Air Tech: 10 Best Drones with Cameras

We are going to start off big by providing a review about DJI Phantom 4 from DJI, a real powerhouse in the camera drone market coming from China. They manufacture drones for a wide audience but this is a professional drone with a high-quality 4K camera. One of its main advantages is that almost anyone who has read its manual can fly it with ease. It uses a system called OSS (Obstacle Sensing System) which is implemented in order to avoid obstacles by using sensors to locate if it’s about to crash.

A nice feature goes by the name of Sport mode. When this mode is activated, the drone can move at a higher speed (up to 45 mph/72kph). If you connect first-person goggles, you can enjoy this speed from a great perspective. If you want to have complete control over your camera drone, you will need the iOS or Android application which lets you adjust various settings, view the camera, and take action. There are various smart traveling modes which use a GPS to provide the best experience.

• Easily one of the most beautiful and well-designed drones on the market.
• Simple to maneuver and it’s great for people who want to enjoy their first drone to the limit.
• Its numerous modes made us fall in love and experiment for a long time before quitting.
• You will feel a lot safer knowing that OSS will keep your drone from hitting things.

Purchase

Our second entry on the list is yet another professional model by the same company. It’s no coincidence since they specialize in this category and are hardly challenged by other brands. DJI Mavic Pro is great for traveling because it can easily be folded and carried in a small bag. There is a variety of automated flying modes which will try to make your desired activity easier and more enjoyable. Even though the drone seems casual and smaller, it delivers the same performance you would see in the more professional-looking models, such as the Phantom 4 Pro. However, its relaxed and compact design doesn’t make it any cheaper!

The camera on this drone is excellent and you can shoot 1080p videos. You can control the drone from up to 4.3 miles away (7 km). Although, since it’s pretty light, it cannot withstand strong winds as it will immediately disrupt the camera’s balance.

We love the controller since it looks just like a game console controller! However, you will have to connect your phone in order to see just what your camera is recording. You can even control the drone with your phone when you switch to Wi-Fi mode. It’s only good for short distances but it looks cool enough to take an awesome group photo!

• It’s compact and travel-friendly. You won’t have to worry too much drone space since it will fold it easily.
• Can even be operated by your smartphone for a short distance, which is awesome for some good quality photos.
• It uses the OSS system to detect a collision.
• It offers a solid battery life when compared to the competition.

Purchase

After a couple of professional camera drones for users who are willing to pay for a high-quality gadget, it’s time to review a smaller, cheaper toy drone available for people who just want to have some fun. Syma X5C’s price is very affordable and it’s a great choice some fun in your backyard. It comes with a 720p HD camera and a microSD card with 4GB of storage available.

Since it’s lightweight and built for amateurs, the resulting video can be a bit shaky. The pictures you take might be blurry from time to time. The real issue is the maximum flight duration, which is around 7-10 minutes. This means you shouldn’t go too far or get distracted because that might result in an unwanted “mayday!”. The time needed to charge the battery is 90 minutes. The batteries are very cheap and easily replaceable. All of its flaws are really not something to complain about when you find out that it’s only $50.

• All of its parts are completely replaceable and the manufacturer has even provided a guide on how to take it apart.
• It’s very cheap and it can be a fun activity for your kids as long as you are around.
• The camera is pretty decent for a toy drone and it can shoot 720p videos.
• A great choice for beginners looking to practice on cheaper models before buying their first professional camera drone.

Purchase

This is probably one of the easiest drones to simply pick up and begin your first flight. A couple of features it provides make the Ghostdrone stand out from its competition. Also, The price it goes for is lower than some of the professional models on the market by almost 50%. Note that this is not a camera drone for professional purposes even though its specifications sound awesome. However, it almost checks out every item on our extensive list of features a drone for a beginner drone.

One of the coolest features would be the VR headset which offers a first-person perspective on what the camera is currently recording. You might have a hard time controlling the drone with the headset on so we recommend you to simply have someone else enjoy the view while you control it. The camera is great; 12 megapixels with the ability to shoot up to 4K videos. There is no controller for the drone since you use your smartphone (iOS or Android) to control it by pairing it with the headset. The maximum flight duration is pretty good and it’s around 25 minutes.

• When it comes to camera drones for casual users, this is almost the perfect product.
• You can use the VR headset to enjoy everything your drone captures real-time.
• The battery can endure a full 25-minute flight, which is great for a low-priced drone like this one.
• There are some automated safety measures implemented to keep it from crashing.

Purchase

When it comes to Yuneec Typhoon H, the unique factors that stand out from the competition are some of its functions, which are originally found in camera drones at double the Typhoon’s price tag. Its design is somewhat strange and it could be compared to an insect, given the composition of its rotors and sensors. Its main features include a 360-degree rotational camera and landing gear which can be retracted. Those are the things that make it stand out from the competition with a similar price. The flying modes include Angle and Smart, and they are pretty basic since there are no automated flying modes with the GPS tracker.

There are some major issues with Yuneec Typhoon H. The random flyaways sometimes occur, causing it not to respond to the controller and it can slam into the first obstacle(yeah, that’s not good). It also struggles with one of its motors which tends to overheat. Replacement parts are actually pretty cheap but if these issues turn out to be consistent, that might be a huge issue. On the other hand, when it performs normally, it’s pretty enjoyable to use and it can take great photos. It’s somewhat expensive but the price is to be expected from a professional camera drone.

• Some of its features such as a rotating camera and operable landing gear are unique for this range of camera drones.
• The camera quality is great and it can easily shoot professional 4K videos.
• Replacement parts are cheap and can be easily found online.
• It can handle strong winds without sacrificing balance.

