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How to Choose the Best Drones for Kids

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drones for kids

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Introduction

When you are about to choose the best drones for kids, you need to ensure that you get your hands on the one that provides them the much-needed entertainment rather than becoming a nuisance. Based on your kid, a drone can be simple or quite complicated.

It may not have the ability to capture stunning video footages that your kid is so invested in or it may not be as nimble and swift as your kid wants it to be. So, when choosing the best drone for your kid, you need to take into account numerous factors related to your kid as well as the device. You should have a look at the federal, state, and local rules and regulations along with your kid before you buy them a drone. Ensure that your child is acquainted with the reasons behind those rules and regulations as it will help them comprehend the background behind the restrictions and their significance. These tips will help you purchase the best kids drone and also provide you important information about drones.

Best drones for kids: Barometers

• Age:

Recommendations with respect to age are scribbled on drones. The youngest age recommendation that you may come across is probably for kids aged five years and above. Numerous drone manufacturers recommend drones only for kids aged 8 to 10 and above. There are also those who recommend drones for kids aged 14 and above. The higher-end drones are particularly suited for adolescents.

This does not imply that younger kids ought not to fly drones but it is highly advised that kids above the age of 14 and above should be permitted to fly drones in the presence and under the guidance of adults. Having said that, if your kid possesses a level of hand-eye coordination, fine muscle control, and judgment which is superior in contrast to that of other kids of the same age, a more advanced drone could be the way to go. An advanced drone could also be an option if you get an inkling that your kid may go onto take a serious interest in adopting drones in the years to come.

Since drones are typically not recommended by manufacturers for younger kids, so there is no warning about the presence of small components in the packaging. You are the best judge in this situation to determine whether the small components present a choking hazard to your kid or not.

• Interest:

Some kids tend to have an eye and ear for the mechanics from a very young age. They are inclined to take things apart to get to figure out how they function, even if they have the vaguest of ideas of how to assemble them again.
Some things are attracted to things that move around fast while others like to traverse paths filled with obstacles. You need to find out if your kid takes a fancy to race around with other kids on a bike or whether he or she likes navigating around furniture, trees, and bushes.

There are kids who adore taking images and drawing stuff using modern-day smartphones and other gadgets. Once you delve into the world of drones, you will find out that there are two kinds of drones predominantly racing drones and camera drones.

Racing drones:

Racing drones are smaller in size and light in weight. Some are available in ready to fly packaging but there are also those that need to be put together out of a kit. The latter kind of drones are meant to be modified to enhance their speed or other features. Kids who take a fancy to things whizzing around or those who like to tweak around with a drone and figure out ways to enhance its performance are more interested in racing drones. These drones matics (STEM) courses by providing a way to spending their leisure time which could help them learn physical and mechanical phenomena.

You can also explore groups that regularly meet up to discuss ways to modify drones and compete in events such as rotor cross, drag race, and time trial. Two or more drones fly the course simultaneously in rotorcross and the first to finish the track is considered the winner. Drag races consist of short courses of 100 yards or 100 meters and two or more machines compete against each other to find out the one which accelerates the fastest. Each drone flies the course separately in time trial events and the one with the fastest completion time is considered the winner. There are also leagues for teams in which members of a team test their piloting prowess against their opponents by flying their machines through courses lined with obstacles such as flags and gates.

There is typically a maximum and minimum requirement when it comes to types of drones and modifications that can be done to them in the case of leagues. While racing drones may be equipped with cameras but they are not meant to capture high-quality aerial video footage. As a matter of fact, they are engineered to broadcast a first-person view of what is being viewed by the drone and transmitted to Virtual reality (VR) headgear put on by the pilot so that it can be used to control the drone.

Camera drones:

Camera drones, on the other hand, are meant for kids turned on by aesthetics and curiosity about exploring things and looking at them from above. These kinds of drones typically have inbuilt cameras but some of them even have a platform for mounting separate cameras. Typically, inbuilt cameras in smaller drones tend to capture images and videos at lower resolution in contrast to separately mounted cameras but there is always a case of adding more payload to the drone by adding a separate camera. Moreover, the kid will have to take care of controlling the camera while maneuvering the drone at the same time in the event that the camera is separately mounted on the drone.

