Bebop with Skycontroller Review

[@PrimatePrime]

This is the most complete description of the functionality of the Bebop Drone that I've seen so far. Excellent video. I find myself gravitating increasingly to this drone.

[@Rcschim]

magaiver smith you're right. there are different options to enter this hobby. I'm not sure if a beginner will be ok to start with a mini quad in manual mode, maybe attitude mode will work. In my next video I wll try to cover these two aspects and you will see a flight footage comparison of miniquad vs bebop...

[@pdtech4524]

Classic drone, way ahead of it's time, I still have one of these! 👍😎

[@pdtech4524]

@Patrick Baptist Nice one! I almost had the full set lol I had a blue bebop with yellow skycontroller and picked up a cheap brand new red bebop with red skycontroller which I sold on for double what I paid! Would like a bebop 2 really for the extra flight time.👍

[@pdtech4524]

@Patrick Baptist No, keeping my original blue bebop and yellow skycontroller, they're getting rare now and will become collectable.

[@pdtech4524]

@Patrick Baptist Have you ever found a good battery that gives decent flight time? My flying buddy gadgetman 404 got 18 minutes flight time out of a 2500mah gifi battery!

[@BMSWEB]

Fantastic video, I've aways wondered about the Bebop, looking forwards to a bright sunny day video from it. Fantastic

[@Rcschim]

Hi Paul, thanks. It's a really smart little device. Just had a quick flight in the morning (on my way to work) in a tiny park while sun was coming up (the ground still frozen as my fingers were in a few minutes). Just used my Android phone an took some nice footage. Will upload it later. The device really deserves some good shots in sunlight - in overcast conditions it really doesnt "shine" ;-) greets, Mario

[@BMSWEB]

I loved the fact you went into so much detail about it. I was in the Apple store a few days ago and saw it for the first time in the flesh so to speak. I really liked the form factor and can imagine having it in the car all the time just in case. You're the first person to review it that I trust so I'm anxiously waiting on some nice bright day follow up footage :) Fantastic Job Mario :)

[@ozmosyd]

Excellent intro to bebop for the peeps looking at the quad cop. Nice Job chap!

[@Rcschim]

+Ozmo Syd thanks Ozmo, a few days ago they already announced the Bebop2 - which will fly longer and faster. So if you're really considering to buy it - patience might pay off. But as I know Parrot it will take some weeks or month until the Bebop2 will be available... (or they will surprise us at xmas?)

[@davefolts1566]

I'm impressed Schim... For me, it came down to waiting for one of these to arrive in the USA vs. purchasing a 3DR IRIS+ and get better long range RF performance with no lag time. I'm not convinced these Bee-Bops will get any safer than a ARDrone-2 at a range from pilot of more than 100meters. WiFi was just NOT designed to be controlling a "real-time" system in this manner, and I had hoped Parrott would have also opted to install a R/C radio module, or at least offered the option of an R/C radio cmd link. You mentioned WiFi channel scanning and selection... things we don't need to concern ourselves with a FHSS R/C radio command link schema.

[@Rcschim]

Thanks Dave. What are you impressed btw? It's really too early for me to conclude on the range and control confidence. Just walked my way to work and could take it out of my backpack and fly a pack in a park while sun was out finally. Of course I wouldnt wanna fly away significantly with just the phones wifi. Also you can't really fly fpv off the display of an 5" android (when you also have your thumbs on it for control). But you can fly mixed LOS and some frame checking on the live video feed. you can estimate better if you fly over- or into that tree... I'm pretty sure with the skycontroller they maxed out what you can expect from wifi. Wifi channel scanning: this is something your dont have to bother for control link - but definitly have to check on the video side! here this wifi connection is even more "secure" against double usage of one of the 8chs most 5.8 VTX can tune in... this coin has some many sides... I really have to test this many times more.

