How will you use your drone?

Before you buy a drone, you need to know how you will use it. The reason for this is simple: Every drone has its own set of features and options, some better-suited for certain applications than others. If you plan to use your drone strictly for hobby flying, you want to look for a drone with a built-in camera or no camera at all. Conversely, if you want to use your drone to take pictures and video, you want to look for a drone that comes with a high-quality camera or a mount for your own camera. Whatever scenario you can think of, the important thing to understand is that the way you intend to use your drone should determine which drone you buy.

Here are some questions and explanations to help you think through how you intend to use your drone.

• Do you intend to fly for hobby purposes only?

  If you intend to fly your drone for hobby purposes only, you may not need camera support, internal or add-on.

• Do you intend to fly for extended periods of time?

  If you intend to fly for extended periods of time, you want to make sure that you have the right balance of motor power and battery life. You also want to consider whether you need the ability to swap out batteries or add additional batteries.

• How do you want to fly? Do you want to fly fast in a straight line?

  If you want to fly fast in a straight line, an airplane or other fixed wing drone may be the right fit. If you want to be able to hover, vertically take off and land, and go in any direction what-so-ever, then a multi-copter may be a good option for you.

• Do you intend to use your drone for aerial pictures or video?

  If you intend to use your drone for aerial pictures or video, you may want to consider camera support. This opens up a litany of additional questions.

• How important are picture and video quality?

  If picture or video quality is of high importance, you may need to consider a drone that can support an add-on camera device.

• How important is streaming video support?

  If streaming video support is of high importance, you need to select a drone with a built-in camera that supports video streaming, or you need to be prepared to make an add-on camera purchase that supports this functionality.

• How far do you want to be able to fly your drone?

  Communication with your controls is a big deal, so you will want to make sure you look at communication methods and distance.

Of course, the age old question that must always be answered is: “What is your budget?” It almost always comes down to this, right? The spectrum of drone pricing is vast. You can spend as little as $100 for a drone and as much as hundreds of thousands of dollars (although pricing in this range is for drones that are intended for more than hobby, personal or small business uses). Establishing a budget can help you whittle down your options.

When contemplating budget, take into consideration how much money you can spend on replacement parts and repairs. It doesn’t take much to render a propeller unusable. One serious crash and, depending on the drone, you may have a pricy replacement on your hands.

Whether you are a hobby flyer, photographer, videographer, or maybe you have a use within your business, diving deep into how you intend to use your drone will help you select the right drone.

Drone features

Each drone comes with its own design and feature set. You’ll find a direct correlation between price and feature availability. If you want a ton of features, you have pay for them. The first feature you need to pay attention to is the fly package. Most drone manufacturers will make their drones available in either of these packages:

• Ready to fly: A ready-to-fly drone is a drone that comes complete with everything you need to fly. Typically, you need to do some assembly, but this is typically limited to attaching propellers and plugging in batteries.
• Bind and fly: More advanced drone flyers may have their own remote controllers or maybe even a high-end or custom built ground-control system. For this reason, some drones are available as a drone-only package. Bind and fly simply means you need to bind your drone to your controller before you can start flying.

Understanding the difference between these two packages will save you some headaches and also help you if you are budgeting to purchase a drone. First-time drone-buyers will always want to buy a ready to fly because it comes with everything needed to get up and running right away! Other features that your drone might offer beyond a different paint job include:

• Advanced control options: Different communication protocols, such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, enable you to connect your drone to a computer, smartphone, or tablet.
• GPS home function: Drones with this function know where they started flying from and attempt to return to that location if there is a problem. (This is not something you should rely on.)
• GPS navigation: GPS navigation makes it possible to track your drone or program routes.
• Streaming video: Drones with this capability let you stream video from a first person video view or simply stream video back to a computer, phone, or tablet.
• Power: Payload size, battery life, and propeller speeds all impact flight time, flight radius, and so on.
• Camera support: Built-in (integrated) cameras and add-on camera support give you flexibility in how you use your drone for video and photography.

