Runcam Link Phoenix HD vs. Caddx Polar Vista: which to settle for since 120fps is out of stock?

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-- TABLE OF CONTENTS --
0:00 - Intro and commercial disclosure
1:14 - DJI vTX is made by DJI not Caddx or Runcam. The cameras are what separates them.
3:41 - DJI FPV cameras are interchangeable between DJI vTX
4:08 - The Phoenix HD is a 60 fps camera. Why that's bad.
6:08 - Flight test: Phoenix HD vs. Caddx Polar vs. Vista vs. Nebula Nano
10:44 - Test pattern and FOV comparison
12:05 - Low-light test: Caddx Polar vs. Runcam Phoenix HD
13:31 - Conclusion: which one should you buy?

[@lilianamelendez2352]

I’m 62, flying since the 70’s and will not give up my passion for Rc flight. Your videos are a must for me. This one has been really, really, really informative. Thank you!

[@wearemany73]

I’ve begun to realise that pushing the HD technology forward is a very worthwhile mission. Kudos to you for insight JB 👍❤️😎

[@sidchisle]

Your property is quite nice visually and fun to fly through. Thank you for the great videos and reviews.

[@mattlago]

As usual great content. Thank you for putting in an entire tool chest, whenever I justify my fpv addiction I just show your room!

[@ninmarioscc]

I like how Bardwell tells you what you wanna know in the first 10 seconds of the video. 👍

[@hazonku]

Right? I super appreciate that & it causes me to stick around for the details every time. LOL

[@genjitsu7448]

Yes. I tend to write massive walls of text that sometimes end up not even making sense. Missing points, or whatever... so it is a skill and that is one reason why watching Joshua's videos is so appealing. He eems a little bit quirky but then so what, we all have something. So 9/10 for what he does!

[@gecko3128]

Great Head Test! Crystal clear understanding the resolution of cameras!

[@mickeyg.c.1654]

Beautiful surroundings beautiful flying!

[@verox43]

Thank you for this video. I'm still checking on nebula pro stock everyday with hope it will come back. Latest news is October 12 when Caddx will get their share of super semiconductors, uk stores say :)

[@MrMartinRome]

Thanks Joshua, as usual, good information. I was considering replacing my Polar cameras but now that I have seen this, I won’t be doing it with the Phoenix. Will wait for the Nebula Pro.

[@TheMadmacs]

great to see runcam, (the og fpv cam people) getting official support. as a runcam fanboy i have to say caddx make some great cameras but i was slightly miffed runcam were left out of the powerloop when dji fpv appeared. ps. theres a caddx polar nano now fyi.

[@rolliseventeen]

Hey JB, you have more hair with the vista HD, which is kinda interesting for pilots 40 and up. hahaha. i like the Link Phoenix, i like the Polar more, because i think i will fly a lot in the darker hours in winter. i ordered a Explorer V2 and a few days ago another Polar kit for the new 3´ Tadpole HD frame. i waited so long for this HD Video system and flew just 1 hour with "good" analog equipm. i was pissed with the distortions and other things, i think i would have taken a nano, but now the Polar is ok for me. looking forward to have a nice winter and next summer flying with this new systems. i fly since x-ufo times 2005 and go up to 100% again in this hobby. i wish all FPV Fans a good bitrate.

[@Brucetoob]

Yo theses videos are usually hard to watch but you gotta to get the information. This guy's got it figured out great video crazy informative 👍 keep going! I'm subscribed.

[@Rip1Outdoors]

Watched it all. Good review Joshua

[@Kettenhund75]

Bummer... no polar comparison on the color chart. It was very interesting to see all of these cameras compared even though finding a vista or OG DJI cam is like finding a unicorn. The only ones I was interested in comparing are the phoenix and polar.

[@JoshuaBardwell]

Umm wow that is an oversight. I didn't mean to leave Polar out.

[@chadward9523]

Just add a story/link in the description?

[@Kettenhund75]

@@JoshuaBardwell No worries - you're a busy man.

[@Gam3r134]

These shits are being sold on aliexpress like they sell rice low how much rice is in a bag of rice they r selling these things at that amount on aliexpress

[@lowlifescum]

Love how you whisper for night time tests :) 💤

[@johncarold]

Hi Josh Great video and review of the RunCam Phoenix HD , I think it is great that more cameras are available for the DJI system. I hope that the price of them will come down. Thanks for the video and information.

[@MrGunawan79]

Thank you so much this video really opened my mind

[@gigazman]

Good job! Thanks for this hard work!

[@seewell8168]

Thanks for taking the time to include the colour chart, very helpful. Was it just my eyes or did I detect a bit of digital shimmer in the Link?

[@charlesw.3245]

I love flying polar because I usually only have time to fly 1 or 2 packs when I get home at dusk right now. Usually by the time I land the last pack it's just shifted into being completely dark outside and while flying it still looks early dusk outside. The low light is awesome.

