Parrot Disco FPV – Easy to fly fixed wing drone, up to 45 minutes of flight time, 50 mph top speed, FPV goggles

I used to fly radio-control planes when I was younger, but got disenchanted after going through the 'build it, crash it' cycle too many times. I was very intrigued by the Disco - it is a very different take on the consumer drone concept. I was very concerned, however about all the poor reviews on Amazon and elsewhere.My concerns were unfounded, though. The Disco has performed better than I hoped! A few caveats, though - I knew (from my previous RC airplane experience) that a lot of space is needed. Don't expect to fly this in your back yard, or even in a small field, like you might a 'normal' helicopter drone. I fly mine around a large ranch, and it works great in that scenario.I did carefully read the manual (which is very basic, as the critics have mentioned). I also watched the Parrot tutorial videos. Launching was easy once I saw the technique, and I never had any problem. Once in the air, it climbs to 150 feet and circles, giving plenty of time to get settled writhe controller. Landing worked well, too, but just like an RC plane, it is important to line up properly, and the more space available, the easier it is.I did have problems viewing the instruments displayed on my iPhone - it's really to bright outside to see the display. The FPV goggles, on the other hand, have been really fun. Once the plane has been launched, I can load the phone into the goggles and get them over my eyes while the plane is loitering overhead. The FPV video resolution is pretty grainy (it is adjustable, however), but it is easily good enough to get the sensation of flying.I've been quite pleased with the video output, as well. It is 1080p at 24 FPV, and the footage is optically stabilized so it looks far better than what I see in the goggles. The 32 Gb of storage is far more than what's required for a flight, and it's been easy to transfer it to my phone or laptop.The software allows you to place limits on max range, and min and max altitude. I extended the range from the default 1500 feet to 2400 feet, and had no problems with connectivity as long as I pointed the transmitter at the drone. I have yet to try further distances - as it is, at 2400 feet, the drone is practically invisible and silent.I have been being conservative on run times, usually calling it quits at 35% or so, but still have been getting over a half hour on a charge. The transmitter has more capacity, so there should never be a time when it runs out before the drone.Two minor quibbles - the recharger will either charge the drone battery OR the transmitter, but not both. I plan to buy another recharger so I don't have to change cables back and forth. Also, the throttle has a spring that returns it to a middle setting - I'd rather have no spring, so that the throttle stays in place if I release the stick.

This is quite literally the worst product I have ever used. The marketing is excessively misleading to the point I feel ripped off. The thing does not land. I watched all the videos, read the manual, pressed the right buttons. It just kept taking off again when it was coming in for a landing. I crashed it into a soft tree twice. The camera they put in the nosecone can VERY easily and permanently be moved out of focus. You can't adjust it and this seems intentional to me. You have to go buy a 150-300 dollar replacement. That is likely their plan as I could get a camera that seems comparable for 30 bucks but it isn't compatible.But the worst thing is, on only my third flight, I lost video feed, tried to land it, it took off again. I brought it in again via the home button which worked, but the plane was flying crappily with unsteady rpms. It had been fine when the flight started. Then it lost all connection and nose dived where i can never find it. I looked at the app to get flight history data and it had no record of the flight at all! It was like it deleted evidence of its failure. Heaven help me if the people who were unlawfully shooting at it (no, they did not hit it, I was way too far and high and not over their property and it was a different flight that it crashed), find it and review the footage showing from whence it took of. Because, brilliantly, the product automatically records when you take off. You have to turn it off immediately or else your crashed drone will advertise where it came from. This product is a total nightmare. There is no homing beacon, no fall back to find it. They make it look like it automatically lands but my experience was that I spend a fortune on this, mainly for this feature and it was completely not working. I could have bought a plane for the fraction of the cost if it was just going to fly off and crash in a mountain somewhere. I am so extremely disappointed I am not sure I will even look for the plane tomorrow. I'm not sure I even want it back. I already wasted hundreds of dollars on a piece of crap, why waste more time, when i should spend that looking for a solution/product that might actually work and provide value?

This thing is super fun, and the autopilot is a lot of help. This is my first fixed wing RC model aircraft, and it is very easy to fly. The instruction manual leaves a ton to be desired, so if you want to fly this, you really need to search around online for guides and forums first. Also, what comes up must come down, and there's really no good way to practice landing other than doing it, so expect to put some scuffs and scratches on it the first few times you land. Good news, is foam is pretty resilient, and is easy to repair if you do damage it. Parts are available online now (they weren't when it first came out), so that takes some of the risk out of it, too. I put a 3G GPS tracker in mine in case of a flyaway (some people on Amazon and elsewhere have experienced these due to some unknown issue), but so far haven't needed it. The camera is good but not great (I think it's the same as the BeBop2). All that said: this thing is FUN to fly. It's expensive, but it's worth it.

It is really really cool but there's one point that I have to say, DON'T FLY NEAR THE TREE, DON'T TRY TO LAND WITHOUT A LARGE AREA OF GRASSLAND!!!!Or you will see the photos attached near your house.My drone was stuck in a 20-meter-high tree. There was no way to rescue… I prayed for the storm and it did come and save my drone… only slight damage at last