Category Archives: Multirotors
Eachine Assassin 180 VR-007 HD Goggles I6
The scorpion looking Eachine Assassin 180 racing quadcopter has arrived with built-in OSD GPS NAZE32 Ready To Fly.
The 180 racing quadcopter flew really well, it handled a RunCam HD camera 43 grams with ease. I have not found any issues, no bad flight characteristics. On a Naze 32 flight controller, it was easy to maneuver and I give it a thumbs up.
If you have flown quadcopters manually, this is easy. For beginners, please note, it is not a drone, it is not going to auto land or auto return home.
Unboxing, I noticed the GPS is glued under the tail plate and actually fell off. Taking a look at the schematics, it seem to be intended to be on the front. However since I may be placing a secondary camera just above that spot, I decided to move it face up, keeping the same location it came with. I think it fits well there. You can see it on my FPV video. The GPS does not serves much, it is not intended for Auto Return Home, but just only to assist with directions…
XK Detect X380
XK Detect X380 is a budget quadcopter GPS drone, an impressive entry since the days of DJI Phantom 1-2, Walkera x350 Pro or Scoutx4 class. A large community of RC pilots have been raving about the x380, so I was asked to take it for a spin and to share my personal experience. I work for the largest RC manufacturer and have flown a variety of quadcopters the last three years. I am actually impressed how easy it is to fly this x380. Just the basic GPS functions, just enough to include RTH, Head Lock mode (Headless), Auto Take Off, Circle a Point and a dial to pitch a gimbal. All for $210!
First flight test, the Auto Take Off (just one button, perfect 3 feet high), RTH (returned a foot away from launch point), Altitude Hold (solid) and Head Lock (works).
What most people raved about, is that this quadcopter is accurate on the Return to Home and how simple it is to take-off with just one button. More importantly there are color indicators that assist you in calibrating your compass and best of all, confirms that you have calibrated correctly. This is to ensure that the Return to Home will just be as accurate on the next flight…
KAIDENG K70C Sky Warrior Quadcopter
KAIDENG K70C Sky Warrior Quadcopter. Kaideng a toy RC car and heli manufacturer is joining the quadcopter arena, entering the market place with a retractable camera holder on a sporty quadcopter.
It comes with the usual 6 axis gyro chip providing stability and the ability to toss the quadcopter and regain instant flight. With a 2.4GHz radio control frequency, this ensures better outdoor performance and longer distance within line of sight.
The Sky Worrior is Equipped with LED lights, making it more dazzling and colorful for night flying.
Headless mode assist the pilot in returning home when orientation is lost. Headless is relative to where you stand, and regardless of where the Sky Worrior is facing, a pilot can just pull back the sticks and return home…
JJRC H26 Quadcopter Review
Green, JJRC h26 quadcopter, under $70. First impression, this quadcopter looked somewhat familiar, so I went to the hangar to retrieve a few quadcopters.
Check this out. If you never knew the h26 had a carbon version, well look closely, you are right, it’s actually a Walkera Scout x4 next to it, white, green, carbon color.
Nothing like a 6 cell quadcopter, the h26 is of course very light compared to a scout x4, weighing only 380 grams. The weight advantage is the h26 is not going to break easily, when you crash it, therefore this serves well as a training quadcopter. The size is just right, and safe for beginners learning to fly. I am a fan of ultra light quadcopters, I never had any issues with gear motors, for what it is, perfect for a lightweight, and quiet for a garden flight…
MJX X800 RC Drone Hexacopter
The MJX X800 hexacopter, 6 propellers, reminds me of a miniature Tali H500 weighing only 71 grams. The x800 has a feature that differentiates itself from others, you can use the radio sticks or gravity remote like a wii motionplus. Here is a video of our day out with the MJX x800.
The gravity sensor is capable of sensing motion, imagine wii piloting. You get a good 7 minutes of flight time. We like that it is light and hardy. Flying with gravity remote is a whole new exciting experience, thumbs up to MJX R.C!
Walkera Furious 320 Racing Drone
At the Photo Expo in New York, we got a sneak peek of the prototype Tilt Rotors Fixed Pitch racing quadcopter, According to Walkera the 320 size recorded high speed can reach 120km/h, with 1700kv motors. The recommended radio to pair this racing drone is with a Devo 7 or 10, since you will need an additional channel to tilt the rotors. When the rotors are tilted forward, the quadcopter gets a boost in speed.
The battery suggested is 14.8V 2600mah to give a flight time of about 9-10 minutes. This is not the first fixed-pitch rotors that Walkera has developed, the company had gain a lot of experience when helicopters were the best sellers a few years ago. A GPS version is on the plans…
Walkera Drone VR Games Devo F18
2016 might be a great time to get those Gamers outdoor for a new challenge. We have been wondering what it would be like to bring Gamers and First Person View (FPV) Pilots in one room or rather in one field for an intense world of Virtual Reality competition. Walkera Drone VR Games are not only Virtual games, but a Reality concept that is applied to GPS Racing Drones. Pilots actually fly their GPS drones into virtual Funnel Gates or shoot on virtual targets using the new advance Devo F18 radio transmitter. See these initial tests we recorded.
If this has not caught your attention yet, I am sure it will with the AMA or FAA. First in the world, Walkera initial beta test included three Real Flight modes: Battle mode, Race mode, Classic Collecting mode. In Battle mode , FPV pilots will get on their F18 and begin an intense battle with targets. In Race mode, pilots compete on an Agility Course featuring various obstacles, funnel gates and hairpin turns…
X25-1 Space Explorer Flying Car
This Christmas a popular gift was the X-25 which can race around on the ground and take to the air when throttled up. While in the air engage the 3D Eversion System and perform stunts and flips with ease. The auto return function lets you recall the drone back to its take-off point.
While the x25 is made by SongYang, there is also a Syma X9 version out there that looks exactly the same. Syma does make really good helicopters, so that is another consideration.
JJRC H5C Mini Quadcopter
We have test piloted large scale commercial multirotors over the last 2 years and have not tested a new mini quad since our video Hubsan H107D that attracted 401,623 viewers . A lot have changed very quickly, a greater selection, more competitors have entered the market since then. So last week, a friend from GearBest.com sent us a JJRC H5C, a mini quad, a 6-axis, at 23 cm, just the size of a Tali H500 propeller, to show how mini / micro quads have progress today.
FIRST IMPRESSION is the mini quad is really light, and it floats quietly in the air. It was actually so surprisingly light. This is of course the direct outcome of the brushed motor used, old school but it fits the purpose of achieving better flight time and cost of production. The frame has a texture that felt like a recycled egg carton, but made of a strong thin plastic molding. It carries the 3.7V 500mAh rechargeable LiPo battery for 6 minutes of flight time. We tried putting a smaller Ladybird or H107D LiPo, and it worked perfectly fine…
Understanding propellers directions on multicopters
If you find your multi-copter flipping on take-off or just don’t seem to take off, the first thing to check is your propellers or motors. If your propellers are spinning on the wrong direction, the thrust might just be pushing your copter down instead of lifting it up. If you have the propellers in the same orientation next to each other, it may just topple your copter. Propeller are usually marked with the spin direction and they should match the diagram illustrated below…
