15 drones under 200 dlls

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Today we’re talking about some of the best drones under $200. Do you know the best thing about having a drone? You can capture every moment of your life with it. From capturing awesome pictures to making crazy videos. The opportunities that can be had with a drone are boundless. One doesn’t have to be very tech-savvy to use the device. From little kids to grandmas, everyone can use drones.

When discussing a drone in this price range the things to consider are; battery size and flight range, time of flight, camera size and style, ease of use, customer service, and how durable the products are. Let’s get started and take a look at these great RC products. There are many factors to consider when buying a drone, but ultimately it will come down to what is the best drone for you and your personal preferences.

What To Consider When Buying a Drone Under 200

Drones in this price range are going to have specific features that you may not find in less expensive drones and may not have as many features as drones that cost more. Drones under $200 are great mid-range options that you can have a great experience with. While most drones in this price range will come with built-in cameras, you will probably see higher-quality cameras in more expensive drones. However, these cameras are great for grasping the basics of aerial photography and videography.

More features that you can expect from a drone under $200 are average battery lives and flight ranges. Most drones in this category will last you about 10-15 minutes. While you will find longer battery lives in drones that cost more, the good thing about drones that cost less than $200 is that manufacturers will sometimes include a free extra battery. Also, since you aren't spending as much money on your drone you may have some extra spending money to purchase an extra battery for yourself. Drones in this price range are often easier to use, too which makes them great for beginners

Dronethusiast takes you through the best drones under $200, take a look at the list below. Hopefully, this list will help you sort through the variety of drones on the market and choose the one that is best for you.

In this buying guide I’ll be covering a total of 14 drones from which you can choose one, check out one of our other articles if you’re looking for a cheaper drone. Read all the reviews after the table below!

Table of Contents

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Thanks for checking out our article highlighting the Best Drones Under $200. We’ve taken a look at the best available drones in this category and narrowed it down to this list of 14 drones. Whether you’re looking for a drone with an excellent camera, or one that is sure to impress with speed and distance, you’ll find that our reviews have what you’re looking for.

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All of us at Dronethusiast want you to know that we stand behind our reviews 100%. Everyone on our editorial staff has a passion for the RC Hobby and drones in particular. If you ever have any comments or questions, please reach out to justin@dronethusiast.com or you can leave a comment for the author below in the comments section.

Our team values your input, and we take seriously our responsibility to deliver recommendations that are useful to you!

1

Falcon with AHP

See the best price on Amazon.com or get Fast & Free Shipping from their Website at Altairaerial.com

The Falcon is a great drone under $200 costing you around $130. You won’t want to miss out on the great features that come with this high-quality beginner drone.

For starters, it has an autonomous hovering and positioning system. This keeps your drone hovering in place even if your hands were to come off the controller. This feature, which is unique to Altair Aerial, is an amazing capability that any beginner will appreciate as they are learning.

Also, the Falcon has an extra battery as well which gives you double the flying the time. Now you can practice your drone skills for 20 minutes at a time. This is an exceptional drone and perfect for anyone who is hoping to save some money while still investing in a great starter drone.

Tech specifications

- 8-10 minute battery life per battery
- Autonomous hovering & positioning system
- 720p built-in HD camera
- Follow-Me Mode
- One-touch takeoff and landing
- Step-by-step tutorials at altairaerial.com

Pros:

- 2 batteries for extra flying time
- Easy to Fly - especially for beginners

Cons:

- Doesn’t handle the best in stronger winds

2

Altair 818 Plus Quadcopter

The Altair 818 Plus is one of the best camera drones you can get for below $200. It's larger than Altair's Falcon(more on that later) with very solid hover capabilities that make it perfect for getting the right shot every time. It comes with a wide-angle 720p camera so that you can start taking video right away.

Best of all, it gets 15 minutes of flight time off of a single battery charge - and there are two batteries in the box which is a great bonus for a drone costing less than $200. Having about 30 minutes of flight time makes this an excellent choice for photographers because it means it can actually be used for longer shoots. And since the 818 Plus also has 150 meters of range (and can stream FPV footage to your phone from 60 meters), you can get some impressively high aerial shots with great accuracy.

Altair Aerial is also one of the more trusted names in the drone niche. They feature US-Based customer service and ship their products out of Lincoln, Nebraska. Take a look at their how-to videos at altairaerial.com for tips on flying the 818 Hornet.