In this context, it is advisable to let your kid learn to fly a quadcopter and hone his or her piloting prowess first. You can develop courses filled with obstacles for your kid and help him learn flying on racing drones. As soon as you feel that your kid has got better at controlling their drone in the air, you can get them a drone equipped with an inbuilt camera. The better your kid is at maneuvering a drone, the better are the prospects of them getting incredible aerial shots and their probability of crashing their machine into the ground will also be minimized with a high-quality camera mounted.

Similarly, along with spurring your kid to learn how to fly a racing drone, you can also encourage them to modify their aircraft to get a better lift and ensure enhanced maneuverability that would assist them in dealing with the additional weight of the camera. Subsequently, if your kid goes onto develop an interest in drone videography and photography, they will be adequately equipped to modify their drones in accordance with the different cameras mounted on their machines.

• Responsible attitude:

One cannot attribute a sense of responsibility with age and the possibility of injury to a person or a pet even in the presence of an adult cannot be dished out. There is always a risk of injuries even with the smallest of drones and even if the aircraft is loaded with rotor guards. It is crucial that your kids comprehend the fact that they ought not to fly drones near people or around moving vehicles or even play with them with pets around. It is also really important that your kids understand the fact that someone’s privacy is not to be invaded. For instance, fly your drone around in the neighborhood with the intention of peeking into your neighbor’s window is simply unwarranted.

Factors related to drones when choosing the best drones for kids

Durability:

It is extremely important that the drone you purchase boasts a durable design. Both kids and adults are likely to get their drones crashed during their learning stage. You should be on the lookout for drones with a thicker outer covering made of ABS plastic. Spare parts should be readily available and components such as rotors and rotor guards should be easily replaceable. You should always stay on your guard and if there is a package of commonly required spare parts is available, you should purchase them so that you can continue to learn flying with the least interruptions.

• Price:

When purchasing your first drone, you should be on the lookout for an affordable model for the same reason as mentioned above in the case of looking out for a durable device. Both kids and adults are likely to get their drones crashed during their learning stage. You need to get a drone with features that are going to keep your kid engaged even when he or she has learned to fly the aircraft. However, at the same time, one would not want to lose out on a considerable amount of money in case of a crash.

• Controls:

Some drones are maneuvered via an app that is installed on handheld mobile devices while others are controlled via joystick controls similar to those used for video games and other RC devices such as boats, cars, and bikes. Your kid is probably familiar with both the joysticks and handheld mobile devices so getting acquainted with the controls should be a piece of cake.

Joystick RC Remotes

For drones come with a couple of joysticks which need to be used simultaneously to fly your drone. So, your kid needs to get familiarized with them. Also, when the direction of the drone is changed, the joystick controllers take left, right, forward, and reverse from the drone’s perspective and not the pilot’s perspective unless the drone is equipped with the headless mode. With the headless mode turned on, the drone will fly to the right from the pilot’s perspective if the controller is moved to the right irrespective of the orientation of the drone. Joystick controllers boast a swifter response and are convenient to reverse the drone’s flight trajectory with a joystick than it is with a handheld mobile device.

The headless mode of flight is used in handheld mobile devices automatically which makes them easier to learn. However, it is easier to reverse the drone’s flight with a joystick. Along with headless mode of flight, drone controls also offer one-button launch, low elevation mode, altitude hold, emergency shut off, waypoints, autonomous flight and Return to Home button.  One button launch lets a pilot launch the drone with a single key. With the low flying mode turned on, the nimbleness and maneuverability of the drone are reduced which assists the pilot in the learning phase. This ensures that the pilot gets to exercise more control over the aircraft. The drone automatically shuts down in the event of an imminent crash or dangerous situation when the emergency shut off mode of flight is activated.

The drone does tend to fall to the ground from its flying altitude but it may be a better choice to lose out on a drone instead of a real helicopter or letting the drone crash into another individual or power transmission line. The drone hovers at a stable elevation when the altitude hold mode is triggered. Drone cinematographers and photographers can turn on this mode to capture aerial imagery. A drone follows a flight trajectory mapped out by the pilot by configuring GPS points as guides using the waypoints mode. The angles of pitch and yaw are reduced and the drone’s flight is made more stable when the automatic flight mode is switched on. When this mode is activated, rookies can be prevented from crashing the aircraft into the ground or accidentally flipping it upside down. The manual mode of flight can always be used by more experienced and seasoned pilots.