Purchase

Let’s review another “toy drone” manufactured by Odyssey Toys. It’s very small, to say the least, and it’s as large as your average smartphone. That’s not a bad thing. Actually, it’s one of its advantages over the other toy drones because this makes it safer to fly indoors. The quality of resulting pictures and videos are good, but it may turn out a bit blurry because the drone doesn’t have a built in camera stabilizer. Our expectations weren’t high because this drone belongs to the group of cheap drones used solely for entertainment purposes.

The camera can shoot 720p videos with a 4GB of internal microSD storage included with the Pocket Drone.  The battery life can’t be described as much of a bad thing since we don’t expect anything extraordinary from such a cheap product, but you will have to limit yourself to a 7-minute flight duration under perfect conditions. Batteries are inexpensive and can be found in any hardware store. Some of its features are really cool! Such as automatic takeoff, landing, and returning.

• Its small and compact design easily makes it one of the best toy drones available on the market.
• The small drone size means it can easily be used indoors as long as you are careful.
• The camera quality is good as long as you don’t expect to take professional shots.
• It balances at the same altitude automatically and you won’t need to control that aspect.

Purchase

We have already provided a review for DJI Phantom 4 and you might think that it’s just an upgraded version of this little beauty. However, that is far from the truth since they are obviously aimed at a different target audience. DJI Phantom 4 is aimed at professionals looking to capture the moment in the best way possible, whereas  the Phantom 3 offers a lower price but for a similar functionality. It uses GPS to provide detailed positioning mid-flight but it lacks any other positioning systems which you can find in other Phantom 3 versions such as Advanced and Professional.

The camera can shoot a 4K video at 30 frames-per-second or a 1080p @30fps but you would be amazed by the end result because the video looks very stabilized and smooth. If you are not satisfied with it, you would have to deal with it since it’s impossible to remove or replace the camera. Batteries are quite specific though. They go by the name of Intelligent Flight batteries and they might be hard to find without contacting the manufacturer. This drone can easily pass a twenty-minute flight milestone but that’s still not a long flight time for major projects.

• The resulting videos are crystal clear because of the camera’s stabilization and make it highly rated among intermediate users.
• Phantom 3 Standard features an Intelligent Flight Mode which is usually found in more professional models of the DJI company.
• The price is amazing for the functionality  you get. You will have a hard time finding a better bargain if you are not able to sacrifice performance.

Purchase

Let’s take a look at another beginner-friendly camera drone which looks and feels very simple. At first glance, it looks like a flying security camera. The Parrot Bebop definitely looks like an enemy drone you would see in a movie as a villain ship.  The Bebop offers various improvements from the original Bebop drone which didn’t achieve major commercial success.

The drone is controlled by a smartphone or tablet application so there is no controller provided. You might feel that this is easy, but operating a real drone on a touch screen can feel a bit tricky from time to time. The drone is very lightweight and easy to carry around, meaning you won’t hesitate to find space when  taking it on a family trip. The camera can be slightly tilted and it can cover 180 degrees of the area in front of it. You are also limited to an 8GB of internal storage which cannot be expanded.

• A quality toy drone for beginners who are not willing to pay extra for perfect results.
• It feels strong and reinforced, providing twice the battery capacity of its predecessor. However, you are still only going to get around 20 minutes of flight time.
• Replacement parts are made available by the manufacturer.
  Videos are stable, you can see the result on your mobile device immediately.

Purchase

As you can see from the name, the Chroma camera drone uses a 4K camera. The drone itself is quite small and its size can be compared to the DJI Phantom 3 Standard. Any user can easily break it down into smaller pieces, put it in a backpack. The controller provided has a built-in touch screen for a live feed of the drone’s camera. This means you won’t have to rely on your smart device to have a first-person view of what is going on(like many of it’s competitors).

Some of the modes provided include a Smart mode where you can simply push the analog stick in the direction you want the drone to move in. It’s a great mode for beginners since it does not allow the drone to fly away from you. If you are using the smart mode, there are two additional modes to switch between: Follow Me and Tracking. These modes will make the drone follow you around and the main difference between them is that the Tracking mode will always have the controller in the camera’s frame.

When you exit the Smart Mode, you can actually fly it with the Angle mode. The final mode is called Home and it represents the drone’s return-to-home feature. Just make sure there are no obstacles in between you.

• The drone is portable.
• The controller is pretty much everything you need to operate it since it has an operational touch screen attached.
• Modes such as Follow Me and Tracking are awesome and can lead to some very creative content.

Purchase

You might have noticed that DJI keeps returning to our list every once in a while. That’s because they are the leading camera drone manufacturing company in the world. The DJI Inspire 1 is a advanced drone for professional purposes. Funny enough, it comes with a price tag suitable for those with deep pockets. The resolution of its built-in camera is nothing less than 4K with a smooth video quality and great stabilization. Even if that doesn’t sound good enough, you can replace it yourself with your own personal camera.

The Inspire 1 looks terrific and frightening at the same time. It’s somewhat larger than other drones on our list but still a bit slim. The camera can be rotated 360 degrees and can be tilted 125 degrees. This is one of its greatest feature since you can simply turn the camera with the drone standing still. It uses both GPS and GLONASS (Russian positioning system) to provide the best positioning feedback available. However, its battery life is not that great and you can only hope to receive around 18 minutes of flight time under perfect conditions.

• There are some great flight modes to test out such as a waypoint navigations system or the well-known Follow Me.
• The video quality is almost unmatched and it can even be improved by third-party cameras of your choice.
• If you use two controllers, one person can control the camera while the other controls the flight.

Purchase