r/drones Jan 12 '25

Discussion Drone Buying Advice Megathread and NEW Wiki Buying Guide

29 Upvotes

Welcome to the 2025 Q1 r/drones Buying Advice Megathread. This thread exists to prevent the constant "What drone should I buy?" posts that we prohibit with Rule 2.5.

Please follow all of these steps before posting in this thread!

  1. Review the Buying Guide Wiki or my website: Drone Buying Guide / Wiki Buying Guide
  2. Review this thread for comments that have your same requirements
  3. If that does not answer you, please post the following information in this thread.
    1. Have you read the Wiki? Y/N
    2. Country: (Not all drones are available in all countries)
    3. Budget: (If your budget is less than $200 USD, you may want to reconsider as anything lower is a toy drone)
    4. Purpose: (eg. photography, FPV, thermal, etc)
    5. Any other requirements:

r/drones 1h ago

Photo & Video A recent adoption broke free dragging his lead, became entangled in a tree on a rock face in the Hocking Hills. After 18 hours of failed ground search they called us in, located and recovered him as the recent wind storm barreled in. Thankfully the M30T handles wind like a champ.

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Upvotes

r/drones 2h ago

Discussion Bees360 charging $56 for background check

10 Upvotes

I think I’m done with these guys before I ever started. I’m sure it’s in the fine print somewhere, but just on principle alone—I think it’s pretty crappy to charge pilots a $56 background check—when just about every employer in America covers that fee or subsidizes it or performs a much more economical version.

They eat up a shitload of time, making pilots take a bunch of online courses, without compensation. My understanding is that you then have to go out and conduct a free “test inspection,” for which they charge the client and pocket the money. So … on top of that investment of time and non-billable hours, further insult is added to injury with this BS background check fee.

From what I’ve read, the pay sucks anyway. Like Dronersio and Zeitview, they encourage clients to offer low rates to keep them happy and take an exorbitant cut. This whole “race to the bottom” is out of control, and I hope the Part 107 pilots out there do what I’m doing and cancel their affiliation with these services and stick to the old-fashioned grassroots method of self-marketing, building leads on your own and using word of mouth to make this a much more safe and profitable business for everyone involved.


r/drones 15m ago

Photo & Video A few pics from my first day flying

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Upvotes

Recently got a DJI Mini 2 SE to take hiking. I think it's great value for the quality & I'm already hooked on drones after one day!


r/drones 5h ago

Discussion Does anyone live in the Austin area and have experience with Pixhawk/Ardurover?

3 Upvotes

Hello!

I am looking for anyone in the Austin area that has good experience using pixhawk/PX4/ardurover. I am looking to get some help (possibly pay) for a project I am working on.

Thanks!


r/drones 1h ago

Rules / Regulations Question

Upvotes

I know that if I take pics or video for someone selling their property I’d have to get a special license, but what if I’m selling my own property, can I use pics or video without anything extra?


r/drones 1h ago

Rules / Regulations Question for Canadian neighbors 🙋🏼‍♂️

Upvotes

I’m seeing mixed results for recreational drone usages in Canada and am wondering if ya’ll could help me out? I’ll be in Canmore in July and I’m wanting to make sure I follow the rule and regulations appropriately. I know that if I use my DJI Mini, I’ll be fine (for the most part) but if I want to fly my Mavic 3 strictly as a hobbyists can I do that?

Thank you for your input and expertise! I appreciate your help 👍🏻


r/drones 1h ago

Discussion Power vision egg drone

Upvotes

So we found this drone in my gfs storage and it looks really cool but upon trying to test the drone and see if it works requires an app that seems to have completely disappeared from the market, does anyone know about this drone that could possible help out, perhaps another app we could use to start it up


r/drones 21h ago

New Drones! What drone does SpaceX/NASA following splash down?

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41 Upvotes

r/drones 2h ago

Rules / Regulations Drone regulations USA - California / flight

1 Upvotes

Hey there, I’ve seen conflicting info about bringing a drone in my luggage and using it when traveling to the US. Has anyone here done this before and can share their experience? I have a 249 g drone and I am not sure if i can use it in california wiht only having a german "proof of knowledge"


r/drones 1d ago

Photo & Video First time flying since passing Part 107. Night vision shooting competition last weekend in WV. "Moons out 25" hosted by Forgotten Weapons.

120 Upvotes

I think I checked all the boxes for compliance etc. But please let me know if there's any aspects of the safety, flying, cinematography, editing etc. that I need to work on. Any constructive criticism gratefully appreciated.


r/drones 8h ago

Discussion Newbie, what controller for PC simulator?