[@davefolts1566]

RCSchim The impressive piece is the electronic steering of the camera Field of View. Now, if the Bee-Bop could fly FPV like the 250mm racer-quads, then that would be quite a feat. But without a real-time control link, I think the Bee-Bop is exactly as you say; a flying camera. Agreed, a many faceted coin, Parrott has been able to get non-R/C knowledgeable customers into flying..although its "quasi" R/C. Lastly - I was thinking of a test plan for you... mostly testing link range when there are other WiFi emitters near the Bee-Bop. In a crowded 2.4 or 5.8 GHz spectrum, such as one might find in the standard USA city backyard or street, I'd guess there would be WiFi emissions from just about every house....limiting the Bee-Bop control range. But its sure worth testing.

[@bdseidler]

It's amazing how much technologie they can cram into a little package.

[@Roberto-mu1wd]

Excellent review. You mentioned the package was 900 euros. Now it's down to 330 euros at Argos stores here in the UK. The Bebop 2 is about 630 euros and comes with FPV goggles too. I'm waiting for a possible Autumn discount sale!

[@Rcschim]

+James Emery i would not go for the bebops anymore. The bb2 is not much better. Their cam quality is just not good enough anymore... check cheap phantoms or spark or mavic...

[@Roberto-mu1wd]

Thanks for your advice and I'll consider that. The RTH only works occasionally, maybe 2 times out of 10. Sometimes stops halfway and I take over manually. Any ideas why that might be? I always check the 2 GPS pointers are green.

[@mikeellicott6977]

Great explanation ! thank you so much for such a clear review i look forward now to connecting mine, and flying

[@PatrickBaele]

mooie uitleg,rustig,bedachtzaam,oog voor detail; top !

[@Powershotknecht]

cool! knn man auch das handy auf den Skycontroller stellen?

[@Rcschim]

Ja, ab 12:09 siehst wie es montiert wird. Wenn Du meinst ob man es hochgestellt montieren kann: nein - die App ist im Querformat...

[@daviddrysdale8866]

Thank you - What a lovely review. Any more input. please let me know RC. Davy

[@TobermoryCat]

It's clear why they need an internal fan as its doing a lot of work for times when its not flying. The image stabilisation is remarkable. Interesting review, thanks.

[@Rcschim]

I bet that Gopro5 will have something similar just in their cam. Would be awesome. By the rate the chips increase in performance this should be possible soon...

[@TobermoryCat]

Apple are up to something in action cameras - new patents and a drop in Gopro stock price. Things move fast. A software/processor solution to 3 axis gimbals would be great - less weight, longer flight time, less stuff to crush in crashes etc.

[@MrVzlatko]

Im new owner of bebop. Thanks for useful video ! Regards from Zagreb!

[@ThatHPIGUY]

Great video as usual mate, I want to see some flips haha.

[@Rcschim]

Thanks, Flips are easy here. Just a button to press. I just didn't want it so risky on the first flights :-)

[@jimmac]

RCShim was doing flips all the time, it's the damn software that stabilized it :)

[@changtruong7617]

Just bought new for $350 shipped with skycontroller in USA. does the skycontroller also increase video range? Also with small HDMI Monitor have less lag than ipad/iphone?

[@hotliner]

... really nice little quad with a lot of gimmicks :-) ... can't wait to see it flying the first "long range" FPV flight :-) Because of the short flight time I expect a range about 1 to 1,5km because flying back as well ;-)

[@davefolts1566]

Hotliner: You will lose this thing quick UNLESS you fly it at least 2KM from any other WiFi signals. This is really a close-in, LOS unit. I have experimented with my AR Drone on WiFi on a football field and the range was just about 25 yards... and was it ever "laggy". Get a drone with an R/C cmd link and you will be happy. Or... try an AR Drone with a miruMod (an add-on that uses an R/C transmitter to control the unit).... you will get my point then.

[@hotliner]

Dave Folts ... I'm fully agree, using RC to control a drone is really the better way as using WiFi :-)

[@Guruvey]

Great presentation, I learned a lot. Thank you!