If your main interest in drones involves photography or videography, the 818 Plus is a great choice that won't put a dent in your wallet!

The whole package includes these things:
Quadcopter, remote controller, 2 LiPo batteries, USB charger, 4 spare blades, user manual, 4GB TF card and card reader.

Tech Specifications for the 818 Plus:

• 15 minutes of battery life

• 150 m range and 60m FPV

• Stable shape with extra-long landing gear that makes it much easier to control and gives it a much better hover than others

• New functions: headless mode, altitude hold mode, emergency landing, and customer flight route mode- High quality 720p camera

Pros:

• The drone's highly stable hovering abilities make it ideal for aerial photography
• The drone is incredibly easy to control, even for first-time users
• The drone has a very long battery life for the price

3

AA300 GPS Drone

See the best price on Amazon.com or get Fast & Free Shipping from their Website at Altairaerial.com

The AA300 is another exciting drone that is super affordable, so it won’t break the bank. It comes with various GPS features and is a great drone for both learners and more experienced pilots.

If you love photography, you will love the AA300’s 1080p built-in HD camera. This camera captures beautiful birds-eye view photos and videos. Take it on all of your adventures to make lasting memories.

You can also utilize its follow-me mode which will enable the drone to follow wherever you go. An awesome feature that we love to see in affordable drones these days!

And just like the Falcon above, Altair produced step-by-step how-to videos for the AA300 as well. Take a look at the AA300 videos (click here) if you run into any problems or I've found that they are very responsive at help@altairaerial.com.

This is a fantastic budget-friendly drone that you can purchase for just $169.80

Tech Specifications:

- 12 minute flight time
- Multiple flight modes
- 150 meter flight range
- 1080p built-in HD camera
- Follow-Me Mode
- One-touch takeoff and landing

Pros:

- High Quality Camera
- Easy to Fly

Cons:

- Follow-me mode isn’t quite accurate

4

The Blackhawk Long Range Drone

For only $119 you're getting an amazing drone at an amazing price! Get super fast and free shipping when you order the Blackhawk from AltairAerial.com, or you can also see Best Price at Amazon. The Blackhawk is a more advanced level quad with 15-17 Minutes of Flight time and 300-500 Meter Range!

Beginner drone adventurers, rejoice! Altair Aerial released another impressive drone to their growing lineup. For those who have a GoPro, or want a drone capable of using one, this drone is definitely where you want to be when on a budget. The Altair Aerial Blackhawk is a powerful quadcopter with so much to offer, including 15 minutes of flight time, 300 Meter range, heavy duty construction and a racing drone feel!

The whole package includes these things:

Quadcopter, remote controller, 1 LiPo batteries, balance charger, GoPro camera mount, 4 high landing gears, 4 propellers, 4 propeller guards, small screwdriver, wrench.

Tech Specifications:

- It can serve you for up to 15 minutes (amazing for this price point).

- Brushless motors for smooth, precise control that are considerably quieter than others

- Uses High and Low speed modes

- Compatible with GoPro Hero 3 and Hero 4 models

Pros:

-The included camera mount ensures that you can hook your GoPro up and immediately use it.
-The drone easily performs impressive 360° aerial stunts and flips.
-It’s great for night flying, thanks to the blue and white lights underneath the drone and a white light on the front.

Cons:

- The added weight of a GoPro can have flight issues where battery and stability in weather conditions are concerned.
- No Camera Included

5

Cheerson CX20 Quadcopter

This quadcopter is produced by Cheerson. It’s labeled as Cheerson CX20 Auto-Pathfinder FPV RC Drone with GPS Auto-return Function RTF White.

It is well designed. Sometimes we deal with quadcopters which are very big. From time to time it becomes impossible to carry it from one place to another. But this quadcopter being small and easy to handle, you can have it with you all the place. It’s very easy to carry in a bag.

The whole package includes these things:
Quadcopter, Remote Control, Balance Charger, Propeller, Li-po Battery, Aircraft Support, Camera Support, User Manual.

Tech Specifications:

- 2 hours charging time you can use this amazing quadcopter for about 15 minutes.

- Rechargeable 11.1 V 2500mAh lithium battery should be used to operate this.

- 4 of these batteries to run this.

- There is an age restriction for this product.

- Mainly the product is designed for 14+ kids.

