Here's one for the "Drone Crowd"

[Gym]

A friend & forum member-Joel sent this to me.

The fact that it's waterproof is a big plus for boaters.

 

[CFD3Captain]

Wow, I was expecting it to cost a lot more. It can be pre-ordered for $519 shipped. I didn't look at it much other than the video, but wonder if there are additional batteries to extend your day (20 min isn't much)

 

[Ronnie]

There is already an extensive thread on this subject. I preordered and prepaid mine last weekend. It will be a long wait until February and I'm not confident that they will make that delivery date. The battery is integrated and has a 20 minute life. Once it's depleted you can't use the drone for two hours while the battery recharges.

 

[Glassman]

Ronnie, I'm surprised you pulled the trigger on this one....then again, maybe I'm not. The Kickstarter price is pretty darn good if it does what they say it does.

I would just go nuts waiting though...and I don't think I could live with the recharge time, so I'd want to buy two!

I got a new gimbal for mine and I'm going to try this new app with "Follow Me" and other neat features. This weekend we'll be filming a mega spectacular Memorial Day dirt bike rally / blooper extravaganza!

 

[Craig]

I could see this being a fix for people like me who want the capability of a drone but who don't have the piloting skills or experience to fly one and get decent video. Really like the waterproof aspect too and it apparently floats.

 

[Ronnie]

Follow me app? I need to look into that for my p2v. I have an airdog on order as well but it's ship date is now sometime in September or October for me, I hope. This has already been pushed out at least three months.

As for the lily, I agree with @Craig but also think that if you are going to put one of these things on the air you better know how to fly it or at the very least crash land it safely. I see a lot of new flyers over estimating their abilities and under estimating the distance from other objects like trees or the ground. The inherently stable nature of these multi-copters only makes users Even more confident. The lily and airdog are almost one touch drones. If you have to fly a circle around an object like a wakeboarder while the subject is moving and you are in the boat which is also moving, and while you keep the camera on the subject, you are going to need skills. Over reliance on the tech could end up in a fly away or worse, an accident with injuries. I know the altitude readings on my p2v are often wrong so it makes me question whether the speed and distance readings are correct.

 

[Craig]

I and my boys flew nitro and electric rc aircraft for three years before they boys outgrew it and it was no longer "cool" to go do. I can fly rc fixed wing craft reasonably well and flew taildraggers as well as aircraft with tripod landing gear, but to operate the camera function as well as the aircraft I will never master(never mastered rotary wing craft).I need something that handles the operation of the camera autonomously. If something is so complicated and filled with stress, few will ever want to mess with it as it takes all of the fun out of it. I personally don't want something that I have to wear VR goggles,etc to operate. I'm not filming a Hollywood movie and aren't overly concerned with it being "perfect", I simply want decent video of my kids doing what they enjoy so I can look back at it when they're grown. IMHO, these new platforms are meant to appeal to the majority who feels the same way.

 

[Ronnie]

My biggest concern with the lily is that the battery is integrated so when it does/no longer takes a charge I will either have to replace the battery (I.e., disassemble and soldering) or the entire drone if I want to keep the same functionality.

I started flying nitro powered rc helis over 12 years ago and even for into acrobatic / inverted and fast flight. So flying is generally not a problem but keeping the camera on a subject is.