HOVERAir - X1 Self-Flying Camera Drone Combo - Black

This was a gift for my daughter. She absolutely loves it. The functionality is easy and it made some great quality videos for Christmas. She is a photographer and this device will help her take some cutting edge pictures and videos.

The Hover X1 isn’t like my other drones. It is much easier to use which makes it a suitable drone for nearly anyone. I’ve flown several differently styled drones and even my smaller conventional drones that don’t require FAA registration feel more complicated and not as efficient to use as the X1. I power the X1 on with the push of a button and allow it to take off from my palm with another push of the same button. When I’m done filming, I extend my palm underneath the X1 and it gently lands on my hand. No extra steps, just push a button and watch it fly, extend my hand and watch it land. It is that easy and simple to use. The X1 provides several flight mode options. These include: preset mode, manual control, or smart control mode. The two latter modes have in-app unlock requirements. For example, manual control required completion of five flights. Smart Control required completion of ten flights, five in follow and five in dolly track mode. The other modes are nice if I want more granular control, but I plan to use the X1 almost exclusively as a selfie drone, so the preset modes work best for me. The presets are extremely easy and straightforward, which allows me to quickly launch with a couple button presses. There is a small button on the top of the X1 that cycles through the presets which are indicated by labeled LEDs on the chassis. Manual control allows me to use virtual controls to fly through the app and smart control allows me to control the aircraft with hand gestures. I tried manual mode a couple times, but to me it defeats the entire purpose of the X1, which is ease of use. Manual mode provides manual control of the aircraft and camera through the app. In this manner the X1 behaves more like a traditional drone rather than fully automated. Virtual controls appear in the app to control flight and camera. It’s more cumbersome and complicated than using presets but it does offer greater control flexibility and the X1 behaves more lie a regular drone. Smart control relies on hand gestures and is a little more intuitive but still not as easy as preset. There are optional accessories available, like a beacon and joystick controls, but I doubt I’ll ever need them. I specifically wanted the X1 to have a fast and easy to use filming drone. I like that it isn’t engineered to be unnecessarily complicated. To me, presets are the heart of the X1. If anyone does buy the X1 with plans to use it as both a selfie drone and a standard drone, manual control helps facilitate the latter. For a typical flight, I’ll select a preset and the X1 will fly in that manner. If I want a static shot, like a group selfie or other limited movement subject, I’ll use hover. In hover mode, the aircraft stays static in one spot and only spins to follow the target if the target moves out of the frame. It’s good for mostly stationary subjects. Follow mode is good for when I’m active, like biking, running, hiking, etc. In follow mode, the X1 will hover and reliably follow me while filming. The X1 has great collision avoidance during follow mode and tactfully avoids flying into trees, branches, buildings or people while following. There is also a special indoor follow mode for navigating tight indoor spaces. The X1 also remains stable in a slightly breezy flying environment. I wouldn’t try it in gusty winds but I’ve flown it in a mild but noticeable breeze with no impact on the flight or media quality. There are other modes as well, such as birds eye, dolly track, and more but I use hover and follow for the vast majority of my selfies unless trying to be extra creative. Recorded videos look good with no excessive shaking or distracting camera movement. The quality isn’t 4K, nor is it in the same tier as higher end drones, but I personally find the quality to be more than sufficient for casual selfies and recordings. Both the 1080p/HDR and 2K30fps outputs are fine, but I prefer the 2K for improved clarity. The 12mp snapshots are a little more finicky. To me the quality is comparable to a webcam. They look great in good lighting, not so much in less ideal lighting. The benefit of snapshots is they are a great way for everyone to be included in a shot without relying on timers or a stranger to take the photo. The gimbal and stabilization help keep video jitter free and videos have a more professional quality to them thanks to the impactful shooting angles and dynamic zooming. The camera handles lighting well with no graininess in videos, even in less-than-ideal indoor lighting. Very dim lighting and darkness are a different story. The X1 can fly and film decently in a moderately low light. However, any environment without adequate lighting will cause the X1 to refuse to take off and indicate it needs to be moved to an area with more light. Like most drones, noise can be a factor with the X1. The propellers generate a loud whirring sound when flying, which I measured at roughly 80dB. It’s not obnoxiously loud, but it may possibly frighten small children or sensitive animals. The X1 aircraft doesn’t record sound, but there is a mode to record sound through the smartphone. The app then syncs the sound with the recorded video. The sound recording feature is disabled by default but is easily enabled in-app. I actually prefer this method because I’m sure anything recorded directly on the drone would be overpowered by the rotor noise. The HOVERAir X1 has become my go-to drone for filming events and gatherings. It’s easy to use and I like the small compact size and low flight altitude in preset mode. It makes the X1 feel less intrusive than a larger traditional drone. Battery life is a little over 10 minutes of flight time per battery, which is sufficient for a selfie-drone. Extra batteries can be used and this kit includes two batteries. The X1 does have some limitations. It cannot fly over water or reflective surfaces. It cannot fly in darkness. It shouldn’t fly higher than 10 meters and it should remain within range of the phone or controller. It is also subject to the same flight restrictions as regular drones for no-fly zones like national parks and cities like Washington DC. None of these are dealbreakers for me because I have regular drones if I want to do all those things other than flying in prohibited flying areas. Yes, it’s best used a selfie drone but also has limited capability as a regular drone. If looking for a regular drone to fly 100 feet in the air or over water and hazardous terrain, this isn’t the drone for you. However, it is a solid piece of hardware that absolutely excels at its intended purpose. It is a lot of fun to use, everyone who sees it loves it, and I already use it much more often than my other drones.