Aerial stunts are also integrated into drones. Racing drones can have buttons specifically designated to enable a drone to perform aerial maneuvers while camera drones can have modes for taking trick shots. In the event of the drone getting outside the line of sight of the pilot, the Return to Home button makes the drone employ its inbuilt GPS to return to its original point of takeoff.

• Gimbal: The camera on a camera drone is stabilized by a gimbal during flight or on windy days. It is a crucial feature that flourishing drone cinematographers and photographers found really helpful.

• Number of rotors: Tricopters have three rotors and are meant for short flights. Similarly, quadcopters have four rotors and are also used for shorter flights. Hexacopters have six rotors and can carry out longer flights. Octocopters come with eight rotors and have stabilizers in addition. These machines can travel incredibly long distances.

• Size: Some small-sized drones are meant for indoor flights while others can be indulged in both indoor and outdoor flights. Smaller drones can get drifted away by strong winds and it is advisable not to fly them in inclement weather conditions. Larger-sized and bulky drones are more resistant to the wind but it becomes all the more complicated to fly and control them due to their excessive weight. Larger drones require more space to store and can be inconvenient to transport from one place to another. Drones weighing less than 5 grams are thought to be ultra-lightweight while those weighing between 5 and 50 grams are considered lightweight. Drones weighing between 50 and 100 grams are considered medium weight drones.

BuzzParents.com recommends ultra-lightweight and lightweight drones for rookies unless you think that your kid has got the requisite skill set to handle mid-weight drones. If you want to fly your drone outdoors and it weighs anywhere between 0.5 pounds and 0.55 pounds, then it will have to be registered with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Having said that, if you only intend to fly drones as a hobby, you can get two or three drones registered under the Special Rule for Model Aircraft.

Control Range: It is the range in which your drone responds to the pilot’s instruction issued via the radio controller. There are certain rules prescribed by the FAA that oversee drone flights and one of the more important ones states that the drone should remain within the line of sight of the operator. Owing to this reason and due to the higher probability of the kids losing control of drones, experts at BuzzParent.com suggest a drone with a control range of about 100 feet for younger kids. Older kids prefer to fly their drones for longer distances and they may want to do so in order to accomplish their STEM learning projects.

Flight time and battery charging time: Flight times for drones typically range from 10 minutes to about half an hour while battery charging time ranges between half an hour and a couple of hours. Batteries tend to run out of juice faster when a drone is taking off, flying at higher speeds, during long flights, and when flown in inclement weather conditions or in extreme heat or cold. Larger and bulkier drones that carry a payload such as a camera also tend to put a lot more burden on the batteries. Spare batteries can always come in handy and help your kid enjoy longer drone flights.

Rules and regulations

As discussed above, the FAA has formulated rules and regulations that govern drone flights. You should ensure that you along with your kind understands those rules and regulations before flying drones. KnowBeforeYouFly.org has been set up by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA). The website is being operated in collaboration with the FAA. You can stay updated with all the latest developments in terms of rules and regulations through this website or by downloading the B4UFly app from the FAA. It is also recommended that you stay updated with the local and state regulations in place along with those enforced in areas that you plan to visit with your kids.

Benefits of learning to fly drones

Now, you are familiar with critical information regarding drones and how to choose the best drones for kids. However, you may still not be familiar with the advantages that learning to fly drones can have for kids. Kids can learn aplenty by learning to fly drones. First and foremost, piloting a drone helps the kid learn how to maneuver this magnificent gadget. There is an increasing demand for drone pilots in law and enforcement agencies along with other sectors such as agriculture, architecture, construction, search, and rescue, etc. By taking care of the drone, kids can get to know about the repair and maintenance of these sophisticated pieces of technology. With a drone loaded with a camera, the kids can become proficient in capturing aerial videos and images.

Here on the top-10-drones.com website, there is an interesting resource that provides handy information about all the benefits that your kids can reap by using drones. Another great advantage that ownership of a drone can provide is that it offers a brilliant opportunity for your kid to spend healthy time with you. You along with your kid can create lasting memories together by flying drones. When you perform stunning aerial maneuvers with your drone, it will cheer both you and your kids up. or learn more about the wonderful educational experiences your child can derive from drone ownership, check out this site.

Conclusion

The best drone for your kid is the one that suits their interests and preferences. We hope that this post will help you choose the appropriate device for your kids and learn more about this evolving technology. Here is a list of the best drones under 100 that will help you purchase an affordable drone for your kids.

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