Are you looking for a guide on how to buy a drone? If so, then look no further because you have come to the right place. Our ultimate guide on how to buy a drone will cover everything you need to know about each type of drone and decide which one you should pick.
Drones are seriously the most awesome gadget. They can do what other gadgets like smartphones, printers, and speakers can’t. By encompassing the ability to fly around and produce footage that you can easily enjoy with your family and friends.
When the drones were first introduced to the market, they were hard to fly, expensive, and unpopular. Fast forward to today, drones are incredibly easy, affordable, interactive and very popular.
In fact, you do not have to spend that much money to get started. You can easily buy one of these toy-grade drones and learn how to fly. Personally, I have been flying drones for almost 4 years ever since I got my hands on the DJI Mavic Pro.
It was absolutely a joy and thrill of experience. If you are a beginner and looking for a drone to start with. You will find the perfect drone to buy in this ultimate buyer’s guide for beginners. That being said, let’s get to the bottom of this and find out which drone you should get.
Best Toy Drones
First of all, the toy drones are very popular for a number of reasons. They are cheap, budget-friendly and easy for beginners to get started. The toy drones do not come with any fancy features that you normally will see on more expensive drones.
But for starters, these best toy drones will teach you how to fly and capture footage. Before you fly a drone, you need to learn how to pilot a drone by manual controls. This is especially important in times when you need to take heed of the flight controls.
And if the drone crashes, you don’t lose that much. Afterall, you can always get a new toy drone because they are affordable and easy to get started for beginners. Below is list of the best toy drones that I highly recommend for starters:
Top 3 Best Toy Drones for Beginners
Best Racing Drones
Racing drones, or commonly called FPV (First-Person View) drones are the fastest type of quadcopter out of all. These racing drones can reach a soaring flight speed of 100 miles per hour. There’s a world drone racing league where professional drone pilots race against each other for prizes.
Compared to other quadcopters, these racing drones are equipped with 5GHz FPV image transmission signal system to deliver fluid and clear aerial view. Although, they don’t have a long battery lifetime mainly because of the fact that it draws so much power to operate at high flight speed.
The racing drones aren’t recommended for anyone who has no prior flight experience. Although, if you have flown a drone before and you are looking to further advance your flight skill. Then getting your hands on one of these best racing drones is a good way to refine your precise and flight controls.
Top 3 Best Racing Drones for Beginners
Best Camera Drones
The camera drones are very popular among beginners and recreational remote pilots. Aerial photography is still new and one of the fastest growing consumer markets. Having your hands on one of these best camera drones can teach you how to fly and produce footage that can be shared on social media platforms and such.
Most of the camera drones have built-in 1080P HD still / video resolution and occasionally comes with a GPS module for enhanced remote control capabilities. If your goal is to fly one of these premium drones in the future such as Phantom 4 Pro or Mavic Mini, then starting off with an affordable camera drone is a good start.
There’s a lot of good camera drones out there. But after reviewing each camera drone and carefully sifting through the customer feedback, we have determined that these camera drones are the best for beginners and recreational remote pilots.
Top 3 Best Camera Drones for Beginners
Best Premium Drones
Premium drones are expertly crafted by the best of all. High-end brands such as DJI, Autel Robotics and Parrot are the best examples of what a premium drone looks like. Often, these premium drones have the longest flight time, big remote control distance, smart flight functions and superior technology that makes them unique — and expensive.
Aerial photographers and beginners who are looking for a smart camera drone that can get the job done should look into premium drones. Ever since the drones first entered the market, they have become more and more affordable. This is especially true with these premium drones nowadays.
If you are looking for a drone that can produce 4K UHD stills and videos, can stay airborne for longer than 30 minutes and can fly more than a few miles from your location. We have handpicked the best premium drones to get started for beginners.
Top 3 Best Premium Drones for Beginners
Best Aerial Photography Drones
Avid aerial photographers who are looking for guidance on how to buy a high-end camera drone will find this part informative and useful. Aerial photography drones are the most expensive class out of all. That’s because they are equipped with the best cameras and gears.
This type of drones can fly very far and perform sharp aerial maneuvers. Ever wondered how films are able to capture immersive views of cities and large objects at an unique perspective? That’s because they use aerial photography drones such as the DJI Inspire 2.
Not only these aerial photography drones are great at producing films, but they are good for creating stills to distribute in the marketplace, modeling, roof inspection, and providing assistance to the first emergency responders.
Top 3 Best Aerial Photography Drones
Best GPS Drones
GPS-based drones are similar to camera drones, because all of them come with built-in cameras by default. But the main difference between a GPS-based drone and camera drone is the additional features and improved flight performance capabilities.
In fact, the GPS-based drones are known as smart camera drones because they eliminate the need to perform manual controls. Since everything from positioning itself to performing smart return to home is done automatically via an advanced flight control system on the drone.
With a GPS-base drone, you get to enjoy longer flight time, more flying minutes, bigger remote control distance, the ability to stream real-time videos to your phone screen and of course adjusting the camera remotely. We have assembled a list of best GPS drones for beginners that’s really hard to pass on.
Top 3 Best GPS Drones for Beginners:
Best Mini Drones
A mini drone means a portable, compact-sized drone that can comfortably fit onto one of your hands. They are not to be confused with pocket drones at all since a mini drone in general means a smart camera drone that’s small enough to go with anywhere you go.
One of the main advantages that mini drones have to offer is the relatively affordable price tag. Because they don’t come with a lot of features that high-end drones such as Autel EVO 2 and Mavic 2 Pro / Mavic 2 Zoom have.
Mini drones also are a great way to make new friends, especially if you are introvert and are shy around people. These mini drones will break down the barriers by establishing common ground that people and yourself can talk about. Plus, they are not that intimidating or intrusive compared to aerial photography drones. A great cost-effective way to get started in the world of drones.
Top 3 Best Mini Drones for Beginners
Best Pocket Drones
A pocket drone means a drone that can be easily fitted inside your pants pocket or jacket pocket. Like I mentioned previously, a pocket drone is not to be confused with a mini drone. In general, these pocket drones are very small and don’t come with any fancy features.
Which means these pocket drones have short battery lifetime, limited remote control distance, and of course don’t have built-in cameras most of the time. The trade-off is that you can perform 360-degree aerial flips and unique aerial maneuvers with these pocket drones — a feature that’s lacking for the majority of smart camera drones.
These pocket drones are awesome for enjoying yourself during a downtime or just to race with your friends. They are not that expensive at all and will teach you how to fly a drone before moving on to more expensive drones. Below is our list of handpicked pocket-sized drones for beginners.
Top 3 Best Pocket Drones for Beginners
How to Buy a Drone: Conclusion
Whether you are new to the world of drones or looking to upgrade your quadcopters. Buying a drone doesn’t have to be that hard at all. It’s a matter of preferences and finding out which drone best suits your needs.
After reading our guide on how to buy a drone, you now know which drones is the best for the following categories:
- Toy Drones
- Racing Drones
- Camera Drones
- GPS Drones
- Premium Drones
- Aerial Photography Drones
- Mini Drones
- Pocket Drones
Drones are seriously the best thing that ever happened. They do what other gadgets have not done before and open up a lot of new doors to get creative! We hope you find our ultimate beginner’s guide on how to buy a drone informative and useful.
If you are looking for additional guides on shopping for drones, you can check out our popular drones under $300 and best Holy Stone drones for beginners. Stay tuned for more deals at Gears Deals.
