I am considering including a DJI Phantom to my heli line up. something that is more discrete when needed, smaller for tighter situations, can pack along on a trip easier etc.etc. I thought the DJI Phantom would be a good choice because of the good gimbal and other add on options. Is there anything else I should be considering? Through searches I saw mention of a FreeFly micro quad but I haven't seen anything about it since 2012
Some people seem to be getting lovely results with the Phantom and a brushless gimbal of some kind. DJI's gimbal is good, and probably a nice match for the Phantom. I'd avoid the new Phantom Vision, as I'm not sure that its camera is as good as the GoPro, although that setup is less expensive.
yeah, after a little looking I think the older phantom is a better choice and gives options for newer gimbal or camera upgrades in the future.
At the high end of the spectrum is the TBS Discovery Pro. It'll cost you a fair bit more, but it's a far more professional setup, is more flexible, and better-supported.
Hi Tyler, We are getting very good results with the Zenmuse H3-2D gimbal for GoPro. The Phantom is a good vehicle for this payload with flight times ~6-8min. If you need more endurance and don't mind a slightly larger form factor then check out the Flamewheel F550: https://www.quadrocopter.com/F550-Flame-Wheel-RTF-Package_p_814.html Greetings, Adam
Those 550s are a good in between or even a 450. Thats what I use for GoPro. Of course mine is a frankenstein I am flying with Ardupilot on it. I bought it origionally to be test bird and training platform Although considering a NAZA light. My 550 flew my canon vixia fairly well. Not a bad little frame for tight shots. I found out recently a a Phantom and a GoPro was used on an actual feature set here in Albuquerque to follow a car at high speeds under several tight overpasses downtown where a large bird might not have been ideal.
How does a Flame Wheel F450 compare to the Phantom. It seems the F450 would carry the same gimbal and set-up. The flame wheel appears to be about 10cm wider, so not quite as compact for easy travel, but perhaps more easily modified for other battery use or fpv and more robust?!
It is 10 cm longer. And it probably does not handle water as well as the phantom or crash into a New York sky crapper 5 times before finally crashing 400 feet down Shaun
I built a Cinestar4 that flys my gopro. I also have a phantom. I like the cinestar4 over the phantom. 280mm booms. 2814s 710kv, 1447 APC SFs, Naza2, 40A optos, brushless gimbal stuck out on its own boom. No blades/booms in shot. Quiet. A nice spare parts copter for my Cinestar8. Does a lot better in wind than phantom. Everything can be used as spare parts on Cinestar8 except short booms.
I 2nd that, I'd love to see that too We currently use a Flamewheel 450 with the go pro and zenmuse gimbal and get great results for such a tiny machine. I think I prefer it to the Phantom as it has more flexibility in terms of upgrades and it's not as susceptible to wind as the Phantom. Saying that, we have just converted a CX 4 to a coax and it's rock steady, weighs only 2.6kg and can take a 1kg payload so that means a pocket black magic with a 2 axis direct drive gimbal so I might be switching to that as my small machine of choice Kat
There is this frame. Its a DJI Knockoff Flamewheel, but its a 330 vs 450. http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__28172__F330_Glass_Fiber_Mini_Quadcopter_Frame_330mm.html
I'm also building a flame wheel 550 hex with my QC motors and 12 inch props on 6S. It should be a nice small hex for a 3ax gimbal and my BMPCC
That's pure genius. I especially like the 1/2 landing gear legs. Why not...they need to support 1/2 the weight, right?