Of the dozens of drones aimed at the aspiring aerial photographer/videographer, the $1,300 DJI Phantom 2 Vision+ is the one we recommend for most people, as it’s the only one that is easy to control while having great battery life and range, terrific safety features, and a smartphone app that lets you preview your on-drone camera for photography and piloting ease.
It was the obvious favorite going into this guide due to its numerous editorial accolades and positive user reviews, so I tried my best to find something better. But after over 25 hours of research, 10 hours of interviews with experts, and half a day of hands-on testing against its closest competition (on top of over 100 previous drone flights of my own), I had to agree with the crowd. Nothing comes close to the Phantom 2 Vision+. Its combination of ease-of-use and advanced features simply can’t be matched by anything currently available.
In addition to being easy to fly, the V+ comes equipped with a relatively high-quality camera that’s almost as good as the GoPro Hero 3+ (rare), a three-plane gimbal for image stabilization (rare), and a Wi-Fi extender that gives you the ability to see real-time stats and what you’re shooting from over 2,000 feet away on a smartphone you mount to your radio controller (also rare). It also has pre-programmed flight controls tailored to beginners and advanced pilots, a standout 2,000-foot range, a battery that lasts a stellar 25 minutes instead of the usual 12, the ability to fly autonomously (thanks to a recently announced Ground Station function), and the standard safety setting that prompts the drone to return to the launch pad if it loses connection with the radio transmitter.
In other words, it’s exactly what you’d want, expect, and need from a camera drone.
You can get most of these features on other drones if you have the technical know-how and are willing to figure things out, tools in hand, but unless you’re into tinkering for tinkering’s sake, it’s just not worth the time.
$1,300 sounds like a lot of money, but the Phantom 2 Vision+ (henceforth referred to as the “V+”) is a surprisingly great value if you run the numbers: in order to get similar capabilities from a cheaper drone using aftermarket parts, you’d have to spend over $1,500 and futz with the inside wiring of your drone. And you’d still wind up with lesser capabilities.
That said, $1,300 is a lot of money to spend on a thing that you could crash on its maiden voyage. If you’re unfamiliar with how to fly drones or just need to fine tune your skills (and who doesn’t), we highly suggest getting a cheapo trainer drone before putting your $1,300 investment aloft. For that, we recommend the highly-touted $90 Blade Nano QX. It’s essentially a palm-sized quadcopter without the camera and fancy features like GPS-assisted position hold.
If you’re already confused by the terms in this guide, we’ve got you covered with a glossary.1 We explain any technical terms we use, but other sites don’t; we definitely recommend keeping it handy if you’re planning on clicking through to our sources.
In addition to being easy to fly, the V+ comes equipped with a relatively high-quality camera that’s almost as good as the GoPro Hero 3+ (rare), a three-plane gimbal for image stabilization (rare), and a Wi-Fi extender that gives you the ability to see real-time stats and what you’re shooting from over 2,000 feet away on a smartphone you mount to your radio controller (also rare). It also has pre-programmed flight controls tailored to beginners and advanced pilots, a standout 2,000-foot range, a battery that lasts a stellar 25 minutes instead of the usual 12, the ability to fly autonomously (thanks to a recently announced Ground Station function), and the standard safety setting that prompts the drone to return to the launch pad if it loses connection with the radio transmitter.
In other words, it’s exactly what you’d want, expect, and need from a camera drone.
You can get most of these features on other drones if you have the technical know-how and are willing to figure things out, tools in hand, but unless you’re into tinkering for tinkering’s sake, it’s just not worth the time.
$1,300 sounds like a lot of money, but the Phantom 2 Vision+ (henceforth referred to as the “V+”) is a surprisingly great value if you run the numbers: in order to get similar capabilities from a cheaper drone using aftermarket parts, you’d have to spend over $1,500 and futz with the inside wiring of your drone. And you’d still wind up with lesser capabilities.That said, $1,300 is a lot of money to spend on a thing that you could crash on its maiden voyage. If you’re unfamiliar with how to fly drones or just need to fine tune your skills (and who doesn’t), we highly suggest getting a cheapo trainer drone before putting your $1,300 investment aloft. For that, we recommend the highly-touted $90 Blade Nano QX. It’s essentially a palm-sized quadcopter without the camera and fancy features like GPS-assisted position hold.
If you’re already confused by the terms in this guide, we’ve got you covered with a glossary.1 We explain any technical terms we use, but other sites don’t; we definitely recommend keeping it handy if you’re planning on clicking through to our sources.
