I’ve spent a lot of time researching and flying drones and drone gear. These items are battle-tested and can be recommended without any issues.
To be clear though, I’m not always recommending the high-end version of everything. My goal here is just to provide you with a great toolkit for all the gear you might be considering by showing you reasonably priced and still high-quality recommendations.
Best Drones
Beginner Drones
These drones are the type of thing you’d buy if you’re testing the water or seriously just want a toy drone. They’re nothing that you would ever consider using professionally but they do provide you with the huge benefit of teaching you the controls of your drone. I’m convinced that a lot of drone pilots (even Part 107 pilots) rely almost entirely on the smart systems of their drone and this means they aren’t really competent pilots.
When I was getting my pilot’s license, I learned to fly on a Garmin G1000. It’s a full glass cockpit and included autopilot and a lot of features that typically don’t come on a small, two-seat aircraft. The downside is that pilots like me could tend to rely too much on the instruments and just not learned to fly well. So, they took steps to remedy that and make sure that I actually learned to fly. I think the same thing applies here. Buy a toy drone first and use it to learn to fly.
Cheerwing Syma X5SW
This Cheerwing Syma X5SW (Amazon Affiliate link) drone is first on my list because it’s basically an upgraded version of the Syma drone I first bought back in 2015. These Syma drones are great first purchases because they are really cheap (typically under $40-45), they come with prop guards so you can even practice in the house and this one even comes with a cell phone holder. I can’t vouch for the video playback, but Syma claims that it will relay video via an app on your cell phone. Another great thing about these Syma drones is that the controls are SUPER sensitive, which at first may sound like a drawback. But if you can learn to control the Syma using these sensitive controls, a larger drone with adjustable controls will be a piece of cake later on. This drone is also so light that it falls below the FAA’s requirements to register (.55 lbs).
It does have a super short flying time, coming in at about 5 to 7 minutes. So make your time count. And the time between charges is about 90 to 120 minutes. You can control this drone out to about 50 meters (about 150 feet). It would be worth buying a few extra batteries here (Amazon Affiliate Link).
Syma X5C
Next on my list is my first drone purchase, the Syma X5C (Amazon Affilliates link). This drone is a lot like the Cheerwing listed above, but does not have the capability to transmit video to your phone while flying. No worries, the video that you get isn’t great quality and this drone is really just for practice. Like the other drones in this section, the flight time is pretty limited. You may want to grab an extra battery or two while you’re at it.
Like the Cheerwing, the flight time here is only about 7 minutes and a battery charge time of about 100 minutes. Might be worth it to get some extra batteries (Amazon Affiliate Link) so you can fly longer.
Holy Stone HS170
Finally, let’s take a look at the Holy Stone HS170 Predator Mini. While I don’t have any personal experience with this drone, it still shows as highly rated (for small, toy drones) and provides roughly the same control distance as the Syma drones above with about half of the charging time. Personally, I think the charge time would be worth it, just so you could get more practice in. You can even get a couple of additional batteries and keep it under $50.
This drone has a flight time of about 6 to 8 minutes and takes about 45 minutes to an hour to recharge. Again, its probably worth it to buy a few extra batteries (Amazon Affiliate Link) with this one. Like the Syma drones above, it can be controlled out to about 30-50 meters (90-150 feet).
Hobby Drones
DJI Mavic Mini
DJI touts this drone as the “everyday fly cam,” which is pretty much what it is. It’s super small, weighing in at 249 grams (Yes, this means if you’re flying it recreationally, you don’t need to register it). When it’s folded up, its smaller than most DSLR cameras. You can get a DJI Mavic Mini here (Amazon Affiliate Link).
It comes with a lot of the features you’re looking for in a DJI drone without a huge price tag. It’s got a 3-axis gimbal, 2.7K camera, 30 minute flight time, vision sensors, and GPS precision hovering. It also has a number of smart “Quickshot” modes that help you achieve some more complex shots with automatic presets.
It also has this charging base (Amazon Affiliate Link) that’s got a glass dome around it, which looks pretty sweet when its charging because its got an LED ring around the base that lights up. And the batteries are pretty cheap (Amazon Affiliate Link) in comparison to the Spark.
DJI Spark
While the camera on the DJI Spark (Amazon Affiliate link) is 12 megapixels and actually has a 4K sensor, the drone itself only shoots in 1080p. This is because DJI has chosen to use some software tricks to stabilize the video instead of the gimbal. that said, 1080p is still considered full HD and image/video quality is perfectly acceptable for a hobbyist pilot. The version of the Spark that I’d recommend if you choose to go this route would be the one with the controller. It’s very similar to the controller that comes with the Mavic Pro minus a few features. Overall, this is a very solid drone for the price, just know that the others on this list would be better choices for a bit more money.
Flight time on this drone is about 16 minutes, which is a significant upgrade from the toy drones listed above but it still leaves some room for improvement or you can buy some extra batteries. But at the cost of additional batteries (Amazon Affiliate Link), you’re probably better off buying a DJI Mavic Mini (see above). This drone has a top speed of 31 miles per hour and you can control it up to 1.2 miles away.
Prosumer Drones
DJI Phantom 4 Pro V2
Okay, so this drone took about five minutes to become my very favorite. And to be really honest, when we were looking to purchase a second drone, I was not interested in getting a Phantom 4 Pro You can get a Phantom 4 Pro V2 here (Amazon Affiliate Link).
I felt like it was too big and I just didn’t see why it should be the one. Fast forward to now, it is largely the only drone we use. I LOVE this drone. In fact, I’ll go so far as to say that it is my favorite drone. Ever. It is super easy to fly and on a sunny day with a set of ND filters, it takes fantastically smooth footage. It has a mechanical shutter, which at this point is still superior to any electronic shutter (I recognize this is probably a controversial statement to some people but I think it’s accurate).
This drone has a 30 minutes battery life, can fly at a range of 4.3 miles and includes a 1-inch sensor. Max speed of 45 miles per hour and it weights about 3 pounds. Honestly, the battery life alone is a testament to the improvement in battery technology over the last few years.
If you don’t want to spring for the V2, that’s fine. Honestly, there’s not a big difference between the original Phantom 4 Pro and the V2. The V2 weighs a few grams less, changes the logo color back to the original gold and has newly designed propellers that reduce the noise. But that’s basically it. If you can find a used Phantom 4 Pro that’s in good condition, I’d say go for it.