When most people think of drones, they envision the controversial unmanned aerial vehicles used by the military. But over the past few years a number of companies have come out with resourceful and playful consumer versions that you can own without being a member of the armed forces. Parrot set the trend at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show with the unveiling of its AR Drone 2.0 device and now others have followed. Curious to know what other high-tech, high-flyers are out there for purchase? Hop in the cockpit as we put you onto the 10 Best Drones You Can Buy Right Now. Watch This Newly Unearthed 2013 Kanye West Interview Remy Ma on "shETHER": 'I'm Just Not Particularly Proud of It'Jacques Greene and How To Dress Well Find Soulful Electronic Magic on "True"Lil Peep Mashed Up With The Pixies Sounds Surprisingly GreatChance The Rapper Donated $1 Million To Chicago Public Schools, But That's Just The First StepHere's What It Was Like To Be At Rihanna's Biggest Fashion Show YetLivestream Rihanna's Fenty Puma Fashion Show in ParisPROMO

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, B*tch!' at Him During GameNike Made a Hijab for Muslim WomenFuture Took His Crew On a $20K Reebok Shopping SpreeUniversity of California Basketball Team Gets Exclusive Air Jordan 13sCould These Be the Fastest Nikes Ever?parrot ar drone for sale ukSneakerheads: Stop Wearing Good Shoes With Trash OutfitsComplex Doesn't Work Without WomenStudy: Black Defendants More Likely to Be Wrongfully Convicted of Murder Than WhitesWikiLeaks Publishes Alleged CIA Documents That Expose How the Agency Hacks iPhones and TVsThis Snowboarder Seemed Pretty at Peace With a Branch Going Through His FaceVery Helpful Study Reveals Countries Where Men Lie the Most About Dick Sizeparrot ar drone firmware upgradeFor me, it all started with the Hubsan X4 H107C, a palm-sized quadcopter with a low-res camera that can be picked up for less than $40 (or about AU$100 or £45). parrot ar drone uk stockist

It has a paltry 5 to 7 minutes of flight time and I crashed it loads, but I was hooked and wanted to fly as much as possible. This is why quadcopters, multirotors, unmanned aerial systems (UAS), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), drones or whatever you want to call them, have become so popular: Unlike radio-controlled planes and helicopters, the entry cost can be very low, the learning curve shallow and, depending on the size, they can be flown in your backyard or living room.In the course of buying and maintaining my own and testing and reviewing drones for CNET, however, there are some things I've learned that you should consider before entering the hobby -- even if your plan is to just start with a toy drone like I did. But, before I get into all that, here are my go to recommendations for consumer drones at the moment. Along with the Hubsan X4, I'm a fan of the Syma X5C because it's inexpensive at around $40 (or about AU$50 or £35). You can easily find parts and extra batteries for it, and its size -- while still small and light -- makes it easier to keep track of outdoors than smaller models.

It even has a camera on it, albeit a toy one. For flying indoors, I recommend Parrot's Minidrones and Air Hogs' Millennium Falcon. The former, available in a few different styles, starts at $100 (or about AU$150 or £100) and is controlled with a smartphone or tablet. More importantly a set of sensors helps them hover in place unassisted -- very handy when navigating around the house. The Falcon is made of foam and its propellers are surrounded by the body, so furniture -- and fingers -- are safe. Though you can certainly fly the Hubsan and Syma inside, the Parrot and Air Hogs quads are just easier. DJI is the leader in flying cameras and all of the Phantom 3 quadcopters are excellent choices for those looking to get started in aerial photos and video. Of course, the more money you spend, the better the features get. That includes its newest model, the $1,399 Phantom 4, which is able to avoid obstacles by stopping or going around them if possible -- all on its own. If you don't like the sound of dropping a lot of money on a camera that's permanently attached to a drone, check out the Yuneec Q500 4K.

