Fimi X8 SE Camera Firmware Update ver 2026A - Test Flight at Lucky Peak Reservoir

Fimi recently released a camera firmware update for the Fimi X8 SE to version 2026A. I took the drone out to Lucky Peak Reservoir, and checked out the video quality. I thought this was pretty decent, WB set to Auto, HDR in 4K at 30 FPS.
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[@rickybritton7212]

Wow Brother , You Have never gave up on the Fimi2020, I Appreciate you so much. Because I never miss your reviews, I always learn something, Thank you. I haven't been flying my Drones very much, but to tell you the truth as soon as I finished watching your great flight, I took the Fimi2020 out and I'm getting ready to do the Camera update. THE FIRST time I flew it, I noticed sometimes, a little yellowish tent sometimes, I thought it was me, not setting the cameta settings right, but then I had watched, one of your informative reviews talking about that same issue, so I waited, for a firmware update,that you were hoping that Fimi2020 would fix it, Wow, you maid my day once again, that flight looked great. The Horizon looked perfect, the camera looked perfect, for me, but you know I wouldn't know the difference, if it hit me. So Thank you, I'm going to charge my phone up, and fo the 2026A update. Sincerely your freind from Mo Rick and God bless you and your family

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Rick! I'm glad you are enjoying your Fimi X8 SE 2020.

[@BillTheDroneReviewer]

Great job Marcus ! The horizion looked good for most of the video. Details were crisp and claer. Awesome place to fly !

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Bill. It was a good flight. 👍

[@glennpoole3667]

I haven't flown the new camera update yet. But whatching your video Marcus I reckon that's the best iv seen the x8 se camera. Nice one.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Glen. I'd say the update is worth doing. 👍

[@janikfriend159]

do you know that you can swipe left to enter full screen on the fpv screen?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you! That is a nice feature. 👍

[@ShoelessNomadThailand]

Excellent vlog it's convinced me to buy one. Thank you so much for sharing respect from England to my American cousins.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Tom. It's a darn good drone. 👍

[@CoasttoCoastDrones]

Looks like an OK camera bird !! Nice update review !

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

It's no Mavic Bill, but it is not bad for the price.

[@RonaldBrown59]

It does look much better since the firmware upgrade. It's closer to the look of the 2018 model now, which is a good things. It's still a bit overexposed in the sky and under exposed on the ground and shadows. Great test flight, you had a nice to get out and do some flying.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Ron. It was a fun flight. I do still have some concerns about the video quality of this drone.

[@jamesmurphy9862]

Great stuff by yourself Marcus, got my Fimi 2020 6 weeks ago and very addictive. Doing dronies like yours, no bad for auld guy ( I me, ) And the word is Practice and more Practice... Stay safe, and thanks for the new Hobby

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you! It is great fun!

[@hotrodindaytona5658]

@Idaho Quadcopter Here is one for you Marcus, www.faa.gov/TV/?mediaId=1838 They expanded in the Pacific NW too.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Yes, thank you Hotrod. The Laanc system is a game changer.

[@DTCBG]

Hi, Marcus, thank you for the nice video and the test of the new camera FW. I hope I am not mistaken, but the out-of-sync with the iPhone recording might be due to different fps on both video files when imported in post production. Maybe you need to convert one of them (preferably the phone recording) before importing. If not the fps, it would be another parameter. :)

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you! The screen recording and gopro are in perfect sync. It's always the done video that is off. I've seen this on toy drones before, but never on a serious video drone like the Fimi. 🤷‍♂️

[@tdrdronesebikesandscooters8377]

you blew your chance to drop down to get a closer look at the boat

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

True, but I don't have the same skills as Mikey!

[@rpguy4]

Enjoyed the video. Another great place to fly. The orbit was the best part. Thanks for doing the video.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you so much for watching!

[@raulquinom6230]

Wow I really like the quality of the video looks great, nice color, thanks for sharing the video sir😉👍

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you very much!

[@tdrdronesebikesandscooters8377]

Moonlight Sonata is better than the 2020

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Ha! Yes, good ear Bryan. 🙂

[@dougbell5950]

OK, Horizon and connection looked good. It flew nicely. BUT, I still think the colors are off a bit. At 3:40 the sky from the OSMO is nice and blue, but the sky from the FIMI is sort of blue. At 19:50 the pad looks yellow instead of orange. The detail is great, but just not happy with the yellow cast I see. Anyway, thanks for sharing and stay well. 👍👍

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Yes, Doug, I agree. I also saw some WB changes while the drone moved. Fimi has a ways to go with this one.

