The best camera quadcopters 2022

Quadcopters are becoming more and more popular devices every year, leaving the category of toys for children and geeks. For example, for bloggers, they have become simply indispensable assistants that allow you to get a picture that is impossible even with the use of a whole helicopter. True, the youth of this segment of consumer electronics and the ability to control this technique somewhat complicates the process of choosing a drone.

“Looking at the best camera quadcopters of 2022,” says Sergey Smirnov, co-founder of Pauri drone rental service, — A beginner should understand the basic characteristics.

— It is easy to buy Phantom DJI and accessories for it for several hundred thousand rubles. Problems will arise when, in the hands of an inexperienced operator, it crashes or flies away in an unknown direction on the very first sortie. You learn the basics of control, legal regulation of the use of drones and simple precautions. It is best to start with small inexpensive models that forgive a lot in management, but it’s not a pity to “decompose them into spare parts”.

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Editor’s Choice

1. Syma X8Pro (average price 6,6 thousand rubles)

An updated version of the famous Syma X8 model, aimed at those who want to try their hand at drone control. This is a medium-sized drone that can forgive a lot for an inexperienced “pilot”. There is a remote control included, but you can (and even need to) control the quadcopter from your smartphone or tablet. From the operator, the drone can fly to a radius of 70 m and to the same height. The quadcopter has a built-in 1MP camera capable of recording 720p video. Not only that – use a gimbal where you can attach an action camera. The main problem of this model, which the manufacturer himself does not hide, is battery life of 9 minutes. Because of it, it is not necessary to count on a long flight. In addition, some users complain about constant failures in the built-in GPS.

2. DJI Mavic Air (average price 62,7 thousand rubles)

An advanced yet still amateur-level quadcopter from industry leader DJI. The high cost of the device is offset by its characteristics, which are practically the “ceiling” for a non-professional device. Judge for yourself, DJI Mavic Air can rise to a height of up to half a kilometer, fly at a maximum speed of 19 m / s for 21 minutes, supports simultaneous control over Wi-Fi and radio. According to the latter, the drone can fly to a radius of 2 km. And at such a distance, when it becomes difficult to visually see the drone, the first-person view (FPV) mode comes in handy. The camera for this (and not only) in the drone is set to 12 megapixels, capable of recording video in 4K. She can also write videos in slow-mo at 120 frames per second. A huge advantage of the model is the proprietary DJI GO application, which is practically a reference for controlling drones.

3. Hubsan X4 FPV Brushless H501S Standard Edition (average price 14,9 thousand rubles)

An amateur quadcopter of medium size and weighing a little less than half a kilogram. It is controlled from the remote control via a radio channel and can fly up to 300 m from the operator. But some users have encountered an unpleasant oddity – when climbing, the quadcopter can suddenly start moving away from the person controlling it. As a result, the device can fly away without responding to the command to return to the launch site, although the Hubsan X4 has built-in GPS. However, this deficiency is rare. Otherwise, this is a high-quality quadcopter that can quickly move in space for 20 minutes. This is a fairly popular model and it is easy to find accessories for it both offline and on the Internet, including on the well-known Chinese marketplace. For example, custom antennas can increase the range of a copter by several times. There is also a camera, but the quality of the shooting leaves much to be desired. FullHD video suffers from a lack of stabilization and rolling shutter when the picture becomes “jelly”.

What other quadcopters with a camera are worth paying attention to

4. Xiro XPLORER mini (average price 10,5 thousand rubles)

A small (as the name implies) quadrocopter, which is suitable as a hobby for adults and children. With a weight of 431 g, the drone is capable of climbing to a height of 50 m and flying at a speed of 8 m / s /. Management here is carried out only via Wi-Fi from a smartphone or tablet and at a distance of no more than 100 m. However, many users complain about the quality of signal reception, especially in dense urban areas. Because of this, the quadcopter can get lost. To prevent this from happening, there is a GPS and a return function to the starting points. By the way, Xiro XPLORER mini is able to work on a single charge for 15 minutes. Interestingly, the manufacturer managed to install a decent camera in an inexpensive drone. With a resolution of 13 megapixels, it is capable of writing good video in FullHD quality. The feature of the camera is image stabilization.

5. CXHOBBY CX-10W (average price 1,5 thousand rubles)

A budget device that looks like a toy, and yet it is a quadcopter. A tiny 17g drone can fly within a radius of 30m. But keep in mind that the material of the propellers is very fragile and is unlikely to withstand a collision even with a branch. You can control the microdrone using Android and iOS devices via Wi-Fi. But the CXHOBBY CX-10W can fly on a single charge for no more than 4 minutes. In this crumb there was a place for the camera, but you should not expect much from a 0,3-megapixel module.

6. Parrot Airborne night drone (average price 9,5 thousand rubles)

The drone from the French company Parrot is positioned as a drone for children. However, adults can also use it. With compact dimensions and a weight of about 60 g, the quadrocopter can fly at a speed of 5 m/s. You can control the drone only via Bluetooth and at a distance of no more than 20 m. But the set of sensors here is solid: a magnetometer, an accelerometer, an ultrasonic sensor, a barometer and a gyroscope. By the way, “night drone” in the title is not used for a red word. The quadcopter has two LEDs for illumination in the dark.