Integrated camera features

When making a decision on a drone with an integrated camera, there will be several different features that you should take into consideration. These features include:

• Sensor size: Digital cameras have an internal sensor that captures light information and then translates that information into data to make your picture file. As it goes, the bigger the sensor, the better the image because the more light it can gather. Small cameras will always have small censors. Figure 2-1 shows a diagram comparing sensor sizes of various cameras.
• Lens: The camera lens is almost as important as the sensor size. This is because the lens is responsible for focusing and directing light into the sensor. The size and shape of the lens will greatly affect image quality, almost as much as the sensor size.
• Resolution: In video, the resolution is the number of dots (pixels) that can be squeezed into the video image. You might think of resolution in terms of your television because the quality of your television is typically measured by its resolution. A television that is high definition has a resolution of at least 1280x720. That means 720 pixels vertically and 1280 pixels horizontally make up the image on the screen. Sample high-definition resolutions include 720i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p. Ultra definition is an image that is bigger than 1080p.
• Frame rate: The number of times a camera can take a picture in a second is frame rate. The most common frame rate for film is 24 frames per second. Higher frame rates are useful in improving the look of video in high and ultra-definition. Higher frame rates can also be slowed down to create slow motion.
• Photo resolution: Photo resolution, which is measured in megapixels, is a misleading number because the quality of an image has more to do with the size and quality of the pixel not the number of the pixels.
• File format: Digital images and video are stored in files, which are save in different file formats. Different file formats require different software to open and manipulate them. Different digital image and video files also have different levels of compression. Compression removes information from a file to make the file size smaller. In images and video, compression means a loss of quality.
• Storage options: Integrated cameras may come with the option to add external storage like a USB drive or an SD card for storing pictures and video. The more the storage, the fewer the times you’ll need to swap media or dump footage which equals longer flying times. Figure 2-2 shows a USB storage device, SD card, and MicroSD card.

Buying a drone that has an integrated camera

There are currently several drones available for purchase that come equipped with an integrated camera. Each drone comes with a unique mixture of features and quality. Take a look at the features of the drones described in the following sections.

DJI Phantom 2 Vision

The DJI Phantom 2 Vision is shown in Figure 2-3. It includes the following features:

• 14 megapixel camera
• Resolution/Frame Rates: 1080/30p or 1080/60i
• Sensor Size: 1/2.3 inches (Super small)
• Storage: MicroSD Card (32GB Limit)
• Lens: 100°

Parrot AR Drone 2.0

The Parrot AR Drone 2.0 is shown in Figure 2-4. It includes the following features:

• Video Resolution/Frame Rate: 720p
• Lens: 92°
• Storage: USB or stream
• Video Format: H.264

Action cameras

Action cameras live up to their name because they are designed specifically to capture traditional and extreme sports. Action cameras typically capture video footage at extremely high frame rates making the fast movements look smooth at normal speeds or in slow motion. Action cameras are also very durable and designed to be in extreme situations like under water, strapped to a sky diver, or affixed to the end of a snow ski or the end of a surf board.

Not only do action cameras gather high-quality footage in extreme situations, they are also extremely compact which makes them ideal for pairing with a drone. There are several action cameras available to consumers but the GoPro brand of cameras has solidified themselves as the industry leader. GoPro is so pervasive in action cameras that the name is used almost interchangeable with action camera, similar to how you might ask for a Kleenex when you need a Kleenex … I mean tissue.

Other players, if you want to call them that, in the GoPro market, I mean action camera market, include Sony, JVC, and Garmin, but none of them even remotely compares to the GoPro. Figure 2-5 shows two types of action cameras.

Point-and-shoot/compact cameras

The term point-and-shoot is primarily used to describe small compact digital cameras designed for inexperienced photographers. They make taking good photos and video easier by providing, almost exclusively, auto features like auto light adjustment, auto color adjustment, auto focus, and auto zoom. Small point & shoot cameras can be as small as a small stack of credit cards. Bigger point-and-shoot cameras are available, however, that offer additional features such as manual controls, interchangeable lenses, and lens attachments, to name a few.

