Let’s face it, drones are cool.
Military style equipment that you can fly around to see the world from the skies above? Cool. Aerial photography without having to board a plane? Cool. Feeling like a futuristic superhero? Cool. Spying on your neighbours? Not so cool.
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Either way, the problem is drones is that they’re expensive. And as an expensive hobby, you’re going to need to fork out a trunk-full of cash to afford the queens of the skies. But, if you don’t have R1.5-million to spend, we’ve hunted down a few budget friendly drones, so you can be cool without being broke.
Here are three notable options available in South Africa.
shoX Raptor Plus | R999.90
Yes, the brand you most probably know for its Bluetooth speakers also has a line of drones. The shoX Raptor plus looks quite edgy, yet fun and comes in a black or camo skin.
Features include:
- First-person view from a 480p video camera
- A smartphone mount
- 2.4GHz control frequency with 50m range
- It can also perform “acrobatic flips”
Voyager A10 Cyclone Drone | R1299
This bright orange device had a more conservative design, but still looks covertly cool.
Features include:
- A 2MP camera capable of 720p video
- An operational range of 50 to 80m
- A flight Time of around seven minutes
DJI Tello Drone | R 1999
With a much more serious look, and a slightly more serious price this drone looks somewhat futuristic and fresh.
Features include:
- A 5MP camera can record 720p video
- An Intel processor
- It’s programmable via the Scratch SDK
- Controls via the Tello smartphone app
- Compatibility with Bluetooth controllers
- A flight time of around 13 minutes
If you’re looking for something a lot cheaper however, you may have to sacrifice the dream of a built-in camera.
Feature image: DJI
