The News
Quad Projects & RTF Quads
|
This table in no way covers ALL the projects and products available out there. The ones that do not appear here have been omitted for one or more of the following reasons:
|
||
|
A |
The Alien Air Jump Jet or Saucer quad Frankly, nice if you want to buy something for your kid to play with. |
|
|
|
AeroQuad Definitely gets our smiley ward! Read the review (Here) if you want to know more. (Open source, good people, not expensive) – GPS coming soon. |
|
|
D |
Draganflyer V2 brushless This is a board that I did some experimenting with. The stabilisation is based on a FMA (Co-pilot) type idea. This is a build only option so you only buy the board from these guys. Good way to go if you are not into computer literacy. Not my choice though, because due to the infrared temperature differential stabilisation you only get to fly on nice sunny days. |
|
|
|
DraganFlyer (X4, X6,X8) Prices vary greatly here but essentially start high already. These units are the commercial versions of the development board described earlier(Spectrolutions). Draw your own conclusions…
|
|
|
H |
Ascending Technologies (Hobby Line) These guys are here simply because their stuff works and they have a rather stylish site. Definitely not cheap, their range spans the commercial and hobby markets so if you have the dough, why not. |
|
|
K |
KapteinKuk This is the only project in this list that in my view has everything going for it. Ingenuity, resourcefulness, adventure and absolutely kicks all other flight control platforms in development beyond the Kuiper Belt. While everyone else is looking to get more sophisticated with their processors and sensors, this (very smart) guy comes along and achieves beautifully stable flight with the technological equivalent of 4 nails and a tack hammer. The project is really SUPER cheap but be warned, you need to be able to soder and understand a little programming theory however if you are willing to take a little pain there much to be gained here. |
|
|
M |
Microdrone OK, so you have money and you don't care much for cost…you just want to fly and do stuff. Well then how $20K for a drone? The package does include Tx and video recording equipment but at that price I would expect two or three unmarried Philippino women as well. |
|
|
|
MikroKopter (MK) If you have an understanding of computers/digital electronics, have done some soldering and knowhow to load firmware this might be for you. You will need to spend from $500 to $1500 (depending on how many features you want). The project is partially open source code so you can play with code if you want. More importantly, this is one of the better control systems available with GPS, height hold, heading hold and lots more including camera systems. Another plus is the fact that they have representative sites in the UK, US, Canada as well. There is also a very active community of users to tap into. |
|
|
U |
UAVP So your understanding of computers is good and you like to solder, go UAVP. This fully open source effort is about average when comes to entry price (about $400US) and you make (or buy) your own airframe.. |
UAVP DE
UAVP US |
|
|
UAVP-NG This project is an offshoot of the original UAVP that uses an ARM7 processor as well as an AMTEL for RC/Servo/Comms control. It has GPS capability and more. This is open source but don't expect to go fiddling the code right away, you have to prove yourself to these guys first. Good project, good organisation, and great people working on development. |
|
|
|
UAVX This is the same board as UAVP listed earlier so why is it appearing here again? To be fair to the others really. Nothing wrong with this flavour of the UAVP. Essentially it has a plug-in replacement 18F2620 PIC, which is also available with UAVX firmware, is open source and has the ability to use both I2c and standard ESC’s. Not too shabby. |
|
|
W |
Walkera UFO 4 or 5, or 8 These are an OK choice if you want something that is not expensive, includes TX, may be used indoor or outdoor and can be fixed relatively cheaply if you have an accident. |
|
