Most Popular on DJI Phantom Aerial Drone Quadcopter
After receiving my first Phantom through an Amazon reseller (NortheastCameraSupply, I purchased a second on a great sale I found on eBay for a minimally used one. The aircraft is simple to fly, but make sure that you watch the full line of instruction videos (in the Wiki support section, not the 5 minimal videos on the front support page). Pay attention and follow the instructions and you will have a very stable and excellent performing aerial camera platform. I suggest against using the GoPro mount included, instead use the standard GoPro case that comes with the camera. It is bolt on compatible. I also fly with a Contour Roam camera, mounted using a GoPro tripod mount coupled with a threaded stud to a Contour universal mount. Both produce safe and excellent camera mount systems.
Right off the bat, perform the simple compass initialization procedure described in the flight prep video. Then perform an IMU calibration (advanced type) using the NAZA-M Software Assistant --in addition to turning on Intelligent Orientation Control. The quad arrives with IOC disabled. You will get spectacular performance right off the bat, even in breezy conditions (wind less than 10 mph). On takeoff, make sure to add enough throttle to 'jump' the craft off the ground, an attempt to slowly lift off will result in the quad falling over.
It is wise to pick up a propeller balancer from a hobby store ($20). Balancing the props by sanding weight from the underside of the props will make a big difference in vibration. The props are pretty strong and a tip over that beats the props on the ground before the motors shut down is not likely to damage the props. However, if you strike a rock and chip or deform a prop, replace it before another flying session. Pairs of spare pros go for about $3 from most DJI hobby stores. A spare battery is also a good investment, you can get a Turnigy 2200 mah battery that works great and is totally spec compatible for about $15. DON'T PAY MORE!
The standard price is $679, again, don't pay more for a new Phantom. The radio range is about 1000 feet, but I suggest that you keep altitude below 500, still a long way up and at that height it's difficult to see the orientation (which is front,etc). This is where the Intelligent Prientation Control comes in handy. When engaged in Home mode, pulling the pitch/yaw stick (on right) will brig to unit towards you, pushing it forward sends the aircraft away. Right goes right and left goes left, regardless of the direction the aircraft is pointing. You do need to have it in GPS mode and the GPS must have detected 6 or more satellites for the function to work. The same is needed for hovering on position or its Return to Home/Launch failsafe to work. Speaking of which, if your battery gets too low, the quad will land itself. If you lose link between the controller transmitter and the Phantom, such as shutting off the transmitter, the unit will come back to the launch point, hover at 60 feet for 15 seconds and then auto-land itself.
A truly special and simplicity oriented R/C quadcopter and definitely worth the money. However, if you want first person video (a video image of what the aircraft sees), sorry, no can do. Any additions or use of the wifi/bluetooth used for FPV will interfere with the navigation and a flyaway loss of the aircraft is very likely. Moral: don't try it unless you want to lose your quad!
Definitely worth the money, does not take advanced flight skills (easier to fly than stabilized helis by far), and offers about 7 to 15 minutes of flight time depending on wind, quantity of maneuvers, and charge of the battery. This is a for sure BUY IT product with good company support and excellent user contributed tips and videos.
I've been playing with little, inexpensive helicopters and planes for years and it's usually a battle to get them trimmed and learn to fly them well. This thing just plain works right out of the box. I went through the first full charge without even the slightest scare, let alone a crash. I've NEVER done that with a new rotor vehicle. It usually takes me several flights to be able to cautiously fly through a full charge. It definitely helped that I already had experience with 4 channel flying vehicles with the same control layouts and I wouldn't recommend making this your first multi-rotor toy because it is a bit spendy. But, once you've learned the controls and behavior, the Phantom is a dream to fly.
BalasHapusThe range is great. I've flown it a couple hundred yards out and that's about as far as I'd want to go because it gets hard to see at that distance. It's nice to know there's plenty of range beyond what I ever expect to use. I get about 11 minutes of flight time before the low battery light starts flashing (I keep it close to me for the last few minutes to be sure I can land safely).