Pros:

- 2.4G ISM frequency will take your quadcopter up to 300 meters from the ground. Meaning you can now do all those crazy adventurous stunts and still record it with this quadcopter.
- It has GPS enabled in it. So you can track it all the time and have it in your place safely.
- Some drones tend to lose their path in case of heavy wind pressure. But not this drone. It has such powerful blades that no matter what wind pressure is thrown at it, it will surpass it nicely.

Cons:

- You may want to use high quality batteries for this drone. If you use crappy batteries and try to fly this thing then you may not get the best possible experience.
- Before each flight GPS should be checked thoroughly. Whether it’s working or not. It sometimes freezes. So it’s better to take a look into it before letting it go.

6

Force1 F100 Quadcopter

Like the previous F100 quadcopter, this one has GoPro capabilities, as well. In fact, this drone shares multiple similarities with the F100 Ghost, which is expected because this one is the first of the line, but comes at a reduced price tag. It’s the ultimate choice for those looking for a cheap drone.

The package includes these things:

Quadcopter, remote controller, 2 LiPo batteries, balance charger, GoPro camera mount, 4 high landing gears, 4 propellers, 4 propeller guards, small screwdriver, wrench.

Tech Specifications:

- It can serve you up to 12 minutes plus a 1800mAh extra LiPo battery that doubles your flight time

- Brushless motors for smooth, precise control that are considerably quieter than others

- Uses High and Low-speed modes

- Compatible with GoPro Hero 3 and Hero 4 models

- You can go typically 200 feet in the air with no problems

Pros:

- You can set the controls on “Low Rate” for better control and an easier response rate.
- The motors are almost unnaturally quiet, making for great video footage with no intrusive noises.
- Like the previous F100 drone, you can easily perform 360° aerial flips and stunts.
- The drone has an included camera mount, so you can attach it, put your GoPro Hero 3 or Hero 4 in and get into the field immediately.

Cons:

- Flying with a GoPro can shorten the range, causing you to lose connection and control.
- The added weight of a GoPro can have flight issues where battery and stability in weather conditions are concerned.

7

WLtoys V666 RC Quadcopter

This drone is just like the previous one. Has a flat body. There are two red-colored fans on 1 side, and 2 black colored fans on another side. This drone weighs around 4.6 pounds. It’s recommended that boys above 14 years old should use this drone. There’s a monitor in the controller. So you can actually see where the drone is going without continuously staring at it all the time. It doesn’t matter if you’re totally new to this drone thing. There are simple instructions given and it just takes a few minutes to get the hold of everything about how this drone works.

Tech Specifications

- You can cover up to 150 m with this drone.

- The drone needs 4 batteries to run.

- Flight time is about 15 – 20 minutes.

- The package will give you 3 batteries.

- The camera covers 720p HD.

Pros:

- It’s a quite powerful drone. No need to worry if it crash lands sometimes. It’s a stable drone and it will get its way up to the top again.
- The drone can record up to 4 GB of videos.
- Batteries need less than 1 hour to get fully charged. After that, it can serve up to 15 – 20 minutes.

Cons:

- It doesn’t have a return to home button. So basically you have to manually bring it down.

Some quick tips are,
- Let the motors cool down for 10 – 15 minutes before any flight. It will ease the journey of your drone.
- There’s a foam canopy in the drone, you should remove it as soon as possible. Because it looks like it doesn’t weigh much. But the truth is, it makes the drone heavy and slow. You can just fly it with foam once and fly it again without foam. You can certainly feel the difference in flying.

8

Hubsan X4 Quadcopter

All the products we have seen so far is quite big. But this one is extremely small & lightweight. It weighs only 7 ounces. This drone has some small parts that’s why it’s not suitable for kids under 3 years old. It’s a delicate drone so it’s advised kids above 16 years old should use this drone.

Tech Specifications

- It needs 4 lithium-ion batteries.

- It can cover up to 100 meters.

- There is 6 axis Gyro stabilization which makes it different from most other drones out there.

- There’s an SD card in it so all the videos that are being recorded through this device will be stored in the SD card.

- There’s live video option and up to 100 meters distance live video can be covered.

- The drone comes with the blade guard.

The package includes these things:
Quadcopter, FPV transmitter, Protection cover, Spare propeller, U wrench, USB cable, Manual.

