My daughter (8) has been asking for a drone for Christmas. I'm not really sure what is prompting this, but am willing to get her one, within reason. I know nothing about drones, and what to look for, and there are so many of them that I do not know where to start. It would need to be very easy to fly, and preferably have a decent camera. I see many that use a phone for the screen, would prefer for that not to be the case as she would have to use one of our phones to do that. Otherwise, I don't even know what to look for. Any help you can give would be appreciated!

Price will be the determining factor. DJI is the number one maker of quality drones and they just came out with a Mavic Mini that’s not super expensive and will have everything you want and more.

If that’s more than you want to spend I would look at the Bugs family of drones. Basically in order to make it easy to fly you want GPS. The other thing that will make it easy to fly that people don’t know about is called altitude hold. These two features will make it to where when she gets disoriented she can let go of the sticks and the drone will come to a stop and hover until she gets her bearings.

I believe the Bugs 5 has both of those features with a decent camera and is around $200. Much cheaper than that and you won’t get the altitude hold part and she will be hitting the ground a lot and probably get frustrated and quit.

http://www.mjxrc.net/mobile/goods/bugs-series.html

agreed GPS is critical - otherwise it will not be very controllable and will ultimately crash

Fully agree with 1s1k, those options will save a lot of aggravation. years ago I has a gas model that was a constant pain to fix after crashes.

I now have a DJI Mavic Pro, what a difference! Get into trouble? Let go of the sticks and start over. Easy to keep your drone safe.

Mine is a cheaper model. SkyViper.
Pretty much indoor only, as a light blow of wind makes it crash.

Not a bad way to learn the ropes without crashing an expensive model.

Has a standalone controller & the option of video via a connected phone/tablet.

Came with a VR headset that you put the phone in. But never really played with that part.

I will say while an 8 year old, properly instructed, can fly a DJI drone - they should never fly it unattended as they can easily cause major physical harm / death by hitting someone with the blades or flying too high and getting hit by a real airplane.

They aren't toys, even though people act as if they are.

https://www.geekwire.com/2017/...eattle-pride-parade/

With a 12 year old son, we’ve had a lot of flying toys over the years.

This has been the easiest, most durable and best quality drone for us. We both enjoy it.

https://www.parrot.com/us/drones/parrot-mambo-fly

While the Magic mini looks great, $400 is far to steep. How about a limit of $200.

I've got a Mavic Mini and it's great so far - even after taking a couple of hits - but I agree it's too expensive for an 8-year-old's toy to get started.

Since I was looking for something at a higher price point, I'm not too familiar with drones at that price point. A friend was looking at a Hiolystone HS720 at a $300 price point, but they have a bunch under $100. I can not tell you what the quality is.

Maybe head over to a local, independent hobby shop if you have one in the area? That way you could actually try one they might suggest.

Here is an article on the best drones under $200.

Keep in mind these things are now regulated and technically need to be registered with the FAA ($5) if they are more than 250 grams in weight. Plus there are flying restrictions they FAA has put in place. The same flying restrictions are in place no matter what the weight of the drone.

Yes, it seems stupid since many of these drones are toys. But it is what it is.

As an example, I live in a FAA zone that would require I have a Part 107 certification AND submit a formal request in advance to fly even 20 feet off the ground in my own back yard. If I walk down the street about 250 yards, I can fly, but I'm limited to 100' and I (technically) need to put in a request with the FAA to fly there. There is an online automated process that can give me almost immediate authorization by to fly there, but I still need the authorization.

Given that a drone has 15 minute duration on average, are we to believe the faa issues terminal area notams that drones are in use? Are pilots expected to wade thru the literal 100’s of the mostly perineal and mostly worthless tidbit and trivial data, most of which includes lights that have been out of service for years? This is insanity.

Parrot brand might be your best choice.

I've got one of these that scratched my drone itch.

Don't get a expensive one first. It will get crashed.

https://www.amazon.com/Drone-C...tag=dronesupremac-20

quote:

Originally posted by mjlennon:
Given that a drone has 15 minute duration on average, are we to believe the faa issues terminal area notams that drones are in use? Are pilots expected to wade thru the literal 100’s of the mostly perineal and mostly worthless tidbit and trivial data, most of which includes lights that have been out of service for years? This is insanity.

No they don't unless it's actually necessary. I would assume a commercial drone flight during a specific time in a Class C airspace near an approach or departure area (as an example) certainly may have a NOTAM.

Recreational flyers will be required to take a test, but the test has not been released yet. Commercial flyers need to take a test, pass and register per the Part 107 rules. The Part 107 test does not look too difficult, and includes a lot of stuff that does not apply to drone flyers for some reason. There is no practical test, just a written exam that is multiple choice - choose from three.

Right now, the rules implemented went overboard and are pretty stupid, including the fact that I'm in a Class C airspace and I'm not even allowed to fly at 10 feet in my own back yard. From what I understand, the regulations are being reviewed.

There have been instances where drone flights have caused serious issues at airports, including in England where more than 1,000 flights were canceled over a three day period.

As usual, stupid people ruin stuff for the rest of us, and the government regulations go overboard to the "extremely stupid" level. I'm not saying we do not need some clear rules and regulations.

Don't buy her a drone that flys off a smartphone. The controls suck, not sensitive at all, and the range sucks.

Look up Syma drones on amazon. decent price, spare parts available, comes with controller and can fpv off phone. (limited wifi range)

Don't use headless mode. It's a bad habit that will hurt her flying later. You can use beginners mode (some call camera mode) for a little bit to get her used to it, but then only use that mode mode for detailed camera mode later.

Pick on that has removable battery, and that spare batteries and fast chargers are available. Also one that props and parts are ready available.

If she really likes flying drones after the Syma, you have plenty of routes to go to after Syma, depending on what she wants to do with the next drone. (pictures and videos, general flying, or fpv racing.)

Oh c'mon man, we all use this "daughter", "son", etc. wants this and that. You know you want it! If budget allows, DJI for ease of flying and parts availability. It WILL crash. If it is really for the kiddo, just buy an inexpensive one since the interest will usually wane after a few battery packs.

8 seems awfully young to be giving a drone to, they easily could hurt someone with that.

Maybe 12 or 13 but 8? C'mon now.