Helpful suggestions

[Ghostyuk]

Hi guys ,
I am looking to get a upgrade from my learning drone the Yuneec Breez . This was a good learning drone even with it iusses . I am looking at two types one would be

A Parrot Anafi Drone or a Yuneec Typhoon H Pro .

I dont have a mobile phone and use a Samsung A6 tablet for every day use ,I am guessing this will be ok and this will not affect the drone distance or function and I will be using a tripod and holder when flying ( cable Length 2m ) depending on which model I go for , therefore I am not sure if this will affect when connecting to the controller such as (delays or function) to and from .

I am just looking for drone that I can confidently use and trust , My use of the drone is a hobby to film and take photographs of lighthouses and historical maritime and commercial fishing vessels as my job takes me all around the UK in this line of work.

Not really seeking a drone that can go miles away out of sight as alot of the flying I would prefer to see it but to know if required it can ,it safe to go over water (sea ) and can be flown in moderate winds such as

Moderate breeze11–16 knots 3–18 mph 20–28 km

Fresh breeze17–21 knots 19–24 mph29–38 km

Strong breeze22–27 knots9–25–31 mph39–49 km Now and then on land only .

The Anafi was my first choice but worried about how it will handle in the wind ,but the size is perfect to have in my rucksack on the boat . This is why I started to sway towards the Typhoon but I read a lot of issues with firmware. So any suggestion would be epic .

 

[DanLins]

You may not find many 'unbiased' replies here. Having said that, I have flown in some fairly strong fresh breezes, using your descriptions. The videos came out rock steady and smooth. I did have a touch of a problem trying to perform a hand landing, probably because the Anafi was jumping around a little, moving it's sensors, perhaps telling itself not to actually set down in the gusts.

I would say your application should be fine using the Anafi. Sounds like a lot of fun.

Dan L

 

[Rocky the FS]

I would agree the Anafi would handle a fresh breeze, but I think the upper end of a strong breeze would be a problem. The top speed in Sport mode is only about 31 mph. Although the manual says not to fly over water, many have done it. In a recent thread it was said that you wouldn't want to fly it over water at any altitude less than 5 or 6 meters because of the reflective nature of water confusing the sensors on the bottom. Also never go below 15% battery when flying anywhere you could not retrieve it in case it shuts down and lands a bit sooner than you expect.

The ability to gimbal up to vertical would make for some really cool shots of lighthouses. Reliability seems to be quite good if all the best practices are adhered to. Watch out for angry seagulls!

 

[pmh1nic]

I've flown the Anafi at the beach with a moderate breeze and there were no issues with the flying or the video.

 

[Ghostyuk]

You may not find many 'unbiased' replies here. Having said that, I have flown in some fairly strong fresh breezes, using your descriptions. The videos came out rock steady and smooth. I did have a touch of a problem trying to perform a hand landing, probably because the Anafi was jumping around a little, moving it's sensors, perhaps telling itself not to actually set down in the gusts.

I would say your application should be fine using the Anafi. Sounds like a lot of fun.

Dan L

Hi Dan many thanks for your reply, its seems to be this little anafi beauty will do ,I think due to the iusses I had with the Breez 4k the size was putting me off but it dose tick all the right boxes.

What is the ruff range of the anafi in the UK is it limited to the geo fance ,the one on the 4k breez was very disappointing but a great drone to learn with. The reason I ask some times the vessel I am on cant get close to a objet. I seen their is a moded app on here which I might give a go well done to that person for this app .

I will be ordering this one on my return back from Spain and will certainly post photos and clips of my flying such a bonus with my job I get to see wonderful site from around the UK. The days of a camera in my pack are long gone now .

Many thanks for you feed back

 

[Ghostyuk]

I would agree the Anafi would handle a fresh breeze, but I think the upper end of a strong breeze would be a problem. The top speed in Sport mode is only about 31 mph. Although the manual says not to fly over water, many have done it. In a recent thread it was said that you wouldn't want to fly it over water at any altitude less than 5 or 6 meters because of the reflective nature of water confusing the sensors on the bottom. Also never go below 15% battery when flying anywhere you could not retrieve it in case it shuts down and lands a bit sooner than you expect.

The ability to gimbal up to vertical would make for some really cool shots of lighthouses. Reliability seems to be quite good if all the best practices are adhered to. Watch out for angry seagulls!