[@stickboyfpv4742]

Hahahah I know right man😂 I be flying.... flyying.... up to 8 min with my 6 inch rig..... Id land and pop out the goggles like wtf...!! Dayng near black out!😂 and my hd footage be dark as haill😊

[@califpv]

This runcam looks great!

[@timothyciarlette8250]

Nice comparison, thanks.

[@baggszilla]

I think the Runcam Phoenix HD has a better image than the Polar and Nebula nano but I do see a little fish eye when panning left and right. Thanks JB. I can't wait from them to sell the Caddx Micro HD alone or with the AUL.

[@overfly_pt]

Another excellent job 👌👍🔝

[@unything2696]

Caddx Nebula Pro will be in stock in Europe on 15.10.21 (dd/mm/yy). Telling you this means there are less left for me, but sharing is caring. So the waiting will be over soon.

[@MCsCreations]

Oh, wow... I agree the Polar is better at night, but both the Polar and the Phoenix HD could register that star! Fantastic! 😮 Do you have any idea of which star was that, Joshua? I would bet it's Venus or Jupiter... Anyway, fantastic review and comparison! Thanks a lot! 😃 Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@cpfpv6410]

I don't fly DJI but I thought the Runcam looked really good. If I flew DJI, I would have to trust your judgement and buy the one you recommended but from watching the video, the runcam looked like a winner to me.

[@BluntmanOO7]

compared to analog it looks good but compared to the original air unit and the caddx vista it is trash!

[@neale3191]

I’m so glad you made this video. I’m ready to pull my hair out thinking about what camera to get for my conversion from analog to digital. 🤦‍♂️

[@creationlabsinc.189]

If you don’t own a vista or air unit yet RR still has the micro air unit available. The camera has 120fps capabilities

[@Rcschim]

if you pull your hair out - beware of the runcam phoenix HD - 10:21 you see how weird you will look like ;)

[@averagereviews3389]

@@creationlabsinc.189 RR = Red Robin ?

[@sterlingowens5744]

Thanx J!

[@JammyBFPV]

Very interesting video very informative I didn’t realise they were all made by dji

[@dirxclvck]

Now this is a good review 👍

[@timorohde95]

oh wow after flying for half a year with the nano (urgh) and recently with the polar, i am excited as heck how much of a difference the DJI cam is gonna be.

[@que_dijo]

now you can! cuz you were talking about the AUO3 that just came out right?

[@mikespeedyfpv321]

Very educational great video one love 👊🙏

[@GregPless]

Thanks!

[@MrSmithFPV]

Caddx Vista looks great and more natural but i really would prefer the RC Phoenix HD. Looks best for me. 👌

[@jayzzz1234]

Hi Joshua, can you please do a vertical acceleration test when doing the flight test if possible thanks, great videos really enjoying them.

[@Shooter_FPV]

Great review, as usual. Why is your side yard dug up??

[@codyhart4062]

Great video

[@apachesmokemachining6487]

Just letting you know I enjoy your video’s

[@DrMacca]

Diggin' the lava lamp! :)

[@Raydio6]

Color looks good on the phoenix

[@rafaelreyesbleakfpv2463]

Wait until the Foxxer Apollo arrives 🔥😎

[@picknoname3425]

Actually you can still buy the orignial air unit, there are still quite a lot of them if you know where to look for.

Maybe you can get the runcam phoenix hd hdzero version and do a direct comparison between the two. i think it would be the fairest possible dji vs sharkbyte/hdzero shoot out.

[@knarftrakiul3881]

Hey Josh.. I'm looking for something decent ready to fly with dji fpv goggles. Something zippy with decent range. What would you recommend? I'm not a beginner but also not advanced. I have flown 6 chan rc helicopters and cheap quad copters

[@CockroachFPV]

When foxxer is going to make cams to I would love that.

[@RcReviewsLt]

Caddx from this moment will make original DJI cameras, or what looks similar to original DJI - but with 120fps! So everything is back to its low latency mode, maybe they could add some polar night colors to original DJI..

[@FiddlingwithmyWhistle]

Hi Joshua, I am new to FPV and yes, I have learned something 'everytime' I've watched one of your videos. Thanks I just watched this one on DJI Air Units, and their cameras from Caddx and Runcam. And it got me thinking, there is no HDMI into my DJI Goggles (unless I go HDMI to AV) So my thought is, "why has Caddx or Runcam or someone" not made an adaptor, that replaces the camera and lets the HDMI feed from my PC go into a DJI HD FPV Air Unit Module. so you can have HD in the DJI Goggles from your PC, Wirelessly it's easy to feed av into an analog vtx, can it be that much harder feeding HDMI into a digital vtx someone suggested that a raspberry pi hdmi to csi-2 adapter board would do it. Like $12 to have HDMI from my PC, in my DJI gogggles. someone make it work. PLEASE

[@dave3883]

That nebula nano is woof..