[@EspenJohan]

Really like the location👍, but I think the Fimi footage is not that nice to watch. Sorry

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Yes, the camera on the Fimi X8 SE 2020 version is disappointing. 👍

[@EspenJohan]

@@IdahoQuadcopter yeah your right, could they improve it with a firmware update?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

@@EspenJohan I hope they can. 🤷‍♂️

[@billkaroly]

I flew last Saturday and found no real visible difference between 264 or 265. I also find metering mode Average is best. HDR mode doesn't seem to offer much. How do you record the phone screen?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

I screen record with the native IOS app. 👍

[@geecee8864]

I enjoyed that flight Marcus,you fly well.Im charging my fimi 2018 and mavic air and off flying tomorrow around a Scottish loch .Keep up the good work

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you! Have a great flight tomorrow!

[@ADKDronesRC]

Ive noticed at times its 30.15 fps and at times its 29.75 fps. Idk alot about the cam as of yet . Just thought I'd mention that incase that is the reason you loose sync

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

That makes sense. It's too bad that Fimi has not solved this.

[@ADKDronesRC]

I dont do any editing but when I join them it will give me the option to change formats and it will give me fps it's shot in and 4k 30 . Is actually 4k 30.15 then ive also seen it 29.75 fps. You probably can make more sense of it than I can Marcus . I do find it odd and after your video I did report it to fimi but who knows if one report will get there attention.

[@dronegeelong2528]

Looking good. Did you notice any difference with the new firmware?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

It's tough to say if the differences were the firmware or the settings I used this time. I do think I had an incrementally better result. Thank you!

[@FoxFaderWorld]

Mr. Marcus, it's always a joy to see a notification that you've uploaded! I have to say though, I sometimes fall asleep since I tend to watch when I'm taking a work break. But I do go back and watch on my other account 😉. PS That reservoir is stunning! Thank you for the content.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you sir! I so appreciate your support! Enjoy that break at work. 👍

[@supartoyo9623]

i hope fimi x8 se 2020 can add 360 panorama camera update

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

They may at some point.

[@jasonburke2596]

Marcus you have so many cool flying spots! Really toying with purchasing the X8E 2020 as an upgrade to my Spark. Did the camera update resolve the long standing FImi horizon issue?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

The horizon issue comes and goes. 🤷‍♂️ Thank you, I know I'm lucky to have a lot of great spots to fly. 🙂

[@Northstar-Media]

Have the 2018 this version looks really good & I am really tempted but sticking to saving for the Mavjc air 2 one thing I have learnt with drones you get what you pay for.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

The Mavic Air 2 is the one you want. You won't regret it. 👍

[@danmartinelli160]

Thanks for another entertaining review! Was really glad to see no fpv break up, like you said was probably a WI FI issue. Great scenery and well behaved Fimi, thanks again Dan down under

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Dan! I had a pretty good flight with the Fimi this time.

[@PredatorIndiaTango]

Marcus, nice review 👍👍👍🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you!

[@EricRoseBahamas]

Video footage looks cool, Marcus. How does the update affect the stills photos quality? Is it better?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

I didn't try any stills. 🙁 I need to do that next flight. Thank you Eric!

[@EricRoseBahamas]

@@IdahoQuadcopter No, thank you, Marcus :)

[@BIGDRONEFLYER77RC]

Such a nice Drone

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Donnie!

[@Daniel-rl3pz]

Which better? the fimi x8 or the hubsan zino 2?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

It's personal preference. 👍

[@danmartinelli160]

One question Marcus, how often do you charge your Fimi controller?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

It holds a charge well. I'd say every 5th flight or so.

[@danmartinelli160]

Thanks mate!

[@tdrdronesebikesandscooters8377]

The midrange looks very sharp but the horizon looks a but fuzzy, maybe it's just me

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

We still had some smoke in the air. That may be it.

[@dronegeelong2528]

I've noticed that with some of my pics and vids. Hopefully playing with some settings can improve it.

[@genefoxgreenmountaindroning]

Loved the video i have not tried the the orbiter or other flight options yet how many miles is that and what is your bild date on the drone may I ask mine is 2020 03

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

My 2020 has a May mfg date. Thank you! I'm glad you like the video. 👍

[@genefoxgreenmountaindroning]

@@IdahoQuadcopter do you fly fpv

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

@@genefoxgreenmountaindroning No sir.

