Quadricopter ControlledWould Drone 2 0Parrot DroneParrot ArParrot QuadcopterSale ParrotHeart ParrotStock ParrotCamera ParrotForwardParrot AR.Drone 2.0 Quadricopter Controlled by iPod touch, iPhone, iPad, and Android Devices -Orange/Blue by Parrot Inc.. From the Manufacturer The Parrot AR.Drone’s autopilot feature, anyone can be an expert as th...Whether they're causing concern amongst Brits or crashing into internationally-renowned landmarks, drones never seem far from the news nowadays. But, most importantly, the flying machines sometimes known as quadcopters are pretty much the best new tech toy you can buy, endlessly fun and friend-impressing in equal measure.If you are interested in these high-tech flying machines and have a park nearby – or an enviable slice of garden where you can get your full drone on – but don't know where to start, then read on, as we've have collected our favourites to cater for every high flyer.Best on a budget: Revell RayvoreDrone flying can be an expensive past-time, but it doesn't have to be.

There are absolutely tiny quadcopters, such as the Nano Hex, which start at just £39.99. These micro drones are great stocking fillers and are fun for a while, but due to their lightweight bodies can be extremely unstable, fast, and difficult to control. They can be mastered, but this takes time and patience.So that's why we'd recommend going with a slightly larger drone to begin with, such as this Revell Rayvore. ar drone 2 lost connectionRevell is well known for making drone kits, but this little fella comes pre-made and ready to fly.ar drone 2 achat belgiqueThe biggest selling point is its indestructibility – crash it into the cold, hard pavement, fences or trees, even stand on it and the drone will endure the torture and come back for more. where can i buy a ar drone

It also has a 50-metre range and four levels of sensitivity to suit beginners and satisfy experts as you get better at it.It's packed in with a standalone controller that packs a 'flip' button also lets you perform simple mid-air tricks. The Rayvore doesn't include a camera – for that, you need to stump up for Revell's X-Spy, which comes in at £99.99.Why's it fly? Durable, kid-friendly and affordableFlight time:10 minutesExpect to pay: £59.99Best for enthusiasts: Parrot BebopThe Bebop Drone is a lightweight flyer from the French wireless firm Parrot, who started the mass-market quadcopter craze back in 2010 with its foam-covered AR Drone. ar drone 2 linux controlDespite this new device's feather-like weight, though, the BeBop is also incredibly robust, with an ABS-reinforced structure.ar drone 2 ios 5Where the BeBop drone demands a higher price is in the numerous sensors and tech-laden additions that are included, such as a three-axis accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, one ultrasound sensor with an eight-metre reach, one pressure sensor and a vertical camera to track the speed. ar drone price hong kong

All of these are analysed automatically to ensure a smooth flight.There are also several modes that aim to keep your drone safe, including an 'Emergency' mode, which makes it land immediately, and a 'Return Home' mode, which uses GPS to bring the quadcopter back to where it took off. They're incredibly useful systems that should stop your flying sessions from ending in early tears, but overall we found it both stable and fast.The Bebop is controlled from a smartphone or tablet application, for proper 'modern plaything' points. To ensure a constant and reliable connection the drone packs two dual-band Wi-Fi antennas, generating its own Wi-Fi 802.11 network, and we never had a problem syncing during our testing. However, if you want to go 'fully pro', you can pair it with the intelligent but thankfully optional £340 'Skycontroller' remote and make a sky-owning system out of it.While other flying-camera makers have gone after enthusiasts, the Parrot Bebop is very approachable to average consumers looking to start shooting aerial video and photos without a big investment.

(There's a good reason why you can find Parrot's drones in major retailers including Best Buy, Apple and Harvey Norman, as well as from mobile service providers.) Made from foam, strong plastic and fiberglass, the Parrot Bebop is the safer, gentler quadcopter that you can pilot with the smartphone in your pocket. In an attempt to capture some of those enthusiasts, however, Parrot perhaps stretched a bit too far, making something that was too pricey for beginners and with not enough features or performance for experienced users. It's good for what it is, but in category that's growing rapidly, it's a tough sell. Drones that came before it, the Bebop can be up and running in minutes. You'll want to charge up a battery, of course, and install Parrot's FreeFlight 3 app on an iOS, Android or Windows device. And if you're flying indoors, you can clip on the protective propeller hull, but really that's about it. There are almost no instructions included in the box, though. To figure out the controls, you can download a user guide from Parrot's site or browse the mobile app's Help section, where you'll find written and video tutorials for the Bebop.

