new and exciting way.
How we tested
We typically test entry-level drones in different locations, environments, and weather conditions (apart from rain) to assess flight performance, flight features, overall handling and image quality for both photo and video capture. All entry-level drones offer a variety of features so only those available can be tested, but all features are explored to cover performance and ease of use.
Drones are flown using manual flight patterns to test the connection between the aircraft and the controller, latency between the two, the accuracy of the controls, app connection and reliability and flight in general. And if automated flight patterns and collision avoidance are available, these are always tested to asses accuracy.
All testing is conducted in a way that meets local aviation laws and restrictions to ensure that all flights are safe and legal. Drone laws vary from region to region, so you must check local laws to ensure that you’re following the guidelines for your country before embarking on your first drone flights.
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James is an award-winning freelance landscape and portrait photographer, as well as a highly experienced photography journalist working with some of the best photography magazines and websites with a worldwide audience. He’s also the author of The Digital Darkroom: The Definitive Guide to Photo Editing. www.jamesaphoto.co.uk
- Kimberley LaneContributing writer
- Tantse WalterContributing Writer
- Jase Parnell-BrookesManaging Editor, e-commerce