[@bohdanshcherbak6303]

Nice vid! you should test OpenHD system, it is DIY but not that difficult.

[@Hotwire_RCTrix]

Through the trees I really liked the nano. Am I imagining this?

[@EnglishTurbines]

Is it true, you can gain extra IPD when ordering clip on prescription lenses?...??????? I would be flying DJI, but for the slight lack in mechanical IPD distance. I need another 3mm approximately...😮😮😮🤔🤔🇬🇧

[@Smartatics]

Hi Joshua, what is being prepared in your garden? ;)

[@REDROBRCFPV]

Do you have to upgrade the goggles to the newest version for support for this camera?

[@rotormasher]

No

[@marcino.3361]

Vista is perfect! I guess I saw on banggood full air unit with caddx vista camera... hmm interesting. I'm planing to jump into HD next year. Hopefully there will be minimum vista available or maybe sth even better :D If not, I'll wait another year.... :D I feel like exchanging analog to sth close to analog but called HD has no seance...

[@gabrielfica8536]

As always, is what I Just need to hear

[@DopeJohnny]

Will you make a comparision of a caddx nebula nano stock VS glass lens ? I mean... you frequently mention this option...

[@scottmerriman8196]

Was there not a color card shot for the Polar?

[@aquilinefpv2592]

My gosh the difference in quality 10:20! Sad days, I fell we are going backwards

[@chrish1645]

Yeah that was pretty crazy.

[@MrDjBess]

I just get an original DJI air unit - DJI camera, I feel I’m the most lucky fpv pilot in the world ahah ! Happy fly to all ❤️

[@MadfishFPV]

I learnt something today, I always thought the whole unit was manufactured by each company under license from DJI. I never knew DJI make the air unit or vtx, and it's just the 3rd party manufacturers that just add their camera and antenna onto them

[@paulhope3401]

Not sure if they still have any but Newbeedrone got the Caddx AU (micro 120fps) in a few days ago, managed to get one. Edit- still showing in stock.

[@kc8302]

What is the highest power output in the market for these DJI VTX? Is it 1 watt? I have not invested into these digital VTX because I fly long range and use an AKK VTX with 3watt power output so I would end up giving up distance for a digital image but very curious to try it, just not with 1watt . I also use a run cam night eagle on another long range quad for night flying so looks like these digital cameras are no good for night flights, not yet at least.

[@MustangPilot1]

@JoshuaBardwell This might be a dumb question but does the CaddX Vista and others have DJI command and control like the DJI air unit?

[@JoshuaBardwell]

The functionality of the Air Unit and Vista etc vTX is the same. The only difference is the Air Unit Lite (nee Vista) has only one antenna vs. two and tit does not have on board DVR.

[@keylitho]

Caddx Has Vista units on there sight RIGHT NOW..!!

[@brendand.2269]

So so glad I went nuts and bought 7 vistas and air units when covid hit

[@jakeh3144]

Yeah especially since they burn out randomly and stop working after minor crashes.

[@JoshuaBardwell]

AU and Vista are generally very very durable. If you're killing them, I'm surprised.

[@Rcschim]

10:21 your skalp looks like a fake clown bold head (missing the vocabulary here ;) Interesting info about the manufacturing of the VTX - that was my guess as well, but I didnt have the background... Now I'm happy that I collected a number of DJI copters over the last 2 years and have a few 120fps cams on them ;) Will you review the DJI osmo action2? Looks like finally we get a session succsessor! yay! greets, Mario

[@rctom1]

He made Make up on his scalp , Mario (-:

[@TomHerriman]

Why did you not test the Polar Vista in the pattern and FOV test?

[@keylitho]

Is that the nebula nano v1 or v2..?

[@WX4CB]

my only issue with those is that the sky appears to be way overblown in all of them. the nebula being the worst of them all, but the ability to not be able to change settings is a deal breaker tbh. why they won't allow you to at least change the basics brightness/contrast etc. is beyond me

[@MadfishFPV]

You're kidding me right? I thought this was a limitation with just the Wasp. So it's all of Runcam cameras?

[@dialaprohq]

be nice if cameras upgraded over time vs drop in quality.

[@djilly75]

Why can't we buy the camera from the Caddx air unit which is basically the Nebula Pro right?

[@JC-qy6cx]

Chip shortage

[@williamkeith2419]

Hey maybe this means we will see a SharkByte camera from Caddix now.

[@JaredIanDelapena]

Caddx just annouced that the vista + DJI cam is coming back today

[@Starkeyfpv]

Caddx just announced more vista cams coming. Pre-orders are out.

