Best Drones and Quadcopters with 4k Camera
1. DJI Mavic Pro
Price: $999.00
We love DJI’s Mavic Pro drone. It’s compact, powerful, extremely maneuverable and offers more than 25 minutes of flight time, a top speed of over 40 miles per hour and the ability to handle a wide range of autonomous flight patterns. The Mavic Pro even be controlled purely through hand gesture coordination. DJI has also given the Mavic Pro an integrated 4K camera and the capacity for being flown entirely via the company’s mobile device app, thus eliminating the need for a controller if you don’t feel like the extra spending. This little drone is simply the perfect holiday gift to anyone who loves UAV technology.
2. DJI Phantom 4 Quadcopter
Price: $1,024.00
Meet the new flagship in the best-selling DJI Phantom line of consumer UAV drones. The Phantom 4 takes all the best specs found in the excellent Phantom 3 and adds a wider array of new automated flight, navigation and recording features to the mix for superb performance in the sky. Featuring a built-in and truly high quality gimbal-mounted 4K video recording camera with excellent high resolution still photo specs, the Phantom 4 is not only easy to use but designed to be as crash-proof as possible while still delivering maximal aerial flexibility. What’s more, this particular drone is priced to sell if you factor in the quality of recording equipment that comes integrated with the base model. 4096 X 2160 pixel True 4K video at 30 fps and 12 megapixel still photos are just two of the many reasons to go for the Phantom 4.v v
3. Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4k Camera Drone
Price: $799.00
The Typhoon Q500 is the latest drone offering from Yuneec. With a completely new design from its predecessor, this sexy drone offers high performance and stunning 4K video and photo capabilities. It has a rotating gimbal mounted camera for 115 degrees of view, which makes it an incredibly versatile drone. It can rise at 6.5 feet per second, fly at 18 miles per hour, reach a maximum height of 1,968.5 feet and can fly for 25 minutes without recharging depending on the conditions. Its camera has a 4K ultra HD resolution at 3840 x 2160 for video, Full HD at up to 120 fps and up to 12 megapixels for photos.
4. 3DR Solo Drone Quadcopter
Price: $364.68
SDR may not have the same brand recognition as DJI but this doesn’t stop their new Solo drone from being a consumer UAV that can easily give the bestselling Phantom drones a serious run for their money. Offering some superbly versatile intelligent automated flying capabilities, excellent and easy-to-learn navigation controls and a very versatile flight control app for connectable mobile device screens, the Solo is probably the best existing alternative choice to the Phantom 4 on the current market. What’s more, this drone simply looks damn cool with a sleek black body and tough glass-reinforced rotor design.
5. Chroma Flight-Ready Drone with Stabilized CGO3 4K Camera
Price: $1,099+
If you’re looking for an easy way to jump into the exciting world of 4K aerial photography, this Chroma package has everything you need. -Captures smooth, steady aerial video in stunning 4K definition -No-distortion camera lens eliminates fisheye effect -Easy to fly – no experience necessary -Everything in one box -30 minute flight times (Dependent on flying style and/or wind conditions.) -Advanced SAFE Plus technology
Unmanned aerial vehicles, also known as quadcopters or even more
simply, just drones have become all the rage in recent years. As they’ve
become more popular, two other things have happened at the same time:
First, the price of these drones has dropped while their quality and range of features keeps growing and second, the range of different models has expanded by quite a bit with a couple of companies dominating much of the drone market segment we’re focusing on here (small UAV quadcopter drones).
Currently, not only can you get your hands on an awesome little drone for less than $2000 and in some cases even less than $1,000, you can also now go out and buy a drone that really comes decked out with all sorts of video, photo and wireless connectivity specs. Furthermore, the battery life of these machines is getting to be pretty decent, even though it still has a long way to go before it can deliver an hour of time in the air.
Here we’re going to give you a sort of brief introduction to the drone market and we’re going to focus particularly on the kind of drones that naturally appeal most to our website – small quadcopter UAVs that are available to the consumer market, equipped with onboard cameras and in the lower cost price range of such devices. There are other drones on the market, some costing tens of thousands of dollars, but we’re not going to discuss them for now.
4K Drones, the Best of the Bunch
The dominant players in the 4K drones for sale market today are DJI and Yuneec. Both companies have at least a couple of models of small, mainly plastic bodies and remote controlled quadcopters in their product lineup and both companies sell models with built-in 4K video camera and high resolution photo shooting capacity.
There are also of course a range of other miniature drones of assorted sizes and shapes being sold by other manufacturers such as Parrot, Dromida, Turbo Ace and others but DJI and Yuneec are currently the only companies that that build their own completely ready-made 4K drones with built-in ultra HD cameras mounted on stabilizing gimbals.
You can of course install a small Full HD or UHD action camera on just about any drone you like and even build your own DIY mounting bracket but for best shooting results, the pre-built gimbaled models by Yuneec and DJI are for, now at least, the kings of the crop in this regard.