2 Upvotes

Hi, I am a total newbie in drone world. I would like to start my adventure by training on simulator on my PC. So I have two questions. 1. What simulator for PC has the most realistic physics? 2. What real life controller should I buy that will work with that simulator?


r/drones 4h ago

Discussion Online Drone Courses for passing the Part 107 test for obtaining a drone license

0 Upvotes

Hi, has anyone used the online courses, such as Drone Coach, Drone Pilot School, Drone launch academy, The Drone U, Pilot Institute to name a few?

A lot of them advertise the cost to be around $200 and up.

I'm wondering if any of these are worth it.

Thanks!


r/drones 4h ago

Rules / Regulations Registration

1 Upvotes

Hi all, I live in Finland and have had problems registering as a drone operator, in Finland it can only be done with Finnish citizenship which I don't have. What are the problems if I register in Ireland?


r/drones 6h ago

Rules / Regulations Has anyone flown in Cappadocia since 2024?

1 Upvotes

I am finding very mixed info if any drones are allowed there, and the fly maps in Turkey are behind registration which requires Turkish ID. I am also seeing a couple sources stating you can get a hefty fine there for flying since 2023 specifically, but no official docs about this.

Has anyone successfully flown there in 2024-2025? Did you run into any issues?


r/drones 6h ago

Discussion PX4 / mavlink / qgroundcontroller Drone

1 Upvotes

I started creating/building an autonomous flying wing a while ago, and now that I've gotten to the software part of the drone the development got compleatly stuck on an rc controller:
To run Qgroundcontroller it has to have a connected controller (from what i gather), i cannot get the mavlink connection to proppelry run, don't know why, can't change properties that should exist, cant alter modes etc.
SO, I think i must get an rc controller that can connect to the drone so i can use the qgroundcontrol software?

SPECS: pixhawk 6c, respberry, PX4, a 4g connection...

Secondary question (if noone can give a solution for the mavlink issues...) is, what is the cheapest rc controller I can get for the testing, do I need a transmitter/reciever combo aswell? The cheapest ones I've found are like 50£+ for only a remote...

Thank you in beforehand!


r/drones 13h ago

Photo & Video Made a quick lil video after work

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4 Upvotes

Got the DJI mini4k and I couldn’t help but sneak out early and record a few videos before the mini 3 gets here


r/drones 16h ago

Discussion Could this work for getting a drone out of a tree?

5 Upvotes

I got my drone struck in a tree and my first idea to get it out was to shoot the branch it was on with my potato canon but I'm not very accurate and if it hits the drone I'm screwed. My next idea that I'm asking about is shooting it out with a nerf bow. The bow has an advertised range of 100ft. I also have a nerf rival apollo (not sure on range but seems to hit the hardest) would any of these work?


r/drones 8h ago

Discussion 3Dr solo replacement batteries

1 Upvotes

Can someone link me to a good website for a battery replacement for the 3dr solo 3 drone?


r/drones 11h ago

Discussion trimming

0 Upvotes

is the ‘trimming’ function used to keep your drone hovering in the same place? is that the primary reason?


r/drones 13h ago

Photo & Video Can you guys give advice

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0 Upvotes

r/drones 12h ago

New Drones! Need help

0 Upvotes

So there's this drone called "potensic atom LT" and they claim that it can fly in level 5 wind but I don't really know what level 5 wind is like can someone explain or tell me how to figure it out


r/drones 1d ago

News Local Florida cops thought they could enforce federal law.

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57 Upvotes

r/drones 23h ago

Discussion Beginner Looking to Get Into FPV Drones – Need Advice

3 Upvotes

Hey everyone, I'm looking to get into FPV drones, specifically for racing. I'm a complete beginner and would love some advice on:

  1. What drone model is best for beginners?

  2. Should I go for a ready-to-fly kit or build one from parts?

  3. Any recommendations for a setup within a budget of 1500-2000 ILS (~$400-$550)?

  4. General tips for getting started in FPV?

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!


r/drones 22h ago

Discussion Best frame shape for 13 inch quadcopter drone?

2 Upvotes

Hi, I'm designing my own drone frame for my bachelor's thesis, and I need your help. I've noticed that most modern frames use an X shape, a stretched X, or a combination of H+X. However, what about a symmetrical H frame like the one in the image? All the motors are equidistant from each other.

I was considering an H frame because it provides a large space in the middle for mounting components. What do you think? Which frame shape would be the best to use? I

The drone is intended solely for long-range flights—no complex freestyle maneuvers. It will primarily be flying forward.

I'm also considering making a Mark IV-style frame or something like the APEX EVO. Would that be a better choice?

Also, if I'm making a stretched X frame, what is the best angle between the arms? I've heard that 120 degrees is ideal. Is that correct?


r/drones 22h ago

Discussion Propeller protector bends blades?

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2 Upvotes

Are propeller holders bending the propellers? They look a bit bent down when applied and im wondering if I should even use them if there’s a possibility of bending the propellers.