Point-and-shoot cameras also offer the user an affordable way into the world of video. Most point-and-shoot cameras come equipped with a video feature. This is handy if you are a budding videographer because you can check out video without needing to make much of a financial commitment. One thing to keep in mind is that point-and-shoot cameras are designed for ease of use and low cost. The quality of the pictures and video is fantastic given the price and available controls and features, but these are not intended to satisfy the desires of the more experienced photographer. Figure 2-6 is a picture of several different small to mid-sized point-and-shoot cameras.

DSLR cameras

DSLR stands for digital single-lens reflex. There are several types of DSLR cameras on the market and they all range in size and price. DSLR cameras are wonderful for capturing stunning images because they have large image sensors, interchangeable lenses, several file storage modes, and depending on your camera, a whole slew of manual control features.

Most of the major electronics manufacturers have a line of DSLR cameras ranging in size, features, and price. Depending on who you ask, you will get varying opinions on what equipment package is the best. If you don’t already have a DSLR, be prepared for option overload! However, you can always focus on the big two: Nikon and Canon. Just looking into those two brands will keep you busy for months as you navigate their robust offerings of cameras.

Using a DSLR camera with a drone is going to present several obstacles to overcome with the main one being price. DSLR cameras, lenses, and other accessories are expensive. They are also heavy which means that you will need a drone powerful enough to be able to not only lift your gear, but have enough power and battery to be able to sustain fly times that will be worthwhile. Figure 2-7 is a picture of popular Canon and Nikon DSLR cameras as well as several lenses.

Cinema-quality cameras

If you are serious about video, you may be thinking about using a cinema-quality camera. There are several high-quality digital cameras that can be used to capture insanely good video footage without totally breaking the bank. The reason why I refer to them as cinema-quality is because they capture that caliber of footage but won’t require you to put a fourth mortgage on your home in order to buy them. These cameras produce outstanding footage, but weight is an issue.

One very popular cinema-quality camera is the Black Magic Pocket Cinema Camera. This camera is compact, and it supports popular DSLR lenses as well as higher-end cinema style lenses. Lenses are funny because the bigger and heavier they are, the more they cost. They feel expensive!

Another powerful cinema-quality camera is the Canon C-series of cameras. This series of cameras is built specifically for video. They support Canon DSLR lenses, and their quality far surpasses action cameras, DSLR cameras, and other consumer grade video cameras. Figure 2-8 is a picture of the Black Magic and Canon C1-series cameras.

RC Transmitters

Most drones come with an RC transmitter. RC controls are very basic and typically only offer directional control. RC transmitters provide control of your drone for a much greater distance than a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection. Most drones will come with an RC transmitter designed specifically for them, although RC transmitters can be interchangeable, so you can use a third party RC transmitter if you want. If you are going to use a third-party RC transmitter, make sure you verify that it is compatible with your drone or the matching receiver can be installed in your drone.

Your drone should come with documentation to specify which transmitters are compatible with it. If you can’t find the information in your operating manual or online, then you may want to hold off on purchasing a transmitter. An incompatible transmitter will only be useful as a paper weight, or contemporary art. Figure 2-9 shows several RC Transmitters that are used with all sorts of drones.

Drones are typically offered in two different package types: ready-to-fly means all you need to fly are included in the box and there is next to no assembly required; bind-and-fly means you need to set your drone up to work with your own remote control handset.

Mobile Apps

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth have made it possible for drone manufacturers to create device controls that run on smartphone or tablet. Not just a smartphone version of your RC transmitter, but high-tech controls. Several drone manufactures have created apps that give you advanced positioning, first person video controls, programmable flight routes, and more.

Some drones come with both an RC transmitter controller and a mobile application for viewing you’re the drone’s position using GPS, flight stats like speed, battery life, and fly time. Figure 2-10 is a picture of a drone control app.