Posts tagged: Drones for travellers

If you are a professional traveler or even an amateur one, what everyone loves to do is take pictures and videos of the landscape they are seeing or the places they are visiting. Mostly, to keep those pictures as memories of the experiences you have had. And for that one of the best things you can get is the best drones for travel vloggers. 

However, with the increasing trend of travel bloggers/vloggers. People now need top-notch shots to present them to the viewers to influence them and show them the beauty of places they could visit
on Earth. And for having those extra points you will need the best travel drone.

Now, looking at things from your eye level looks good, but having a full view from the upside gives a different touch to the picture and videos. If you know how to use and control the traveling drone and have experience in aerial photography/videography then all you need is to find reliable and best drones for travel vloggers.

In the list below we will discuss some of the best travel drones that will give you a satisfactory experience. Drones without cameras do not cost a lot that often. But others can cost a lot, especially the high-end drones, but they will provide you with a reliable and satisfying experience.

Drone these days features all the modes that make piloting the drones easier, even for beginners. Therefore, keeping an eye out for these user-assistant features will only make your experience better.

Features that you need in a drone

Some stuff that you need to keep in mind for looking for a drone for traveling includes;

PORTABLE SIZE: Having a portable size is the key for a traveling drone as you don’t want it to become a burden on you while traveling. A drone that can easily adjust in your backpack is the one you should go for.

STABILIZER: Having a solid top-notch camera but still getting shaking shots out of it ruins the entire quality of the shot. Hence, having a gimbal or even a digital stabilizer to keep the pictures and videos stable is a plus point to have for a drone.   

CAMERA QUALITY: The camera quality matters a lot. You don’t want to invest your money, time, and efforts in taking pictures with a drone and getting a dreadful result out of it. Therefore, the most reliable camera for solid results is the 4K camera.

BATTERY LIFE: A solid battery life prevents the drone from falling off of a cliff just because the battery got low, and allows you to take plenty of great shots.  

REASONABLE PRICING: Travel itself becomes costly most of the time. Therefore, while buying these gadgets, you need to make sure that you are investing your money in the right product. Find out if the device is providing you with features for what you are paying for.

Best Drones For Travel Vloggers

DJI MAVIC AIR 2

SPECIFICATION

• Weight: 1.25 pounds
• Camera: 4K Ultra HD
• Battery Life: 34 minutes
• Range: 18.5 km
• Max Speed: 42.5 mph
• 3 axis-gimbal
• Internal Storage: 8GB

BODY

DJI Mavic Air 2 is a pretty small drone and can easily fit in your backpack without any problem. It has a weight of 1.25 pounds and is quite portable, therefore size vise it is a great option to consider if you travel a lot. Moreover, the drone is foldable and gets a very small size that can fit anywhere without becoming a burden.

The drone has a durable body and comes in a color theme or grey with a matte finish look. At the front of the drone, you will see the camera attached to the drone using a 3-axis gimbal which keeps the footage stable.

It has a premium look to it with an SD card slot at the bottom. A micro-USB portal is also present on the drone opposite the SD card slot. You can use it to transfer videos and pictures directly from the drone to your laptop or computer.

There is an LED light on the side of each propeller, the lights are not very big but are color-coordinated. On the front of the propellers, red light is present and at the back the lights are green. This color coordination helps in recognizing where the drone is facing especially at night or when the lighting is low.

FEATURES

The drone has a built-in 3-axis gimbal attached to a 4K ultra HD camera that gives you a top-notch result. You can also record videos at 60fps and at 4K resolution which is impressive. The 3-axis gimbal helps in preventing any kind of shakiness from the footage and pictures.

Moreover, Mavic Air 2 has a couple of different features that will provide you with a wonderful performance. The features it holds include; active track 3.0, focus-track, smart photo, panoramas, and 8K hyper-lapse.

ACTIVE TRACK 3.0:

The active track 3.0 is the same as the follow-me mode. This feature enables the pilot to choose a subject and the drone will start following it and recording it. It also features the object avoidance mode so that the drone does not crash into a tree or a building while following the subject.

FOCUS TRACK:

 It enables the drone to take top-notch cinematic shots without you having to put in a lot of effort. It has 3 different modes which give an amazing performance and record mind-blowing videos.

SMART PHOTO:

Smart photos feature 3 different modes which permit the camera to choose its own settings according to the situation the camera is recording on. In this mode, the camera takes pictures using different exposure settings and then merges all the pictures to produce a solid clear picture.   

PANORAMAS:

Using the panorama feature enables the drone to take different pictures continuously. Join them together to create a big wide-angle picture. This is a pretty useful feature if you want to take pictures of fields and landscapes. 

8K HYPERLAPSE:

The 8K hyperlapse is a unique feature in a drone and is not seen in any other drones in the market. It can record at different resolutions which include 4K, 2.7K, and 1080p.