[@marlonalves6808]

great video ! I saw what HE HAS Integration with Oculus Rift , How And Made THIS Connection ?

[@Rcschim]

Marlon Alves As far as I know Oculus dk1 works or worked in the first demos. Currently they wait for the final consumer version of oculus and maybe support it than via firmware upgrade.

[@marlonalves6808]

Thanks Man!!!!

[@blackmennewstyle]

That is a pretty impressive piece of technology! Android app works better than the iOS app! Very cool lol Pretty nice idea to use the fisheye angle and digital stabilization! Too bad wifi (+ usb) + OS + app always give you some bad latency! Thanks for sharing and have a great week

[@kennethalisson2846]

Hi.can you control the bebop with just your smartphone. ?without any sky controler?

[@Rcschim]

kenneth alisson sure. you're using the touchscreen and virtual joysticks and/or the sensors of your phone. It works but it's not as precise as the skycontroller sticks. plus the range of the phone/tablett is limited (see my description here to find links to range comparisons...

[@richardk100]

Hi, would you recommend the Bebop over something like the new Yuneec Q500?

[@Rcschim]

thats hard to compare. depends on what you want from such a drone. if you are a casual drone pilot (say an action seeking climber, mountainbiker,...) that wants something easy for the backpack where you dont have to know much about the techstuff, take the bebop with you in the backpack. if you want to do some serious aerial filming (but you just start and have a tight budget) take a Phantom2-class drone (like this nice looking Yuneec). one main advantage of the bebop here is it's size and weight (as mentioned in video: can be flown under "toy" regulations here - might be interesting as drone laws get more and more aggressive...

[@bgf123]

hallo schim! kurze frage: ich habe in einem paroot forum gelesen, dass es angeblich 2 versionen der bebop1 gibt?! ich meine nicht die neu erschienene bebip 2, also die weiße, sondern die ältere blaue. weißt du etwas davon?! würde mich über antwort freuen, wie erkennt man den unterschied?? LG

[@Rcschim]

+Fat Fab Sorry, da bin ich grad nicht am Laufenden. Ich muss meine Bebop (wahrscheinlich V1) wiedermal klarmachen. Auf alle Fälle muss mal ein vernünftiger Akkuanschluß angelötet werden, damit ich "normal" Akkus verwenden kann - die orgi Akkus sind nicht gut. Sonst ist das Ding ein super Gimmick. So klein, dass man es fast immer mit im Rucksack haben und schnell mal mit dem Smartphone wo fliegen lassen kann...

[@JonathanKardjoe]

Hi, as I am looking for FPV glasses, I saw that you tried the Fatshark DOMINATOR HD on it and didn't worked at the time, can you tell if now you were able to use them with the bebop or if it still didn't work? Thank you :)

[@Rcschim]

Jonathan Kardjoe hi, nope didn't get it to work with the skycontroller. but this is the failure of domHD I think... with a small hdmi capeable LCD it worked... better option (if you dont already own the domHDs) would be the headplay HDs probbably

[@JonathanKardjoe]

RCSchim So what you mean is that with an HDMI cable it should work no? I just so the Headplay, looks great for the price, thank you

[@Rcschim]

Jonathan Kardjoe I did test Skycontroller + HDMI Cable + DominatorHD and it worked just for seconds. First I thought cable is cause - but I guess it's the fault of DomHD HDMI interface... On another LCD with HDMI it worked fine. Yes, headplay look great.

[@JonathanKardjoe]

Okey thank you for your advices

[@JonathanKardjoe]

RCSchim Hi, I tried the dominator HD with the Bebop and it worked, I just change the channel (HDMI 2D) with the little black button on the left

[@MrWaddlezzzz]

Hey Schim, what do you think is a better option, the bebop 2 or the DJI Spark?

[@Rcschim]

I didnt try either one but I'm quiet sure the spark or better the mavic air is better than parrot...

[@ayeapprove]

Heißt das, dass wir länger von dir keine Videos über 30m Flughöhe sehen werden?