There have been several feature updates to both the Bebop and FreeFlight app, but because the tutorials remain unchanged for the most part, some things you'll have to figure out on your own. With the $499 Bebop (£400; AU$800) you'll get two batteries and one charger; the indoor hull and four additional propellers with a small mounting tool to lock them in place. For an additional $400 (£330; AU$700), you can pick up a Bebop bundled with Parrot's Skycontroller, which can also be purchased separately for $499 (£400; If you're not a fan of flying by touchscreen alone, the Skycontroller is a very large, clunky wireless controller that gives you two joysticks, discrete controls for the camera, a button for taking off and landing and one for emergency motor cutoff, status lights for the battery of the Bebop and the controller and a return-to-home button. Additionally, you can wirelessly pair a tablet or phone with it for first-person-view (FPV) flying. The Skycontroller runs on Android, which allowed Parrot to install the FreeFlight app on it, so you don't need to pair a mobile device to fly -- you just won't have a visual from the camera.

(It also means it takes a minute to boot up before you can use it.) A full-size HDMI output on the side lets you connect an external display to see what the camera sees and also supports VR headsets like the Oculus Rift, completely immersing you for FPV flight. On top of the Skycontroller is an amplified Wi-Fi radio and four antennas allowing you to fly farther -- up to 1.4 miles (2.3km) -- than you can using a mobile device alone, which is up to 820 feet (250 meters). Unless you're in an area free of wireless interference and obstructions, this is more of a theoretical distance (for both, actually) and nothing you should actually attempt. Keep in mind, too, that while you might be able to fly out that far, with the Bebop's brief battery life, someone better be waiting at the other end. Speaking of battery life, the Skycontroller uses the same pack as the Bebop, and when you buy the bundle you get a total of three batteries. Regardless, if you want physical controls as well as increased wireless range, the Skycontroller gives you those things, along with a place to mount a phone or tablet.

There are, however, many options in the vicinity of the $1,000 mark, such as the DJI Phantom 3 Advanced or for GoPro owners, 3DR's Solo -- or any number of other, lesser-known quadcopters. Also, the build quality on my test Skycontroller was a bit iffy given its price, and the thing is really big compared to transmitters for other models. The Bebop's foam body and ABS-reinforced structure might look a bit less polished than other ready-to-fly (RTF) quadcopters, but it is deceivingly tough. The materials keep the Bebop light -- its maximum weight is 410 grams (14.5 ounces). It's compact, too, measuring roughly 12 inches (28cm) square and 1.5 inches (3.6cm) tall. Since the camera is electronically stabilized on three axes, there's no fragile gimbal to worry about should you crash. If you do crash and damage a component, Parrot has made replacement parts available -- from props and batteries to camera and motherboard -- for you to buy and install yourself. Even if you don't crash, you'll probably want to buy another battery or two, some extra propellers and a few spare landing feet (I lost three of four after just a few flights).

The camera is a step up from the one found on its previous models like the AR.Drone 2.0, with an f2.2 fish-eye lens that has a 180-degree angle of view and a 14-megapixel sensor. Though the camera can't physically move, you can digitally pan and tilt it to help you get the shot you're after. It can capture video at 1080p full-HD resolution; Drone 2.0 is limited to 720p. Video is recorded to the Bebop's 8GB of internal storage (there's no microSD or SD card slot) in MP4 format. Photos can be captured as JPEGs or Adobe DNG raw format. Drone 2.0, the Bebop has a GNSS chipset with GPS, Glonass and Galileo built in. The chipset allows the Bebop to return to its take-off location on its own and hover in place 2 meters above the ground. The Bebop can fly in winds up to about 24 mph (40 kmh) and can reach speeds of around 45 mph (75 kmh). When you can't get a GPS lock, such as when you're flying inside, a vertical camera and ultrasound and pressure sensors keep it from drifting while hovering at up to 8 meters (26 feet) above the ground.