Solo - The Smart Drone from 3D Robotics

Has anyone ever thought about anything like that?


It is only more 200 grams compared with the GoPro Hero4 alternative...
 
The 3DR solo is now available in B&H

Unfortunately, the gimbal is not yet available. I am waiting to order the complete kit at one go. Looks like soon it will be available. Has anyone got it? If so, please share your review here.
 
I got my Solo on Friday, here in the UK. I've flown every night since, I'm really enjoying it, it's worked entirely as advertised, auto take off, auto land, the smart shots too, it's like having motion control in the sky, in effect an airborne motorised dolly. Range I don't see as a issue as it'll fly until it's a dot on the horizon for me (albeit I'm using FrSky 5db antennas which cost less than £10).

The gimbal has been delayed again though, so it'll be at least another 3 weeks before I can see the end results in video form from using the Solo.
 
There are some seriously uncomplimentary posts about it over on RCGroups...

Solos are showing up in stock at our local Best Buys pretty frequently, so there's apparently not too much of a shortage at this point.
 
jbregar said:
There are some seriously uncomplimentary posts about it over on RCGroups...
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There's a lot of trolling by DJI owners, many doing "reviews" whilst not even owning a Solo and people trying to use it as a long range FPV rig, which it was never advertised as or intended to be.

I can get 600 metres away in a semi-congested area which is far far further than you need to go for video. Many 3DR owners even before the Solo didn't use RC Groups as there's the DIYDrones forum and for the Solo I prefer http://www.3drpilots.com/ so it's probably better getting views especially from video people from these latter sources. Also there is a Facebook user group here which is very hands on and helpful if you use FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3DRSOLO there's also this smaller group which is going to be dealing more with video production with the Solo: https://www.facebook.com/groups/917799374950780
 
There is an update about Solo gimbal. It would not be available till mid of this month, atleast. They have shared this video
 
The first review (alas it's brief) of the Solo with a gimbal is out. This is from someone who's primarily into video rather than quadcopters.

From what I can gather so far (I've got the Solo, but the gimbal is about a week away) you definitely need to balance the props and use a medium speed. The moves themselves, cable cam, orbit etc do work as advertised, even without a gimbal that's clear.


This is how to balance the props (includes links):

 
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I have the solo & gimbal on preorder from B&H. I am wondering if we need to buy a separate charger for the transmitter battery. There are many accessories now listed in B&H site.

I haven't yet got the prop balancer. Wonder how much impact it has
 
indiawilds said:
I have the solo & gimbal on preorder from B&H. I am wondering if we need to buy a separate charger for the transmitter battery. There are many accessories now listed in B&H site.

I haven't yet got the prop balancer. Wonder how much impact it has
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The Solo comes with a transmitter charger. You can buy a high capacity battery for it though if you wish.
 
indiawilds said:
I have the solo & gimbal on preorder from B&H. I am wondering if we need to buy a separate charger for the transmitter battery. There are many accessories now listed in B&H site.

I haven't yet got the prop balancer. Wonder how much impact it has
Click to expand...

Balancing props can make a WORLD of difference IF your props are out of balance. Best practice is to balance props. A balanced prop is not only less prone to vibration but also more efficient.
 
Well I've had the gimbal a week or so now, but I only got a proper play with it yesterday, I filmed this in under an hour, put the edit together in about 2, the filming was easy with the cablecam, although I did a few manual moves in this too.

 
Great to see this. When did you order your gimbal and from where? I am still waiting for the gimbal.

Have you modified your go pro?
 
indiawilds said:
Great to see this. When did you order your gimbal and from where? I am still waiting for the gimbal.

Have you modified your go pro?
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I ordered from 3DR ages ago, I'd to use a US mail redirect to get it here in the UK.

Yes the GoPro has a 4.4mm lens, I think actually it's the 4.35mm that everyone else is selling, but Backbone.ca sell it as being 4.4... I had a GoPro with the 5.4mm in already, so just switched it over. That way I don't have to remove fisheye so I don't lose the sharpness I would otherwise.
 
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