[@Rcschim]

Da bin ich (wie viele andere) momentan etwas verunsichert. Aber ich hoffe dass wir bald einen vernünftigen Leitfaden bekommen. Zumindest nicht höher als 150m, weiter als 500m und nicht über dicht besiedeltem Gebiet (ich hab immer noch meine Berge ;-) Bei den MiniQuads gibts auf jeden Fall mal keine Diskussionen. Die sind lieb, klein und legal ;-)

[@ayeapprove]

Ja, das würde ich mir auch wünschen.

[@22joek]

Warum verbindet man das handy über USB mit dem skycontroller? Man verbindet das Handy doch über wlan mit dem skycontroller?

[@Rcschim]

Johannes Richtig, ich glaub das dient hier nur zum Aufladen des Handies. Bei der Inspire1 oder Phantom3 ist's ja anders - hier wird tatsächlich über USB das Bild übertragen...

[@zzyzxroad92309]

Have you tried flying it with a PS3 or Xbox One controller with your Android?

[@Rcschim]

nope, I have neither controllers at home. I played around wiht ARDrone1 and Laptop+USB Joystick back than. Was fun. Using the smartphone works not too bad. for short flights and some sightseeing the phone alone is great and most compact solution. The drone itself (with dismounted props) is so small and lightweight, you wont notice it in your backpack...

[@GeorgFranzGeorg-Franz]

Cool!!!

[@poeli1]

sieht auf jedenfall schon mal ganz witzig aus

[@hoverbotfpv3547]

Did you really pay 900 euro's? You could get a classic well used NSU motorbike here for that kind o cash. Thanks though it is an interesting company and has some great techs.

[@adlerharryvonwiestal2685]

Hier interessantes bzügl. der Bebop Drohne : www.icatcher.com/

[@Rcschim]

Gut zusammengefasst. Interessante Frage ergibt sich hier: die Bebop ist also unter 30m Flughöhe Spielzeug. Wenn ich jetzt damit fliege, kann ich bewilligungsfrei bleiben, wenn ich den Aufnahmeknopf nur unter 30m betätige. Ich kann dann aber ruhigen Gewissens Aufnahme abbrechen, bis 150m hoch fliegen ;-) Da wart ich noch drauf daß Parrot extra für unser LFG die Option integriert, daß die Aufnahme automatisch gestoppt wird, wenn man höher als 30m fliegt ;-))

[@adlerharryvonwiestal2685]

Über 30 m ist sowiso nicht mehr erkennbar wer (welcher)--- Mensch am Bild ist - Wo kein Kläger da kein Richter - Mich interessieren sowiso keine Aufnahmen wo Menschen drauf sind die ich nicht kenne wenn mir jemand beim starten oder Landen in die Quere kommt dann warte ich immer bis die leute weg sind oder lande 10 meter weiter weg - suche auch immer einen Freien Platz zum Starten und Landen von Radius 20m naCH OBEN HIN FREI ---- meine Freunde sind alle Begeistert davon und winken freundlich oder Leisten mir sogar Hilfe als FPV Watcher - WENN MANN DEN lEUTEN BISSI WAS POSITIVES VOM FLIEGEN TECHNISCH SOWIE FILMERISCH ERKLÄRT SINDS EH GLEICH BEGEISTERT - mein Phantom ist auf 150m Höhe und 500 Radius eingestellt und in diesem Bereich ist der Sichtkontakt Gut Sichtbar - somit werde ich weiterhin meine Runden über unser schönes Land ausserhalb der Flugverbotszonen von Flughäfen 1.5 km machen - der Phantom hat auch alle Flughäfen eingespeichert und landet automatisch 1.5km vor jedem dieser falls er mal abhauen sollte. Viel Spass noch beim gemeinsamen Hobby und guten Flug sendet dir Harry Free Eagle

[@adlerharryvonwiestal2685]

Hier noch ein Interessanter Link : www.icatcher.com/luftfahrtgesetz