Drones have come a long way over the past few years. What started as specialized equipment has now entered the mainstream, quickly becoming the new must-have toy for kids and adults alike.
With so many drones out there, all with different price points and features, it can be confusing to determine what is best for your needs.
Whether you're looking for the best drone for families, a travel drone for your next big trip, or you want something perfect for beginners, you're in the right place! We’ve rounded up the most important things to look for in each drone so you can purchase one with confidence.
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Best drones for families and kids
Best drone for sports
Best drones for travel
Best drone for real estate
Best camera drone for photography and video
Best drone for teenagers
Best budget drones
Best overall drone
Best drones for families and kids
When looking for a family drone, it’s important to find something that’s stable and easy to fly. Look for drones that have smart control features like one key start, and can hover. Headless mode is another great family-friendly feature that makes it easier to fly the drone.
Look for something with a high flying time or an extra battery. You want to be able to maximize the amount of time your drone can stay in the air to have as much fun as possible. For safety, make sure that the drone you purchase has guards for the blades and an emergency stop button.
Kids love drones that can do tricks, so look for something that can do a mid-air flip and a 360 circle around the pilot. Some drones can even be controlled with hand or body gestures - perfect for the aspiring Jedi or superhero!
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Originally $199.99, now $169.99 only for a limited time
The Owl is our Best All Around Drone and comes with an extra battery.
Originally $249.99, now $199.99 only for a limited time
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Best drone for sports
When purchasing a drone for sports, look for something with “follow me” mode or a customizable, pre-programmable flight path. This way you won’t miss any of the action! You’ll also want to get a drone with altitude hold function, so all you need to focus on is lining up the best shot.
Best drones for travel
When looking for the best drone for travel, you’re going to want to find something with a good camera. A drone with a 720p to 4k camera will ensure you get all the best travel pictures and videos.
You’ll also want to consider the size of any drone you travel with. Smaller and lighter drones take up less space in your luggage and are easier to travel with. Make sure the drone also comes with a protective carrying case so that it will arrive at your destination safely and securely.
Check out The Cardinal which is small and has a 5MP 4K HD camera. It can fly for up to 20 minutes, and has a variety of features like headless mode, altitude hold, one-key return, 360 circle and gesture controls to capture the best photos and videos of your travels.
Originally $199.99, now $99.99 only for a limited time
If you’d prefer for your travel drone to have two cameras, so you can capture what’s around as well as what’s directly below the drone, then you’ll love The Hummingbird.A
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Best drone for real estate
If you want to purchase a drone to use in real estate, then a quality camera is key. Look for drones with a 4K camera that are a little bigger and heavier. The drone will be more stable in the air, leading to sharper images and video.
Some features to look for when buying a drone for real estate include a flying time of at least 15 minutes, one-key take off and landing for ease of piloting, altitude hold and 360 circle functions.
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Best drone for photography and video
If you’re into photography and videography, then you’ll want a drone with the most powerful camera possible - at least 4K. You should also make sure that the drone is stable when it flies, so heavier and larger drones are best.
When planning out the perfect shot, you’ll want to be able to pre-program your drone's flight path using waypoint navigation to capture what you have in mind. Also look for features that make the drone easy to fly like uncontrolled low power return, one key takeoff and landing, gesture control, and follow me mode.
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Best drone for teenagers
Teenagers want an easy-to-fly drone with a capable camera. Look for drones with features like headless mode, one-key takeoff and landing, altitude hold, and one-key return. Teens will also love the novelty of features like gesture and palm controls and mid-air flips.
The best drones for teens also include features like follow me mode, and waypoint navigation to make it as easy as possible to pilot the drone.
Quality cameras are important to teens, so make sure the drone is equipped with 4K cameras that can capture video and HD pictures from around the drone and directly below.
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Best budget drones
Sometimes you don’t want to break the budget on a new drone. What’s absolutely essential in any drone is that it’s easy to fly. Look for features like headless mode, one key takeoff and landing, altitude hold, 360 circle, and one key return.
The Cardinal is the perfect budget travel drone because of its size and weight. It can fly for up to 20 minutes, and has a 5MP 4K HD camera to capture every angle of your travels.
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Best overall drone
Overall, look for features like headless mode, one key takeoff and landing, 360 circle and one-key return so that the drone is easy to fly. Search for something with two cameras to be able to capture what’s around the drone and also what’s underneath.
Novelty features like a mid-air flip are fun and will keep everyone entertained. Look for drones with extra batteries to cut down on the amount of time you need to wait while the batteries are charging.