[@gadgetman404]

Water level dropped alot

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

It sure has Craig. By January it will be almost empty.

[@ssb73q]

Hi, thank you for the video. I notice that you still have a tilted horizon. I have two Fimi X8 SE 2020s and did the 2026A camera update, but still have tilted horizons. After the 2026A update the horizon tilt seems to straighten out if it let the drone sits for a couple of minutes. I emailed Fimi about the horizon tilt and they replied with their standard email wanting more data than the IRS would require. Maybe if Fimi owners email Fimi support with their observation of horizon tilt they may do something about it? BTW, I love both my Fimi X8 SE 2020, the best drones I have ever owned. I ordered range extenders in an attempt to get out just a little further. I have lots of trees that keep my range limited to ~6000ft.

[@billkaroly]

I calibrated my gimbal on a flat surface and haven't experienced a crooked horizon.

[@ssb73q]

@@billkaroly Hi Bill, you had good luck. I have done all the calibrations dozens of times with little observed effect.

[@billkaroly]

@@ssb73q Was your drone on a flat and level surface? Did you use a box frame level as a target? I used a piece of 3/4" MDF that is 24x48 inches. I used a T Square and drew two lines, one for the FIMI and the other for the level. I used the level to place the Fimi square with the line. Placed the square on the other line. Powered everything up and ran the gimbal calibration. The gimbal was almost perfect and was so close it was not necessary to further adjust it.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Yes, tilted horizon has been an issue since the 2018 version. I've tried the manual adjustment with limited success.

[@ssb73q]

@@billkaroly Hi Bill, yes I used a 4ft level on a level floor. The front legs of the drone were set a precise distance from the level. I have done that many many times with no improvement. In a former life I was an engineer/scientist and know how to follow instructions. My two X8 SE 2020 have a tilted horizon issue. It's not severe, but just enough to annoy.

[@billkaroly]

On Saturday I lost connection 1000 feet out while yawing around to face me but got it back right away but not before failsafe return was initiated. Great video. I did yaw really fast. Oops.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you! I'm glad you regained connection. 👍

[@hobo1000]

Looked good to me. No horizon issues and colors were spot on. I have the Fimi 2020 and am a happy camper!

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

I did notice some WB changes in the video, but overall it was good. Thank you!

[@Greg_Pittman]

I would love to fly that area. Great job Marcus.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you Greg. It's a cool place to fly, and also convenient with lots of pavement to land on.

[@Greg_Pittman]

@@IdahoQuadcopter You have access to some Really cool and Beautiful places to fly, hopefully I will one day get a chance to come up to Idaho and fly after taking care of mom. But you got some killer shots around that area you parked at. Great Flying Marcus.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

@@Greg_Pittman Thank you so much Greg!

[@oraclemiata845]

I still am getting some pretty bad horizon tilt. It seems to be affected worst by the wind.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Wind, as well as flying sideways seem to bring it on. I wish Fimi would figure this out.

[@Joe_Blo]

The blue sky is washed out compared to the camera you're using to film you talking. Hmm. Can that be resolved with a filter?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

A polarizing filter might help.

[@battz99]

Hey Marcus, nice flight BUT you do shake your Fimi around when its gimbal cover isn't fitted. I'd never do that! 😬

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Thank you. 👍

[@MrDariocs]

Hi Marcus, you do not sell the Fimi X8 SE 2019?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

No it's a keeper! 👍

[@billkaroly]

RTH default is 30% but you can change it.

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

Yes, it is, and easy to change. 👍

[@RamCummins]

First to sign your wall.....

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

That's true...👍

[@ertatta]

But Marcus, weren’t you having issues with the overly warm image quality with white balance set to “sunny day?” I believe the last time you flew it out at the reservoir, you stated that after having reviewed the footage that auto white balance didn’t work out so well because of the constant adjustments throughout the flight. I will say that from what I can see of this footage, everything looks quite natural and highly detailed. I didn’t see much constant adjustments throughout the footage either

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

It's okay, I still see the WB changes as the drone moves. It is somewhat better, and I'm trying different combinations. 👍

[@rpguy4]

@@IdahoQuadcopter Having it in HDR mode may of helped too ?

[@IlsonBoy69]

If you are blocked by terrain aren't you flying beyond line of sight? I'm new to drones and want to make sure I am not misunderstanding the line of sight stipulation and limiting myself more than I need?

[@IdahoQuadcopter]

I raised altitude in order to maintain LOS.