The only minor quibble I have is the vibration that gets into the video. From what I've seen, this can be reduced significantly reduced with stiffer, well-balanced props. Since DJI sells this as a flying video platform, it would be nice if they included better props and vibration isolation.
This thing really is ready to go out of the box. No more than 10 screws and tightening your props, a battery charge and it starts flying. With the easy to follow online video or downloadable manual, a monkey could get this amazing quadcopter in the air. Whether you want to get great footage with a GoPro or just want to fly something that is quick an easy, this is it. Don't get me wrong, if you have no experience with RC planes or helichopters then take it slow, baby steps, to learn how to fly. The video tutorials really help with suggesting what to practice first, and once you're comfortable with those moves then suggestions on what to do next to move up to the next level of 3D flight. And the special features dream machine make losing your phantom a near impossibility. If your transmitter loses power the Phantom will literally fly back to the place it took off from using its GPS. This is one AMAZING feat of mechanics, engineering, and price tag. GO BUY ONE!!!
BalasHapusI have owned the Phantom for about 2 months now and probably have about 6 hours of total flight time under my belt and yesterday I got a little cocky with flying and lost it in the setting sun than regained sight of it as it was heading due west. I could not regain control of it and watched it fly out of view and back into the blinding sun. Turning the controller off and hoping the GPS return feature really does work was the only thing I could do. I waited a good 7 minuets for this thing to come back and finally gave up, collected my stuff and started heading back down the side of the mountain. as I started to descend I started hearing the blades of the Phantom. I quickly ran back up to the spot I launched it from, did a 360 and saw nothing. Than I looked straight up and there it was a small descending dot in the sky. I could not regain control of the Phantom with the remote so I just decided to let it do what it wants to do and land. I thought this must be what it feels like to be a gambler who lost all his rent money at a casino only to win it all back at the end of the night with a last ditch hail marry pass attempt on a penny slot machine. Seeing this thing return was one of the best happy moments I ever had over a nonliving object.
BalasHapus
BalasHapusI purchased my Phantom from DSLRPros. I had several questions regarding the product, and wound up making numerous phone calls and emails before purchasing. No matter how many times I had "just one more question", Don and his team at DSLRPros were incredibly patient, informative and responsive. I never felt pressured to make the purchase; and once I did, I was pleasantly surprised and relieved to discover their post-sale customer support was just as good as their pre-sale support! As for the Phantom itself, I am amazed by the technology in this quadcopter! For the price, I was sure that there would be some compromise, some 'amateur' or 'consumer' oriented lack of technology in exchange for ease of use, as compared to other remote control copters which cost several times this much. This is one of the few examples of a product I can think of that has managed to do both with no compromising. Having almost no experience with multirotors, I was very concerned about the prospect of flying a several hundred dollar remote control helicopter without crashing, never mind the fact that my $400 camera would be hanging from the bottom of it. I was, and still am, amazed at just how easy and fun it is to fly this thing. From the peace of mind that the GPS enabled safe-home function provides, to the Intelligent Orientation Control flight mode, which takes the guess work out of figuring out which direction the craft is facing while steering, to the GPS attitude mode, which basically provides a set of 'brakes' in mid air, allowing the craft to stop and hover in place, instead of careening off into a tree or something. I am still new to it and getting better, but my initial nervousness and trepidation has been completely replaced by fun and excitement. The only downsides I can think of is that the assistant software initially required for some functions to be enabled is for PC only. As an Apple centric household, it was a bit of a hassle to bother my neighbor to use his PC. Also, the main downer for the copter itself is the battery life. I understand that it can't hold too many or too heavy of a battery by the sheer necessity to keep weight down, but I do wish the battery life was longer than the 10 minutes or so of flight time. I will definitely be ordering a few spares from DSLRPros.... I can honestly say that DSLRPro's support and customer service is head and shoulders above any others I've dealt with on Amazon. Overall, an awesome product, and an awesome seller- a killer combination!
BalasHapus