It's big, but the camera can be removed and used with an included handgrip giving you the option to shoot gimbal-stabilized video and photos on the ground and in the sky. Unless you're really a tinkerer and know your way around a soldering iron, I recommend first-time buyers stick to ready-to-fly (RTF) models. The thing is, when it comes to racing drones, most people in the hobby build their own, so I don't have a solid RTF racing drone recommendation for beginners yet. That's not to say they don't exist, but they aren't as abundant as drones for photography or just having fun. Walkera is one of the bigger brands making RTF racing drones and at CES 2016 it announced a couple of promising new models: the Furious 320 (pictured) and F210. I've flown the company's Runner 250, and while the price is right at around $300, it isn't a good option for newbies (check the reviews on Amazon and you'll see what I mean). But if you're interested, I would recommend at least stepping up to the Advanced version.

that sell complete kits to assemble yourself. The latter will also build a racing quad for you with the parts you want. Like many things in life, you get what you pay for with drones: The more money you spend, the more features you get that make flying easier. For example, DJI's Phantom 3 Standard, while a good choice for its current $500 price and certainly not a bad starting point, lacks sensors found on the higher-end Advanced and Professional versions to help it hover in place when indoors or without a GPS lock. If you're just starting out, GPS is invaluable and worth paying more for if you're looking for stable flying out of the box, especially for photos and video. GPS is something you won't typically find on toy-grade drones, and although they're good to practice with, new pilots might find toy drones to be incredibly frustrating. Battery life is still the suck when it comes to drones. DJI is promising up to 28 minutes for its Phantom 4, which is long for the category. The average for camera drones is around 20 minutes or less.

Toy drones typically get between 5 and 7 minutes of good flying, though some can hit the 10-to-12-minute range. While there are solutions in the works from companies such as Intelligent Energy with its hydrogen fuel cells, a drone maker actually has to adopt the technology to make it available to consumers. Note, too, that when a manufacturer gives you a "flight time" that it reached that time under ideal testing conditions in a controlled environment. The faster you fly, the more weight you add, the stronger the winds you're flying in, the quicker the drone will sap its battery. So you just dropped $1,000 on a new drone. You're not done spending. At the very least you'll want to buy a couple extra batteries, some spare propellers and prop guards and perhaps a quick charger, so you're not waiting hours to fly again. You're more than likely going to crash, which could lead to repair costs -- either for replacement parts or shipping it back to the manufacturer for them to repair. (This is exactly why DJI now offers crash insurance for new drones.)

When you're shopping for your drone, see how easy it is to find replacement parts, batteries and other accessories and take note of the prices. Also, be cautious when buying third-party parts, especially batteries and chargers, which might not be the same quality as those made by the drone manufacturer. When you're out flying in a public space, or even in your own backyard, anyone who sees you doing it will think you're spying on them or someone else. You could be standing in the middle of a 20-acre field with no one in sight and your drone no more than 50 feet directly overhead and you might end up answering questions about being a peeping tom. I say this because it's happened to me. And along those same lines....It doesn't matter if you're the safest pilot around or that you could do more damage hitting someone with a baseball than with some of the drones I've flown, but that won't stop onlookers from feeling a threat to their safety. And, frankly, that's completely fair. Nothing about plastic blades spinning at high speeds screams "safety" and then you add in the potential for unpredictable movements or system failures, whether from 400 feet or at eye level, and you've got something pretty scary for those living by what the media feeds them.

To help calm some fears, US-based pilots may want to get an Academy of Model Aeronautics membership. Along with a whole host of benefits including access to AMA-member flying sites, a membership gives you $2,500,000 comprehensive general liability insurance as well as $25,000 accident/medical coverage, $10,000 maximum accidental death coverage and $1,000 fire, theft and vandalism coverage for members. I live in New Jersey and work in New York and it's becoming increasingly difficult to find places to safely -- and legally -- fly. US national parks are off limits and in New Jersey so are all state parks. The county and municipal parks around me all have different regulations regarding RC aircraft. And then there are the no-fly zones, which makes much of New York off-limits as well as just dangerous, because of buildings, people and cars. Before you buy a drone -- even a toy one if you plan to fly outside -- you'll want to visit AirMap or Mapbox to check no-fly zones for places you intend to fly.

In the US, you can also download the FAA's B4UFly app to check your planned location. These don't cover state or local ordinances, though, so you'll still need to check them to see if you're OK to fly. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is requiring anyone who wants to fly an unmanned aerial system (UAS) that weighs between 0.55 pounds (250 grams) and 55 pounds (approximately 25 kilograms) for recreation or hobby to register with the agency. Civil penalties for not registering may include fines up to $27,500. Criminal penalties may include fines up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment for up to three years.Most sub-$100 UASs fall under this weight. For example, all of these toy drones weigh in under that half-pound mark. A kitchen or postal scale can be used to weigh your drone or you can check with the manufacturer. Also, this applies to both store-bought and homemade aircraft.The registration cost is $5 and it can all be done online in a matter of minutes. You don't have to register each aircraft you own, just yourself and you'll be given a number to attach to what you're flying.