Three particularly powerful models among these two players (all of which we’ll be reviewing in the coming days) consist of:
The DJI Phantom 3 Professional Quadcopter Drone with 4K UHD Video Camera
The DJI T600 1 Quadcopter with 4k Video Camera with Dual Controllers
The Yuneec Q500 4K Quadcopter APV with CGO3 Camera
And finally, the Q500+ Typhoon Quadcopter with Aluminum Case, Free 32 GB Micro SD Card and Handheld CGO SteadyGrip Gimbal camera
Each of the above drones has a range of its own distinct features, specs and extras but some of the essentials that they all share in common between each other and among most other drones consist of the following:
Price: $999.00
We love DJI’s Mavic Pro drone. It’s compact, powerful, extremely maneuverable and offers more than 25 minutes of flight time, a top speed of over 40 miles per hour and the ability to handle a wide range of autonomous flight patterns. The Mavic Pro even be controlled purely through hand gesture coordination. DJI has also given the Mavic Pro an integrated 4K camera and the capacity for being flown entirely via the company’s mobile device app, thus eliminating the need for a controller if you don’t feel like the extra spending. This little drone is simply the perfect holiday gift to anyone who loves UAV technology.
2. DJI Phantom 4 Quadcopter
Price: $1,024.00
Meet the new flagship in the best-selling DJI Phantom line of consumer UAV drones. The Phantom 4 takes all the best specs found in the excellent Phantom 3 and adds a wider array of new automated flight, navigation and recording features to the mix for superb performance in the sky. Featuring a built-in and truly high quality gimbal-mounted 4K video recording camera with excellent high resolution still photo specs, the Phantom 4 is not only easy to use but designed to be as crash-proof as possible while still delivering maximal aerial flexibility. What’s more, this particular drone is priced to sell if you factor in the quality of recording equipment that comes integrated with the base model. 4096 X 2160 pixel True 4K video at 30 fps and 12 megapixel still photos are just two of the many reasons to go for the Phantom 4.v v
3. Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4k Camera Drone
Price: $799.00
The Typhoon Q500 is the latest drone offering from Yuneec. With a completely new design from its predecessor, this sexy drone offers high performance and stunning 4K video and photo capabilities. It has a rotating gimbal mounted camera for 115 degrees of view, which makes it an incredibly versatile drone. It can rise at 6.5 feet per second, fly at 18 miles per hour, reach a maximum height of 1,968.5 feet and can fly for 25 minutes without recharging depending on the conditions. Its camera has a 4K ultra HD resolution at 3840 x 2160 for video, Full HD at up to 120 fps and up to 12 megapixels for photos.
4. 3DR Solo Drone Quadcopter
Price: $364.68
SDR may not have the same brand recognition as DJI but this doesn’t stop their new Solo drone from being a consumer UAV that can easily give the bestselling Phantom drones a serious run for their money. Offering some superbly versatile intelligent automated flying capabilities, excellent and easy-to-learn navigation controls and a very versatile flight control app for connectable mobile device screens, the Solo is probably the best existing alternative choice to the Phantom 4 on the current market. What’s more, this drone simply looks damn cool with a sleek black body and tough glass-reinforced rotor design.
5. Chroma Flight-Ready Drone with Stabilized CGO3 4K Camera
Price: $1,099+
If you’re looking for an easy way to jump into the exciting world of 4K aerial photography, this Chroma package has everything you need. -Captures smooth, steady aerial video in stunning 4K definition -No-distortion camera lens eliminates fisheye effect -Easy to fly – no experience necessary -Everything in one box -30 minute flight times (Dependent on flying style and/or wind conditions.) -Advanced SAFE Plus technology
First, the price of these drones has dropped while their quality and range of features keeps growing and second, the range of different models has expanded by quite a bit with a couple of companies dominating much of the drone market segment we’re focusing on here (small UAV quadcopter drones).
Currently, not only can you get your hands on an awesome little drone for less than $2000 and in some cases even less than $1,000, you can also now go out and buy a drone that really comes decked out with all sorts of video, photo and wireless connectivity specs. Furthermore, the battery life of these machines is getting to be pretty decent, even though it still has a long way to go before it can deliver an hour of time in the air.
Here we’re going to give you a sort of brief introduction to the drone market and we’re going to focus particularly on the kind of drones that naturally appeal most to our website – small quadcopter UAVs that are available to the consumer market, equipped with onboard cameras and in the lower cost price range of such devices. There are other drones on the market, some costing tens of thousands of dollars, but we’re not going to discuss them for now.
4K Drones, the Best of the Bunch
The dominant players in the 4K drones for sale market today are DJI and Yuneec. Both companies have at least a couple of models of small, mainly plastic bodies and remote controlled quadcopters in their product lineup and both companies sell models with built-in 4K video camera and high resolution photo shooting capacity.
There are also of course a range of other miniature drones of assorted sizes and shapes being sold by other manufacturers such as Parrot, Dromida, Turbo Ace and others but DJI and Yuneec are currently the only companies that that build their own completely ready-made 4K drones with built-in ultra HD cameras mounted on stabilizing gimbals.