Hi Rocky manythanks for your excellent advice, I will certainly be aware of this now , Yes seagulls are a pain , just a quick one how dose the drone fly well in any moisture conditions fog mist and sea spray. But thank you for your advice and help

 

[Ghostyuk]

I've flown the Anafi at the beach with a moderate breeze and there were no issues with the flying or the video.

Hi PMH, many thanks for your feedback, it seems this is the one to go with, the more I look into this the more I am surprised with how this drone works. I still have tons of questions about it but thank you for your feedback

 

[DanLins]

On nice days, I can still see that tiny dot in the sky at a little over 1800', but I've taken it out over 5300' once, just to test it. That was in an area with about 1 farmhouse per square mile. I know, I know, shouldn't have done it, violation of promulgated regulations, etc., etc. Bottom line, at 5300+ feet, I still had video but it was starting to weaken.

With a downloaded map and a flight plan set up correctly, you should be able to have the Anafi perform a circular dance around a lighthouse. I'll be waiting to see some of your results!

Dan

 

[Ghostyuk]

Hi Dan , wow that seem a good rage sir . I think with me the max distance would be 0.5miles =2640ft and average distance from 0.25miles =1320ft but mostly I say 300tf and hight of about 100ft . I know we also have strict rules in height has to stay under 400ft man I never seen a lighthouse any taller then that lol

Yes I will post photos and videos, hmmmm just had a thought

RTH ,if I am on a boat and I launched the drone, and say the boat moves from location will the RTH go to the place it took off or work off a signal and the controller and head back to new position.

 

[Liger 1956]

RTH ,if I am on a boat and I launched the drone, and say the boat moves from location will the RTH go to the place it took off or work off a signal and the controller and head back to new position.

The RTH location is the Anafi's take off point so on a moving boat you would have to manually fly it back to the boat. As I understand the manual if you use one of the 'follow me' modes then the RTH location changes to that of the controller (actually the RTF location of the phone/tablet).

Salt water spray is never good news for non waterproofed electronics and can corrode the circuit boards very quickly. If you are going to fly in sea spray then you may want to look at getting a waterproof drone.

I am also interested as to what line of work you are in if you do not mind, and can, tell us.

 

[Rocky the FS]

.... just a quick one how dose the drone fly well in any moisture conditions fog mist and sea spray.? .....

Several people have reported flying in in fog, a few in rain without immediate problems.....Some have retrieved the Anafi from a crash into the water(FRESH WATER!) or a winter spent in a pine tree in Canada and successfully dried it out.......a year from now, I don't know how that might affect longevity. Salt spray would definitely affect the motors, which are open. I wouldn't do that ever, because I want to keep my Anafi for a few years.

 

[Ghostyuk]

The RTH location is the Anafi's take off point so on a moving boat you would have to manually fly it back to the boat. As I understand the manual if you use one of the 'follow me' modes then the RTH location changes to that of the controller (actually the RTF location of the phone/tablet).

Salt water spray is never good news for non waterproofed electronics and can corrode the circuit boards very quickly. If you are going to fly in sea spray then you may want to look at getting a waterproof drone.

I am also interested as to what line of work you are in if you do not mind, and can, tell us.

Hi Liger many thanks for the info , yes it seems a lot of it is purely common sense and looking at the conditions when flying I was just curious to see if its suitable for flying when not sunny etc . I work as a
marine biologist ,well that's the fancy name but I just collect samples of seabed soils. I tell my kids I make sandcastles for a living . so offten or not I get loads of free time hence now looking into a drone I am also a keen photographer

 

[Ghostyuk]

Several people have reported flying in in fog, a few in rain without immediate problems.....Some have retrieved the Anafi from a crash into the water(FRESH WATER!) or a winter spent in a pine tree in Canada and successfully dried it out.......a year from now, I don't know how that might affect longevity. Salt spray would definitely affect the motors, which are open. I wouldn't do that ever, because I want to keep my Anafi for a few years.

Many thanks rocky

 

[Rocky the FS]

....I tell my kids I make sandcastles for a living . ...

Now you can tell your kids you photograph sand castles for a living!

Hey, that's not actually a bad idea! Think of all the angles you could use to show off a really good sandcastle that you couldn't do with a handheld video cam! The Anafi is perfect for that as you can fly it 10 feet from anyone without scaring them, it's so quiet. I think you will be very happy with this friendly little drone that takes AMAZING video and stills.