I’ve been using this drone for about a week now, and I’ve got to say, I love this little thing. At first, I was a bit nervous about trying another drone since I’ve lost one before, but this one is different. It’s not about high speed or flying way out of sight. Instead, it’s built for capturing high-quality photos and videos up close, and it absolutely nails that. I took it on a camping trip with my 7-year-old boys, and they had a blast with it. The drone usually stays within 10 feet of you, or up to 16 feet in bird’s eye mode. Our favorite was the “Orbit” path. It flies out about 5 feet and circles around you. We got some great shots in the forest while standing back-to-back, which made for a really fun circle-style video. The best part is how simple it is to use. It connects to your phone without any problems, and the app lets you learn and unlock even more flight paths that you can assign to the custom button. We tried all the modes and had a lot of fun. I even used it to film myself hitting some golf balls in the backyard. This drone is the perfect little companion for making Instagram reels, vlogs, B-roll, or just capturing memories with the family. It is also great for taking selfies when no one else is around. With 32GB of built-in storage, it can hold plenty of video before you need to move files. Exporting to your phone is quick, and you can choose between 1080p or 2K at 30fps. The video comes out crisp, clear, and smooth. The controls are straightforward. There is one button to power it on, and the others are for preset flight paths. There is also a button to save a custom path to from the app. Once the drone finishes, it always returns to you, and you can simply hold out your hand for it to land itself gently. It has two cameras, one on the front that tracks and follows you and one on the bottom for bird’s eye shots, which adds nice variety. I do like the cage built around the propellers. We did have a minor drop situation where an excited kid wanted to catch the drone from a hand that was already extended ready for the catch and wound up hitting it mid-air, knocking it to the ground. No drones were harmed in the making of that video. Better yet, no kids were harmed as the cage protected both the kid and the drone when being knocked off course and onto the ground. The app is a nice bonus. You can create a profile, share your videos, and see what others have made for inspiration. It also has tutorials, HoverCare information, restricted flight area maps, and your own Hover album where your media is stored. The drone folds up nicely when you’re finished using it and can easily be stored in any bag or drawer for next time. I found this drone to be a lot less noisy than other drones I have heard flying around before. The combo pack is a great value because it comes with two batteries, each lasting about 8 to 10 minutes, plus a charging dock and a USB-C cable. Overall, I would recommend the HOVERAir X1 to anyone who wants a simple, beginner-friendly drone that creates amazing short videos without a big learning curve.