You can of course install a small Full HD or UHD action camera on just about any drone you like and even build your own DIY mounting bracket but for best shooting results, the pre-built gimbaled models by Yuneec and DJI are for, now at least, the kings of the crop in this regard.
Three particularly powerful models among these two players (all of which we’ll be reviewing in the coming days) consist of:
The DJI Phantom 3 Professional Quadcopter Drone with 4K UHD Video Camera
The DJI T600 1 Quadcopter with 4k Video Camera with Dual Controllers
The Yuneec Q500 4K Quadcopter APV with CGO3 Camera
And finally, the Q500+ Typhoon Quadcopter with Aluminum Case, Free 32 GB Micro SD Card and Handheld CGO SteadyGrip Gimbal camera
Each of the above drones has a range of its own distinct features, specs and extras but some of the essentials that they all share in common between each other and among most other drones consist of the following:
- Camera mounts, usually on a stabilizing gimbal
- Remote control capacity with a viewing screen that delivers a live HD feed via WiFi or NFC (In the case of DJI’s drones, this is actually available via a downloadable app that you install on a smartphone while Yuneec’s drones offer a built-in HD screen on their controllers)
- An electric motor powered by rechargeable batteries
- A high resolution photo and video camera, in the case of the above, a 4K video camera but other drone makers do install their own HD cameras or at least offer mounts to which you can install a mini-cam of your choice, such as the GoPro Hero 3 or 4, both of which are also 4K video cameras.
- Price tags that sit in the middle between $1000 and $2000 USD, depending on specific model and other accessories you decide to buy.
- Other Drone Options
Of course, as we already said, the above 4K drones certainly aren’t the end all and be all of consumer drone technology, they’re just some of the best available at delivering superb ultra HD 4K video and also shooting spectacular high resolution images of 16 megapixels or possibly more.
You can also get your hands on considerably more affordable models from DJI or Yuneec themselves. Some of these models cost well below $1000 but normally come only with HD cameras built into them. There are also more affordable drones like the $750 3D Robotics’ Iris on the market and even some extremely affordable introductory and very tiny drones with very basic features, such as the $80 Blade Nano QX which is just one of the available drones for sale.
These highly affordable little models have one major benefit too: It’s a lot better to learn to fly a drone (and possibly crash it right into a lake or cliff) when it costs less than $500 than it is to perform your first flights on a $1500 4K drone like the DJI Phantom 3.
If you don’t buy a drone with a built-in camera (all of the brands from Yuneec and DJI that we listed above already come with their own 4K or HD cameras), you can also simply buy your own action camera and mount it to the compatible drone of your choice. Some excellent and very light-weight examples of HD/4K cameras are the entire GoPro line of action cameras with a particular recommendation of the GoPro 3 and GoPro 4 action cameras due to their superb HD video, 4K video and photo shooting capacities.
Some Crucial Tips to Flying your first Drone
Watch for regulations
Drone flying isn’t treated equally everywhere in the eyes of police and local or regional governments. While some jurisdictions don’t regulate little battery-powered drones like the one’s we’re discussing at all, other places consider them as certifiable aircraft and require permits for aerial flight!
In the U.S, for example, the FAA’s federal rules across the country stipulate that any personal drone must stay below 400 feet above ground and avoid coming within 3 miles of any airport or real air traffic like passenger liners and government aircraft.
These laws are taken seriously by authorities so always investigate the local rules for the state, region or country you live in.
Extra Equipment
All drones have a whole range of accessories you could easily buy to make them perform even better. For bare-bones drones with no camera or gimbal, you’ll end up having no choice but to spend a lot more after buying the drone itself if you want to film any really solid aerial video or photo footage.
However, even with ready-made drone packages like those that come with the DJI and Yuneec drones we’ve mentioned, optional extras like spare batteries, enhanced video transmitters, downloadable HD feed viewing apps or even LCD goggles are possible sources of extra spending.
Video and Photography
There are far, far too many video and photo shooting tips for drones available to cover here. We’ll have to go in depth on a whole range of them in a future blog post on 4K.com but for now, the following are some very basic tips you should follow for video and photo shooting:
- Stick to smaller photo or video cameras with remote control ability. Larger cameras will only weigh your drone down and make it clumsier
- Avoid telephoto lenses. They can pick up drag from the wind and cause your drone to get knocked about or even to lose control in the air. The smaller the lens, the better.
- Go for the fastest lenses you can get your hands on for photo shooting. A professional f/2.9 zoom lens or a fixed-focal length lens are both ideal choices.
- Fast shutter speeds are also ideal for photo lenses .A great example of this would be a 1/1,000 second speed at 200mm in your lens, at least if you want to ensure fast shooting.
- For the simplest route to moving right into aerial 4K or HD video shooting, simply go for a full drone package with camera and gimbal included. Doing so will save you lots of assembly hassle and might even end up being cheaper in the long run.
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