Author: Top Gun

Syma X51 Spaceship Quadcopter is a unique quadcopter design, looking like a USS Enterprise. At first glance you may think it is a tricopter, but taking a closer look, it is a quadcopter with a pair of counter-rotating propellers at one end, stack above each other in a spheroid cage. We will take it for a test and report on it next week.

There is nothing to assemble, it is truly ready-to-fly. Very stable in flight for a unique design. The pair of counter-rotating props allows the quadcopter to yaw around quickly but banking on a turn is not at all pretty. The 6-axis flight control system allows you to toss the X51 in the air and stabilize in flight. We flew it indoors and outdoors. We manage to fly the X51 against 10 mph wind gust, even though you may find the X51 occasionally gets pivot around, as it is counting on the pair of hind rotors to keep it on track and will pivot around the spheroid rotors with a gust of wind. Every aircraft we have flown has it’s unique characteristic, after two flights we begin to maneuver around with yaw stick. So if you are not big on your rudder stick, you will soon adapt to it…

Continue reading Syma X51 Spaceship Quadcopter

XK Aircam X500. XK has done it again with the 0.5m deviation Return Home (RTH), now with a budget 500 size quadcopter GPS drone, an impressive entry since the days of DJI Phantom 2, and Walkera Tali H500 class. A large community of RC pilots have been raving about the sibling x380 size, can now move up the next size, 500mm wheel base

Head Lock Mode:
I have never used to be a fan of Intelligent Orientation Control aka Head Lock mode, but have begun to appreciate it as alternate way to return home without GPS. Using compass, forward is forward, backward is pulling back, left is left, right is right, regardless of which direction the aircraft is facing. However, Head Lock mode is relative to where you are standing during take off, so if you decide to walk across the street and face the opposite way, you may just get confused with the direction you need to face…

Continue reading XK X500 Aircam

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…

Continue reading XK Detect X380

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…

Continue reading KAIDENG K70C Sky Warrior Quadcopter

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…

Continue reading JJRC H26 Quadcopter Review