PERFORMANCE

The drone has a solid battery life of 34 minutes which is an adequate flight time to enable you to have a pleasant experience flying the drone. However, you could always get yourself an extra battery if you want to increase the battery life, but I found the time of 34 minutes enough.

The drone takes around 1 hour and 35 minutes to charge completely from scratch. The maximum speed the drone could reach is 42.5 very fast mph, and the drone holds a very reliable performance even in windy situations.

The maximum flight range the drone has is 18.5 KM and comes with an internal storage of 8GB to directly save the pictures and videos being recorded. The storage increases if you add an SD to the drone. The camera gives amazing quality and the drone itself is very lightweight and small in size.

Moreover, the easy-to-use features make it very effortless for even beginners to take top-notch pictures and videos. Considering its size, weight, and all the features DJI Mavic Air 2 is for sure worth being called one of the best drones for travel vloggers.

AUTEL ROBOTICS EVO

SPECIFICATION

• Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Camera: 4K
• Battery Life: 30 minutes
• Range: 7 km
• Max Speed: 45 MPH

BODY

Autel Robotics Evo is a small portable drone having a weight of 1.9 pounds. The drone is completely foldable therefore you can place it anywhere. Its lightweight and small size make it an appreciable option to keep it you travel a lot. As carrying it around won’t be a problem for you as it is quite travel-friendly.

It comes in the color scheme of black and orange, and the body of the drone is of bright orange color which is very catchy and attracts attention to the drone. Its body has a shiny, glossy finish to it but the propellers and the camera all are black and have a matte finished look.

The drone due to its vibrant color stands out among other drones. At the top of the drone is a power button and at the front, you will see a camera attached to the drone. Each propeller has a small LED light on it which helps in flying the drone in dim lighting or at night.

Moreover, it also helps in recognizing where the drone is facing. On the right side of the drone is an SD card slot. Furthermore, the USB port along with the ultrasonic sensor is present on the rare side of the drone.

FEATURES

Robotics Evo features a 4K ultra HD camera that can record some pleasing shots with a very crisp quality. The colors appear sharp, and you can further manage the sharpness and exposure settings using its dedicated mobile app.

Moreover, this 4K drone also features a bunch of different presets that you can use while shooting, which include black and white, beach, dream, classic, etc. These filters can give a more creative look to your shots.

Some other features that the drone comes with include; waypoint mode, dynamic track mode, and return home mode. The drone supports GPS, therefore, most of these features are all dependent on it.

WAY-POINT MODE:

The waypoint mode allows you to choose a location or a point on the map and the drone will find its way to reach that point on its own. This is a very efficient feature, especially for beginners who don’t know how to pilot the drone properly. By using this feature you can focus on taking good quality pictures and videos while the drone is paving its own way towards the desired location.

DYNAMIC TRACK MODE:

The dynamic track mode permits the drone to follow moving subjects around. It features three different modes, which means that the drone will follow the subject in three different ways. It can follow the subject from behind staying away at a fixed distance. It can move parallel to the object, or it can hover in mid-air and follow the object through the camera.   

RETURN HOME MODE:

It is a very helpful mode and prevents the drone from getting lost or falling off in case the battery gets low. The return home feature allows the drone to return back to its launching position in case the battery level gets low in the middle of the flight.

PERFORMANCE                       

The battery life of the drone is around 30 minutes, which is decent battery life, and it takes approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes to charge. The battery life is adequate and the drone has a fair performance in slightly windy situations.

Furthermore, the maximum flight range of the drone is 7 KM, which is not bad at all. It can reach the maximum speed of 45 mph and can record fast-moving objects. The camera quality is satisfying and the features, as well as the size, make the drone suitable for you if you are a travel blogger or even if you travel a lot in general.

HOVER CAMERA PASSPORT

SPECIFICATION

• Weight: 0.5 pounds
• Camera: 4K Ultra HD
• Battery Life: 10 minutes
• Range: 65 feet
• Max Speed: 17 mph
• Internal Storage: 32 GB

BODY           

The Hover Camera Passport drone is a uniquely shaped drone having a weight of 0.5 pounds. This lightweight drone is designed to give the best performance while hovering in mid-air. It has a unique look unlike any other drone out there.

It features all the mechanics and electronic setup in the middle body and the propellers are all covered by a cage. The carbon-fiber cage protects the propellers and gives the drone a rectangular shape like a flat box. It comes in black color and has a matte finish look to it.

The drone is foldable and therefore gets smaller when folded. You will not need a huge space to store it and besides, it comes with a carrying case making it more efficient to travel with. The power button is right at the top of the drone, and the camera is at the front along with an LED light indicator. Moreover, the USB port is on the left side of the drone. 

