Unpacking the FPV DR1 Racing Drone from Airhogs

With Drones being the in thing at the moment, there’s lots of talk about regulation, how high they can fly, where you can fly them etc. But in reality, after having owned a long range drone for a number of years the clouds aren’t where the fun is at all. It’s only really those looking to make an impressive video or two or the thrill of seeing your new toy go further away than you can see. The fun is had down low, darting in and out of trees, the zipping around tight obstacles and really having unhibitied fun without the sensors and anti impact warnings.

That’s real fun!

So when I saw  one of the recent videos from Airhogs I knew I was in for a real treat 🙂 See what I mean! So after unboxing this little bad boy you’ll find inside a controller, a tiny drone and some magnification goggles which you slide your phone into. Batteries are needed for the controller so stock up on the AAA for the long run! You’ll also find a USB cable which took me a little while to figure out where it went to be honest. It’s tiny, which is great and it also means no batteries for the drone, which is also great! Unfortunately there’s not a plug that comes with it but come on, who hasn’t got a USB plug for any number of gadgets in their home. You’ll also get this little kit for when you need to make minor repairs, and you will, because this little bad boy is made for fun and sometimes you’ll fly too close to that wall/curtain/cat haha. You’ll also be the proud owner of snazzy goggles like these. Once you get the app connected to the drone, you slot your phone into the goggles and you can view the drone in first person, through you phone screen, maginified through the goggles. Sounds magnificient and it is once you get used to it! So the drone’s just finishing off it’s charge and you’ll want to make sure the app is all ready to go. I’ve got an Android phone but a simple search of Airhogs FPV will bring up the corresponding app. See here 🙂 It’s really easy to install and it then gives you a step by step guide on how to connect to the drone, setup the controller and a walk through of the flying techniques. With the drone being First Person View on the screen you also have the option to tailor it with a graphic of your choice.   Here’s mine ala cockpit mode:Flying the drone really wasn’t easy, especially with my big clumsy hands but after longer practise, a good charge and searching youtube for some inspiration I finally managed to get a hang of it easily hovering in place. Now there’s two modes on the controller. My advice is stick with beginner mode first off. You don’t want to damage it irrepairably now, because, damage is repairable on this with the extras and tool kit.

I would love to show you my footage but unfortunately my phone was stolen from me just before Christmas and it had all my video on which doesn’t sync over 4g because of the size! Wounded!

However. Here’s a great video from my of my favourite bloggers France from when she went to the launch night (excuse the pun): Airhogs DR1 Drone is available to buy now throughout the UK and I understand in Walmart in America too. I’ve seen some great deals in Tesco and of course there’s always online platforms like Amazon below. [amazon_link asins=’B06X15W1SL’ template=’ProductAd’ store=’pp01b6-21′ marketplace=’UK’ link_id=’56c4457b-ef43-11e7-8b3b-a70c35168d3f’]

I loved flying the DR1, it was a fun way to flying a drone. I only ever used it indoors in actually an empty shop floor (perfect flying space). If we all weren’t so sick this Christmas time we’d have setup a course in the house making the most out of the furniture to dodge and weave around.

There was truly so much fun to had with this and if you’re looking to have fun, with FPV goggles and not worry about taking cinematic shots then you’ll love this. It’s pure fun.]]>