Well, so much for blogging every month! I’m only a few days late, but there’s still no blog for May. Part of the problem was knowing what to blog about, as I was all out of ideas. At least, I was until I took my new drone out for a test flight over the weekend. Then, I remembered I’d blogged about another new drone some years ago.
I’ve always loved playing around with remote-controlled things (search ‘remote’ if you want to find out more about them), and I bought my first outdoor drone back in 2019. My sister had bought me a tiny indoor drone as a birthday present, and I bought myself a Millennium Falcon drone, which again was more of an indoor toy. I didn’t want to spend too much money, so I ended up with a MJX Bugs 4W drone, which I blogged about here, and used it quite a bit for about 6 months.
Toward the end of 2019, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) introduced the Drone and Model Aircraft Code, which pretty much changed the game regarding flying Drones in the UK. Anything other than a ‘toy’ drone required the user to have an Operator ID, which was pretty straightforward to apply online, although it requires annual renewal for a small fee. Anything over 250g also requires a Flyer ID, which is an online test to ensure you are familiar with and understand the Code.
At the time, I obtained both, which wasn’t all that difficult, but the rules and regulations about when and where you can fly a drone over 250g (the Bugs 4W was over 600g) were quite restrictive. I flew it a little during lockdown in 2020-21, but for the last few years, it has been in the carry case and not flown.
I watched a Captain Drone YouTube video last month, something I’d not done for a while, and he was reviewing a Holy Stone HS900 drone, which is under 250g and has a 4K camera, for around $250. I followed the Amazon link, and I could get one the next day for £219, so I was far too easily seduced and clicked the buy-now button! When it arrived the next day, I realised I’d actually bought an HS 720, which is an older model and not quite as good as the HS900 reviewed. It never made it out of the box, and I was straight back on Amazon looking for other options when I came across the DJI Mini 4K. This was £50 more expensive, but with the DJI pedigree and comes with a claimed 10k range (I’d never fly it that far!) and a 4K camera with 3-axis gimble. I ordered it and returned the HS 720, and I’ve been waiting for a chance to take it out for a test flight.
That happened at the weekend after dropping my daughter at Guide Camp and taking my dog for a walk. It happened to be where I’d filmed the original Bugs drone all those years ago. I’m sure you can tell; the footage is in a completely different league, and I’m sure I’ll be taking this little drone out much more frequently. In fact, I’m hoping to get it out next weekend around Linlithgow Palace and the newly refurbished St Michael Church spire.
I was hoping to post the video footage here, but I need to investigate some WordPress settings. Even scaled down to 720p, I’ve not been able to upload to my site. I’ll post a picture instead, and uploaded to YouTube for the timebeing. Remember to watch in 4K for the best quality!
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