FEATURES

The drone has a built-in Ultra HD 4K camera but it does not feature a gimbal. Therefore, the camera can only move up and down. It provides a resolution of 4K but the maximum frame rate it supports is 30fps. The dedicated software of the drones provides digital stabilization, but it is not as good as a mechanical gimbal.

Hover Camera Passport is a drone that has complete control over itself and most of its features also support that. The features it holds include orbit mode, face tracking, body tracking, and 360-panorama mode.

ORBIT MODE:

In orbit mode, the drone starts rotating around you wherever you go. The drone will pilot itself and will take pictures and videos while rotating around.

FACE TRACKING:

This feature enables the drone to keep your face in focus even when you are moving around. The drone will move around with you and capture your pictures and videos while making sure that your face is in focus and is in the frame.

BODY TRACKING:       

Body tracking is the same as face tracking and instead of keeping your face in focus, it makes sure that you completely are in the frame. It follows you when you are moving while keeping the focus of the shots.

360-PANORAMA:

It allows the drone to have a complete 360-degree rotation and meanwhile it captures a series of pictures. Those pictures are then joined together so that they can provide you with a full view in a single picture.

All these modes are where you enable the drone to control itself while you can focus on taking pictures and videos. The disappointing part is that this drone doesn’t feature GPS, hence it does not hold any key safety features like return home mode.

PERFORMANCE

The most disappointing thing about this drone is its battery life. It has a very low flight time of 10 minutes which is very shocking. But to cover it up the drone comes with two batteries to increase the overall battery life.

Besides, the drone takes around 40 to 60 minutes to charge completely, which considering the battery life is a lot. It provides a maximum flight range of 65 feet and a max speed of 17mps and does not perform very well in windy situations due to its shape.

However, the drone comes with built-in internal storage of 32 GB, which is appreciable. The battery life, along with the flight range is not very reliable but the camera quality it comes with is amazing.

The main focus of this drone is those who want a good camera quality, but do not want to invest a lot. However, a lot of drones that cost less than Passport have a better battery life, but the 4K camera quality remains missing in them.

GOPRO KARMA QUADCOPTER

SPECIFICATION

• Weight: 2.21 pounds
• Camera: Go Pro
• Battery Life: 20 minutes
• Range: 1 km
• Max Speed: 35 mph

BODY                                 

Go pro Karma quadcopter is the first GoPro drone. It is a foldable drone having a weight of 2.21 pounds which is relatively heavier than other drones on this list. Despite the weight, the drone is quite portable as it can fold completely.

Additionally, it comes with a carrying case in which you can fit the drone along with a couple of different things which include the Karma grip (handheld gimbal), Go Pro Hero 5, and the controller. The drone has a metallic silver look to it along with black propellers and the middle part.

The drone has a durable body and can survive a bunch of impacts. However, if any component of the drone still gets damaged, you can easily replace it. Most of its components including the gimbal, propellers, and even the propeller arms are replaceable.

The power button is at the top of the drone and each propeller features an LED light on it. The LED light helps in recognizing where the drone is facing. Especially at night when it gets impossible to see the drone. Additionally, the front propellers feature green LED lights whereas the back propellers hold red LED lights. The Go Pro is attached to the drone using a gimbal.     

FEATURES

Karma comes with a Go Pro Hero 5 but that can be replaced with any other Go Pro of your desire. The image quality depends on the camera you are using. But if you are going with Hero 5 the camera quality it provides is pretty satisfactory.

The Go Pro is attached to the drone using the gimbal which enables you to capture vibration-free videos and pictures. Moreover, the pictures and videos capture from this drone are as stable as they can get and has a quite delightful quality.

The drone does not feature any user-assistant modes, which is displeasing. Having certain modes like follow me mode or waypoint mode makes the drone easy and fun to use. The lack of object avoidance features and any other mode is a negative point for this drone. 

PERFORMANCE

The drone has a battery life of 20 minutes, which is adequate battery life. It takes about 1 hour to charge completely. It is quite a reasonable time considering the flight time you get. It has a maximum flight range of 1 KM which is adequate and can reach a maximum speed of 35 mph.

The drone does not provide you with a lot of options. But it is a part of this list of best drones for travel vloggers because if you are a travel vlogger owning a go pro is a must. Go Pros are water-resistant therefore they are often used to take underwater shots and having a drone that you can use for such purposes sounds great.

Moreover, you can also change the camera therefore you can make the image quality better by investing some more money in a better go pro like Hero 7. Additionally, the drone comes with the Karma grip which adds a huge plus point making this drone a complete kit. You can use the Go Pro with the drone and if you want you can use the handheld gimbal in different situations.  

CONCLUSION

The best drones for travel vloggers that you should consider are all mentioned above. Try each of them according to your budget and make the right decision. However, before choosing a device make sure that you know what you need so that you can make the right decision.