Yuneec’s Typhoon Q500 Drone Review

In terms of consumer quads, a few major players dominate the space, and Yuneec has earned its seat at the table with the Yuneec Typhoon Q500. As a 4K drone developed for beginner pilots with professional-grade photography aspirations, the Yuneec Typhoon is equipped with intelligent features that make capturing aerial videos and images a very simple process.

On top of that, the Yuneec Typhoon Q500’s transmitter comes as an all-in-one package with joysticks and an LCD screen combined as a single unit (no more having to worry about using your phone and wondering if it has enough battery!). For under $700, you’ll have have the ability to capture high quality footage, and thanks to sophisticated fail-safe mechanisms you won’t have to worry about crashing. As we’ve said before, the Typhoon Q500 4K is like the Mercedes Benz C class of the drone world. It’s not the ABSOLUTE best… but it’s a really nice car and will get you where you need to go at a reasonable price.

People often ask us – why should I buy this over a DJI Phantom? So let’s clear that up right now. If you are comfortable with flying a more advanced quadcopter that runs $1200, you should definitely go with the Phantom 4. However, if you’d rather learn the ropes on something a little more beginner friendly, easier on the wallet, and you don’t mind a slightly more sluggish flying experience, then the Yuneec Q500 is the quad for you.

Last Updated: November 9, 2017

Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4K Drone Specifications

Flight Time	25 min.
Camera	Video: 4K (30FPS), 12MP
Flight Speed	8m/s
Range	400m
Features	Smart Mode,（Watch Me & Follow Me, Angle Mode and Home Mode
Controller	10 channel 2.4GHz with 5.8 GHz video downlink

 

| Check out the Yuneec Typhoon Q500 on Amazon! |

 

Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4K Drone Review

Photography

If you are a real estate agent trying to get top-notch videos or a weekend warrior just trying to get some street cred on YouTube, then you’ll need be needing 4K. Thankfully, the Q500 delivers on this front.

The camera is located under the craft and offers a 115-degree field of view, 4K ultra HD at 30 fps as well as 1080p full HD. The craft controller gives the operator several advanced options of tweaking the video configurations for the camera, but beginners can use some standard preset settings.

The Q500’s camera lens captures a view free of distortion and possesses an incredibly high level of detail while capturing videos and pictures. Aside from 4K videos, the drone enables its pilot to take 1080p at 120 frames per second slow motion video, which is an extra feature highly coveted by videographers. Making the changes between slow motion and 4K shooting needs little navigation on the controller which is capable of making instantaneous changes to various modes if necessary.

Design and Features

Compared to the Mavic and even the DJI Phantom 4, the Yuneec Q500 is big. The Q500’s size gives it a solid feeling and noticeable stability in the air. However, this also means that you won’t be able to throw this guy in your backpack and go like some other options on the market.

The Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4K is approximately 16.5 by 8 inches in length and height respectively, and weighs a little less than 4 pounds, which includes the battery and payload.

Autonomous Flying

The Q500 comes with two autonomous modes to aid amateur pilots: namely the “Follow Me” and “Watch Me” modes. “Follow Me” mode basically links the drone to the pilot, allowing the pilot to move freely while the quad automatically follows. “Watch Me” mode centers the camera on the pilot, regardless of which direction the Q500 flies to constantly maintain the pilot in its focus and field of view. These modes give the pilot the option of simplifying the flying process if they choose to use them.

Personal Ground Station Controller

The ST10+ Personal Ground Station controller which comes with the Q500 holds the required joysticks, buttons and configurations needed for all tasks such as flying and landing the quadcopter, turning on its capabilities as well as taking pictures and videos. The controller has a 5.5-inch color touchscreen that allows the user to view everything the drone captures in the air. The screen is primarily meant for viewing live videos, but it also feeds the operator with frequent updates on the drone’s battery life, altitude, speed, and distance from the operator among other.

Flight Performance

The best attribute of the Q500 is its dead-simple flying. The various modes make it easy for amateurs to make use of training wheels while just starting out, and the controller’s dual joysticks are simple to use. In a few minutes of flying, even a beginner will start to get comfortable with piloting the Q500. The two smart modes, “Follow Me” and “Watch Me” are highly suitable to help beginners pilot the craft and get a better feel of flying. In “Angle” mode, the Q500 can reach a maximum speed of 17 mph and can max out at 22mph when in “Follow Me” and “Watch Me” modes. Simply put, a person with very little experience can successfully operate this drone.

Despite possessing admirable features, the smart mode may not always be beneficial. Unlike the Phantom 4, the Yuneec Typhoon Q500 does not come with obstacle avoidance. So there may be situations where the flying terrain is full of too many obstacles to rely on the smart modes.

Build & Quality

The Q500 possesses an advanced construction as well as a robust structure. The drone has a durable and firm frame as well as heavy-duty arms and legs aimed at providing a high degree of stability as compared to other drones of similar design. The Q500 also maintains its new look due to its hardy structure that prevents it from wearing out quickly even after clocking multiple hours of flight time as well as take off and landings on various terrains.

Battery Life & Charge Time

The drone comes with a single 5,400 mAh battery which offers a maximum of approximately 25 minutes of flight time with an average of 20 minutes for intense flying or flying with either “Follow Me” or “Watch Me” modes activated. The Q500 also comes with an extra battery allowing the operator to switch between them as necessary. A Q500 battery takes a maximum of 2 hours to recharge fully.

Conclusion

The Q500 has almost everything a new pilot could want from a drone. Its dead-simple to fly. It doesn’t break the wallet. It has advanced smart modes. And it shoots 4K video!

If your aim is to take expert-level pictures and images from the sky without having to pay top dollar, then the Q500 is worth taking into consideration. Simply put, for the reasonable price of under $700, the Q500 is a solid deal.

| Check out the Yuneec Typhoon Q500 on Amazon! |

 

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