7. JXD 507W (average price 6,6 thousand rubles)

A fairly large model from a Chinese manufacturer of consumer electronics. With an unsightly appearance, it demonstrates good flight characteristics. Management is carried out either via WiFi or radio. The latter allows you to control the drone at a distance of up to 100 m. True, this model has an unpleasant oddity that some users have encountered. The quadcopter, when controlled from the phone, may suddenly lose connection and “fly into the sunset”. Due to the fact that the JXD 507W is not equipped with GPS, it will not be able to return to the launch site on its own. However, the problem is not widespread. The drone is equipped with a camera capable of capturing video in 1280 x 720 pixels. But keep in mind that taking a picture or starting to write a video from the remote control will not work here.

8. Ryze Tech Tello (average price 9,2 thousand rubles)

A small and inexpensive quadcopter created by DJI in collaboration with Intel. Despite the toy appearance, this is a fairly serious entry-level drone, which is suitable not only for the role of a child’s toy. For example, there are responsive and intuitive controls, which are more like “big brothers” than toys from Chinese nouns. The manufacturer did not include a remote control, so it is best to use a smartphone or tablet to control the drone. The quadcopter can fly at a speed of 8 m/s, but not high and not far — 10 and 100 m, respectively. If your rotary wing drone skills aren’t enough, the Ryze Tech Tello comes with a few pre-installed tricks, like it can roll. The built-in camera here does not strike the imagination – it is a 5 megapixel matrix that records video in maximum 720p quality. In terms of quality, it resembles the work of a good web-camera.

9. Relice QD-704WHD (average price 3,6 thousand rubles)

Inexpensive quadcopter that will forgive the amateur many mistakes in control. The maximum distance for controlling the drone via radio is 120 m. You can also use Wi-Fi, but then the radius will be reduced to 30 m. The drone is able to spend up to 8 minutes in the sky on a single charge. Although the function of returning “to base” by pressing a button is declared here, please note that this model does not have GPS. The drone comes with a 2MP gimbal camera capable of capturing photos and videos. Their quality is not high, but this is quite expected for a device of this price level.

10. YUNEEC Typhoon H (average price 91,6 thousand rubles)

An amateur hexacopter (six propellers here) with very advanced features and a serious price. With its own weight of 1,7 kg, it is capable of lifting a load of up to 2 kg into the air. The maximum flight speed is impressive – 19,4 m / s. YUNEEC Typhoon H is controlled by a remote control with a large display via radio. The maximum control distance over the drone is as much as 1600 m. By the way, the hexacopter supports Intel RealSense technology, which works together with the “Follow me” mode. Thanks to a special camera installed on the front of the drone with a separate power module, the drone receives an accurate 3D model of the world around it. The copter not only sees an obstacle, but also lays out optimal routes for flying around it during the flight. The drone also has a quite traditional 12,4 megapixel camera, which is capable of shooting video in 4K.

How to choose a quadcopter with a camera

The quadcopter has long gone from entertainment to something more. For example, it is almost indispensable for aerial photography. But it’s not always worth chasing expensive equipment right away when you want to instill in your child a love of technology or take a bird’s eye view of your hike.

Cost

Prices for the best camera quadcopters 2022 can vary widely. Simple microdrones with primitive matrices on board can cost 2 rubles. Medium-sized copters capable of flying up to 100 m from the operator will already cost 10-20 thousand rubles. But advanced amateur models from eminent manufacturers for less than 50 thousand rubles are unlikely to be bought. But they will have really interesting characteristics and good built-in cameras.

flight performance

Perhaps the main parameters for a beginner will be such parameters as the presence of a simplified mode of operation, autonomy and the possibility of automatic return to the operator. The first includes automatic and semi-automatic presets that will allow the inexperienced pilot to get comfortable. A little autonomy will greatly limit the flight time. In any case, try to purchase additional batteries. And finally, the ability to automatically return the drone to the control panel.

Management

If you are just thinking about buying your first quadcopter, then you should know how to control it. The first and most advanced is the radio channel. It provides a huge control range that can be extended with an amplifier. for it, special remote controls are used, which are included in the delivery set. The second way is Wi-Fi control. In principle, this is the same radio channel, but at the frequencies that are used to create a wireless local area network. Usually, in this case, instead of the remote control, a smartphone or tablet on Android or iOS is used. The distance between the drone and the operator should not exceed 100 m. And very simple drones are often content with a short-range radio frequency – Bluetooth. It also uses a smartphone for control, the maximum distance is 30 m. Most of the best quadcopters with a 2022 camera support the FPV function – a first-person view, which is transmitted to the remote control or smartphone. But no matter what kind of quadcopter you have, the pilot should remember simple rules: do not fly over long distances, beware of wind and power lines, and do not accelerate the drone to too high a speed.

Camera, taking photos and videos

The best camera quadcopters 2022 have a variety of photo and video capabilities. The simplest models have cameras with a resolution of 0,3 megapixels, which are capable of taking photos and videos of very mediocre quality. More advanced quadcopters can shoot Full HD videos. The most advanced amateur drones are already capable of recording 4K video with a XNUMX-axis or XNUMX-axis stabilizer to help avoid image shaking. Large and powerful quadrocopters can lift third-party cameras into the air, up to SLR cameras.