Just don't hit the Lighthouses....it has no obstacle avoidance, and in my 10 hours of flying I haven't missed that, because in the only instance I got close to hitting a tree, OA would not have helped a bit because it was flying backwards!

 

[pmh1nic]

Hi PMH, many thanks for your feedback, it seems this is the one to go with, the more I look into this the more I am surprised with how this drone works. I still have tons of questions about it but thank you for your feedback

The following link is to a short video I did at the beach. You can see in the first part of the video that shows the Flight 800 Memorial the flags flying that will give some indication of the wind I was experiencing the day that portion of the video was taken.

Flags at Flight 800 Memorial

 

[Ghostyuk]

The following link is to a short video I did at the beach. You can see in the first part of the video that shows the Flight 800 Memorial the flags flying that will give some indication of the wind I was experiencing the day that portion of the video was taken.

Flags at Flight 800 Memorial

Epic stuff PMH a good clear video and it's a fumbs up from me

 

[Ghostyuk]

Now you can tell your kids you photograph sand castles for a living!

Hey, that's not actually a bad idea! Think of all the angles you could use to show off a really good sandcastle that you couldn't do with a handheld video cam! The Anafi is perfect for that as you can fly it 10 feet from anyone without scaring them, it's so quiet. I think you will be very happy with this friendly little drone that takes AMAZING video and stills.

Just don't hit the Lighthouses....it has no obstacle avoidance, and in my 10 hours of flying I haven't missed that, because in the only instance I got close to hitting a tree, OA would not have helped a bit because it was flying backwards!

Now you can tell your kids you photograph sand castles for a living!

Hey, that's not actually a bad idea! Think of all the angles you could use to show off a really good sandcastle that you couldn't do with a handheld video cam! The Anafi is perfect for that as you can fly it 10 feet from anyone without scaring them, it's so quiet. I think you will be very happy with this friendly little drone that takes AMAZING video and stills.

Just don't hit the Lighthouses....it has no obstacle avoidance, and in my 10 hours of flying I haven't missed that, because in the only instance I got close to hitting a tree, OA would not have helped a bit because it was flying backwards!

Hi rocky lol nice reply , yes I was worried about the OA and thought I should go with a drone with it, but it seems this shouldn't be a problem, just have to be careful. And for a few days when back home I will have to play safe on dry land . I am so pleased to have found this site ,and very grateful for all members feedback. It's made choosing a drone easy now .

 

[Rocky the FS]

I may have underestimated the Anafi's ability to deal with strong breeze velocities. Here is a video from last fall....only the highest winds in the video cause the Anafi to really rock and roll....the 21 second clip at the end:

Strong Wind Gusts up to 38MPH

Follow up video from my flight yesterday with 36 MPH wind gusts. The scary part edited out lol

parrotpilots.com

Pretty impressive!

 

[Ghostyuk]

I may have underestimated the Anafi's ability to deal with strong breeze velocities. Here is a video from last fall....only the highest winds in the video cause the Anafi to really rock and roll....the 21 second clip at the end:

Strong Wind Gusts up to 38MPH

Follow up video from my flight yesterday with 36 MPH wind gusts. The scary part edited out lol

parrotpilots.com

Pretty impressive!

Thanks for that Rocky , very interesting and I cant wait to order mine when home from holidays. For a small and lightweight drone it certainly packs a punch with other brands.

Do you know rocky Is their any iusses with updates to the firmware or bugs to be aware off . Ps Many thanks for finding this thread kind sir also great work by the pilot

 

[Rocky the FS]

yes I was worried about the OA and thought I should go with a drone with it...

The consensus is that OA is somewhat over-rated, it doesn't see tree branches or wires, and doesn't see behind in backwards flight. Really the best way to avoid crashes is to practice, practice, practice. There are dozens of videos with all sorts of maneuvers to practice until flight control becomes second nature. I had to learn in quite restricted areas and got used to gentle and careful control inputs from the start. It was only last week, two months after purchase, that I got to fly in a big 10 acre field with zero obstructions. That was also the first time I got to use Sport Mode! What fun!!
I have about 15 hours of flight time now and am pretty confident I can stay out of trouble, as long as I spend a few minutes in any new area just thinking about what might cause problems before I boot up and fly.