Great drone maker Syma Toys didn't fail this time as well, producing a beautiful high-end model with a 2MP camera and POV.
Should I buy a Syma X5SW 4CH quadcopter?
Syma X5SW has both advantages and disadvantages. When it comes to a drone with a camera, it is very cool. The video quality is excellent. The only problem is that you need a smartphone with Wi-Fi to watch the broadcast. This is a great gadget within the capabilities of toy drones. Any quadcopter made by Syma Toys is a delight. True, the duration of the flight is very short, and this is actually a problem. The price of the device is low - 61 US dollars. The gadget is worth a try.
Quadcopter Syma X5SW reviews called one of the best manufacturer drones in the toy class. At the time of release, it was the most expensive, although not by much, model, and also the only one to offer an FPV (First Person View) function using Wi-Fi.fi. The quadcopter is available in red, black and white.
The gadget is inexpensive, durable and, according to buyers, so simple that even a ten-year-old child can learn to operate it. Looking at this cute and entertaining drone, it's hard to imagine how much unfavorable criticism it has received.
Meaning that with such a low cost, it's still not worth having too much hope. Many users consider it to be one of the best beginner quadcopters under $100 (after Syma X5C and U818A). This review is an attempt to dig a little deeper and see what it really has to offer.
Syma X5SW quadcopter is a drone with a pre-installed camera. All parts of the device, including the controller and battery, are exact copies of X5SC parts. However, this model differs from its predecessors such as Syma X8C, X8G and X8W. Modifications to the original X5SW series were made in the X5SW Explorers 2 and X5SW-1 models.
Among the advantages of the quadcopter, users name its lightness and stable flight, high landing gear, inexpensive FPV system, good body design, headless mode and smartphone application. Among the shortcomings of the device are high FPV delays and errors, as well as sub-standard flight duration.
Features of the model
The Syma X5SW quadcopter is a unique drone among models under $100. The main reason for this is the ability to control using the first-person view, which can be observed using your own smartphone. This alone more than justifies the cost of the device.
The quadcopter is fairly stable in the air and can record decent video and/or photos. Although the charging time is about 130 minutes, this inconvenience can be easily overcome by purchasing additional batteries.
The duration of the flight is approximately five minutes. This time can be longer or shorter, depending on how active the piloting is, whether there is wind and whether the recording is carried out.
The main problem when launching light mini quadcopters outdoors is the wind. While most drones can easily handle wind speeds of up to 15 km/h, further increase can lead to loss of balance, although some prefer windsurfing.
Inside the package
The set includes:
- Syma X5SW quadrocopter itself.
- Control panel.
- 3.7V 500mAh lithium polymer battery.
- Two pairs of additional propellers.
- Screwdriver.
- USB cable for battery charging.
- Four chassis.
- Four protective frames.
- Wi-Fi camera.
- Mounting clip for smartphone.
- Syma X5SW quadcopter manual.
User-friendly remote control with clear LCD screen
Quadcopter evaluation will be incomplete if the remote control is not discussed. If suddenly the battery is completely discharged during the flight, then this can have unpredictable consequences. Probably all drone users have experienced it for themselves. However, thanks to the detailed LCD screen on the Syma X5SW RC transmitter, this is no longer a problem. The display shows all the necessary flight diagnostics such as Wi-Fi signal strength, battery level, heading and more. It really helps a lot.
User controls are relatively simple. The Syma X5SW RC Quadcopter can fly forward, sideways, up and down, and even allows you to perform aerobatics. After some practice, even beginners will not experience any complications.
Users advise, as with any other quadcopter, to launch the model gradually and only then gain speed and altitude when the control becomes less stressful and much calmer. This will reduce the percentage of collisions, as well as significantly increase the life of the device.
Cameras
The camera is detachable so the user can choose to fly with or without it, increasing the flight time as it does not have its own battery - it draws power from the quadcopter's power source. The difference between the camera of this model and the previous ones is the presence of FPV. The transmission is performed over Wi-Fi, which reduced the price and made the feature more accessible. ATX5SW uses Android or iOS devices as a monitor. To do this, simply download the free application and establish a Wi-Fi connection. The model provides its own Wi-Fi, so it will be easy for the user to connect. The application allows you to take pictures or record videos. Each entry can be up to 30 minutes long. Since the model does not use memory cards for data storage, files are stored directly in the memory of the phone or tablet.
Syma X5SW camera quadcopter with 2MP sensor can capture albeit not HD but incredibly immersive video that some users claim exceeds all expectations. There aren't many drones that offer an FPV image transmission system at such a low cost (the closest competitor is the Hubsan X4 H107D). The ability to control the flight using a smartphone is certainly a significant advantage of this model.
Charging time
One of the possible disadvantages of this device is that the battery requires a very long charge time (about 130 minutes). If the user is already ready to go outdoors to launch, two hours drag on very slowly.
Fortunately, there is a way to deal with this problem - just purchase additional batteries. They are not as expensive and will increase the overall duration of the use of the quadcopter. Typical flight time on a fully charged power source is about fiveminutes.
Headless mode
Model supports Headless control mode - X5SW will fly in the direction of tilting the joystick of the remote control, regardless of where the nose of the quadcopter is currently turned. Users who have tested this feature confirm that it certainly makes flying a drone much easier for beginners, but they do not recommend using it on a permanent basis. Otherwise, the beginner will not be able to master more complex flight modes.
Transmitter
The transmitter operates at 2.4GHz so it will not interfere with FPV. Other quadcopters use 2.4 or 5.8 GHz instead of Wi-Fi for live streaming, which interferes with the transmitter.
Conclusions
Syma X5SW quadcopter is not entirely unambiguous. On the one hand, it only costs $61 and offers first-person control. This is one of the most affordable toy drones that boast FPV. But the first-person view is poorly implemented and has its drawbacks. However, if you look at models with a bug-free FPV function, they cost 10-30 times more than the Syma X5SW, so you can just ignore its weaknesses.