Surprisingly capable “flying camera”. It’s less of a drone and more of a fulfillment of a wish for someone who wants someone to follow them around recording them but doesn’t have the means… Positives: Very solid sensor, I was pleasantly surprised by the video quality. (I’m not a video expert, but it can easily pass my eye test as a solid phone camera video as long as its not blown up too big) It’s nearly effortless to fly once you get the idea that it will do its own thing, you just need to tell it which path to take, or which type of pattern to follow. (and use your hand as the “drone pad”) It has nearly 30GB of built in storage, which at 2.7K 30fps or 1080p 60fps, is going to fit a good amount of video. It tracks surprisingly well, I told it to follow my almost 4 year old, and she kept running under/near it, and it would swing quickly to find her if she was out of its view for a quick moment, while keeping relatively the same distance if it was in follow mode. Negatives: It’s quite loud for its size, but I guess that's expected with the size of the rotors, they have to crank up some RPM to keep the thing airborne. The app seems a bit clunky. (but easy enough to navigate/change settings or modes) I would easily recommend it to someone who is into park skateboarding/pickup sports for some awesome follow shots, or maybe for some great vacation photos/videos!

I love the concept of the HoverAir X1 as personal recording device or as the marketing states “a pocket-sized flying camera”. Whereas, a traditional drone is meant for all kinds of aerial footage of landscapes with some options for personal recording, the X1…hovers. There are accessories that are compatible with the X1 that can turn it into a traditional drone. Its no DJI Mini, but its not meant to be either. And I think that adds to its appeal. The biggest feature shock the HoverAir X1 has that baffles me at this price point is ‘Follow-Me’ mode; you instantly switch into your favorite TV Reporter personality! Audio is recorded through your phone or if you have headphones connected to the phone it will record through that too. It is possible to launch the drone and use the pre-programmed quickshots sans the app, but by using the app you can change the default settings for each of them and as stated record audio. You have the ability to change Resolution, distance the cameras stays from the subject, and how long the recording lasts. The noise cancelling works really well, the sound of the blades which is quite high pitch as drones are, is cut out from the audio feed. I could see this being a child's first “drone” or something nifty for going on a hike. Even for some small business purposes. Camera quality is decent. You definitely want to be outside and have good lighting. There was a lot of noise on the from the foliage, and testing indoors in what I would think was good lighting, the camera definitely struggled on quality. On startup it specifically states not to fly in low-light, when raining, and tight spaces. If using indoors, make sure it is static or has large open space. While the tracking does seem to be good, it cannot understand stairs or poles. I started at the top of my stairs and it watched me go down and instead of panning around it didn’t maneuver around the hand rail or post. When setting up directly in front of the stairs, still at the top, it didn’t follow me down, it merely just descended in place, but then it got to close to the handrail and lost tracking and landed on the ground below. Follow distance was set on Medium, so possibly having it closer would have done so. However, it seems to like gradual changes in direction all around. Battery Life is going to be your biggest enemy though, as each only lasts 11 minutes of continuous use. The user guide warns these are Lithium-Polymer batteries and not Lithium-ion, which means you cannot just through it on the charger right after use as the battery needs to cool down first. And the same goes after charging, they have to cool down before use…such are Li-Po batteries. It is also advised to charged with no higher than a Power Delivery (PD) 18w rated charger (not included). I would pay attention to this as Li-Po batteries are not like Li-Ion that can be left charging even after reaching 100% for a little while. Still not great for Li-Ion, but even worse for Li-Po. So if you don’t have a PD rated charger, you will want to pay extra close attention to when these finish charging. Thankfully, most chargers you have from the past few years have a minimum rating of 5v/3amp producing 15w or 9v/2amp producing 18w. The HoverAir X1 definitely has a niche in the market to fill and after flying regular drones for many years, it was strange how simple it was to get going out of the box. Reminding myself this is a “pocket-size flying camera” helped to keep things into perspective. The biggest drawback I walked way with while keeping that in mind is the decibel level of the blades. If it was at least half the decibels it would be a huge hit if you are thinking of taking this in a public area that is congested, but as is you are definitely going to get a lot of stares as people take notice. Durability seems to be pretty good. It soooo light weight so it should stand the test and since you are actually flying it (at least not with out the accessories to do so) it doesn’t move all that fast unless you are.