[@JoshuaBardwell]

These aren't new manufacturing as far as I know. What I am hearing is they are returns from manufacturers of BnF quads that are being pushed back into the channel. EDIT: well shit. look at that. facebook.com/groups/728465824251791?multi_permalinks=1314179852347049&hoisted_section_header_type=recently_seen

[@disco.volante]

It’s definitely happening, Flywoo also offers per-orders on DJI cams and full Vista kits.

[@SuphiKaner]

Hopefully I don't break or lose my original caddx 120fps camera maybe one day there will be a upgrade not a downgrade

[@micsherwood4930]

wait....i just pre-ordered the "Original Caddx Vista with DJI camera" on newbeedrone,this morning. is this not the original you say is not being made anymore?

[@JoshuaBardwell]

It is not being made. But somehow they got them.

[@sburnham3]

What size drone would you need to mount all three cameras on the same quad for identical review. You could also just put them on a stick and get your son to run around the yard ... 😂

[@armani007E55]

JB video is a week old. DJI is back in stock. (well pre order)DJI made announcement on their site. Get it while you can! :)

[@JoshuaBardwell]

They'll do anything to prove me wrong.

[@armani007E55]

@@JoshuaBardwell lol!

[@upyopyo]

Can we exchange vista and air-unit system in general?

[@derekec]

What happened to the Shark Byte prices at $99 and $199 bundle? More like $249 and $349 respectively (October). I was decided but now back to aiming for DJI.

[@JoshuaBardwell]

Still on preorder at RR for $99. But remember that was always a limited-time offer. It was never permanent. rotorriot.com/collections/shark-byte-fpv-drones/products/fat-shark-sharkbyte-rx5

[@derekec]

Joshua Bardwell Thank you, placed order via your newbee link, since..... I'm a newbie. They're in stock. Hope that still helps you back.

[@jensjs3923]

Did I miss something here, What is a caddx vista camera? 🙈🤗 Is it meant to be the original DJI cam? Sry if I might have missed something.

[@JoshuaBardwell]

Yes that's right. The "vista" is the original DJI cam that came with Air Unit and Vista.

[@user-vr1qv6qe7f]

And after you make this caddx announced the vista with dji cam is back

[@levangugulashvili1296]

Joshua's property in liftoff soon will need an update))

[@xXRoronoaSoLoXx]

Just a comment to support Joshua Bardwell

[@felixtrunz6567]

Just something to support him😂

[@BBFPV]

Has anyone tried adjusting the image settings and lens focus on the Polar?

[@zer001]

New tool cabinet?

[@eliastzirakis585]

Is your lens a little dirty?

[@Just-A-Guy-Learning]

I like this more direct version of you JB. "Dont buy this, get this". Used to be " I'll leave that choice up to you the viewer." It feels more authentic when you make a choice like this. Not to say you werent authentic in the past.

[@jayward7536]

Trying to get the hdzero micro for my fatshark sharkbyte any idea when they will be out

[@JoshuaBardwell]

They said they are real close. Manufacturing seems to be sorted out and now it's just shipping.

[@rctom1]

What´s about the runcam MIPI?

[@giocatoresamuele5481]

As long as the situation and this do not spend anything more.

[@Joeyzoom]

Did they really call it the Phoneix on the box?

[@liukang81]

Hi Joshua can you help me I got some problems with configure on betaflight ?

[@Kettenhund75]

Join his discord - we will help you.

[@KrotowX]

So at 9:54 Runcam Link Phoenix HD turned Joshua into older Ken :)

[@zefixx6659]

Will both of the Air Unit lite‘s work with a Original DJI camera and than activate the Features? Or is it limited insinde the Air Unit lite itself?

[@JoshuaBardwell]

All DJI air unit and air unit lite vTX work with all DJI FOV cameras like Vista Nebula etc.

[@zefixx6659]

@@JoshuaBardwell yes but i Nena the lag of Settings for the camera. Is the problem inside the camera or the VTX Modul? When i connect my DJI cam instead of a Polar cam do i get my Settings + 120fps back?

[@JoshuaBardwell]

The camera sensor determines if the camera supports 60 fps or not. If you want 120fps you need the original DJI camera; Nebula Pro; or the Caddx Air Unit Micro camera, which is same as Nebula Pro.

[@zefixx6659]

@@JoshuaBardwell ok thx JB!

[@Gereon_]

anyone knows when the nebula pro will be back in stock?

[@lcarus42]

Never settle!! Compromise is just losing slowly

[@Gosuminer]

The oversaturation and red tint on the Runcam is bad and not being able to adjust that makes it not acceptable for me (I don't use a seperate hd camera).

[@MrTFlx]

What should you get 130$ runcam phoenix or Nebula pro ?

[@JoshuaBardwell]

Nebula Pro imo.