Pros:

- Charging time is extremely low in this drone. You will only need 30 minutes to fully charge the drone.
- It’s made as first-person view and there’s a 4.3” screen for watching the video.
- It has 6 axis flight control which makes it super easy to fly.
- Not many drones can do flips & rolls. This drone can do both 360° rolls & flips.
- The drone has led lights. It makes your vision in the dark more clear.

Cons:

- The flight time isn’t much. Only 7 minutes.
- The drone can’t lift much weight. It was obvious as it’s a very tiny drone. It can lift only 20 – 25 g.
- The batteries are quite a tight fit in the drone. It sometimes gets hard to pull out the batteries from the controller.

9

Force1 U45W Blue Jay Quadcopter

Where cheap drones under $200 are concerned, the U45W Blue Jay from Force1 is the ultimate choice if you want a camera drone that has literally got every single base covered. Not only does this drone have an HD camera, it has both WiFi and FPV capabilities.

The package includes these things:

Quadcopter, 2.4GHz controller, 3.7V 500mAh battery x2, 4GB SanDisk Micro SD Card, SD card reader, USB battery charger, power bank, spare propellers x4, screwdriver, user manual.

Tech Specifications:

- Has an onboard HD camera with 2MP, 1280x720p at 30 FPS, 720p aerial photos and videos with first-person-view.

- Includes WiFi capabilities that pair with the FPV for live video feeds to your iPhone or Android devices.

- Provides perfect stability easy maneuverability, and wind resistance with the 6-axis gyro.

- Includes Custom Route Mode, Headless Mode, Altitude Hold, and One Button Take Off/Landing.

Pros:

- You can manually adjust the camera approximately 90° up and down.
- You’re able to perform a number of aerial stunts and tricks, such as 360° flips and rolls, for example.
- VR Headsets, certain models, are compatible when synced to the drone’s controller for a real FPV flight.
- The Custom Route Mode feature allows you to fly hands-free.

Cons:

- There have been issues reported with the batteries draining faster than the standard 10 minutes, which can be fixed with another battery.

10

Holy Stone F181 RC Quadcopter Drone

Holy Stone is a great company that manufactures drones. It has produced quality drones in its lifetime. This drone is just another amazing creation of Holy Stone. There’s a minimum age restriction and that is 14 years. It has a very unique design. Most drones we see is either box type or fully flat type. But this drone is a mixed version. It is quite large and good looking. Though the drone seems big it doesn’t weigh much. As it’s a lightweight drone it's better not to put any extra weight in it. So let’s dive into what we are getting in the package.
The package includes these things:
Quadcopter, 2.4G Remote Transmitter, USB charging cable, 3.7V 750mAh LiPO Batteries, Rotating blade, Protection frames, Landing skids, Screwdriver, User Manual.

Tech Specifications:

- This drone has a return key. So no matter where you’ve sent your drone, it will eventually come back to you.

- Two batteries are required for this drone to take off.

- Batteries take around 80 minutes to charge.

- Total fly time in the air is about 7 – 9 minutes.

- The drone can fly up to 100 meters.

- The resolution of the camera is 1280 X 720.

- It captures videos at 30 frames.

Pros:

- This drone has one amazing feature that only few other drones have. It has altitude hold function. Meaning you can keep the drone at a certain height. It will hover in that position. It’s great in a sense that you will be able to capture great photos and videos like this.
- It can flip in 4 ways. These are left, right, forward and backward.
- One of the best features of this drone is it has 4 different modes. These are 25%, 50%, 75% & 100%. If you’re an amateur then you have to set the mode in 25%. If you’re advanced level player then you can set the mode in 100%.

Cons:

- Anything at a stretch is bad. It should be kept in mind that a minimum break between two individual flights is necessary. In that way the parts cool down.
- The battery life is short. It’s not the best out there.
- The throttle is sensitive. So the advice here is it should not be pushed up hard directly. You have to move it slow and steady to get a longtime outcome.

11

Hubsan H107D FPV X4 Drone

We’ve already seen a Hubsan drone, this is another Hubsan production. This drone is a very interesting one as it is the world’s smallest drone with first-person view ever. As it’s the smallest, it weighs very low. It’s highly durable though. It can do 360° flips and rolls. It flies with a light bulb when it’s flown outdoor. The drone is not suitable for kids under 14 years old.

The package includes these things:
Quadcopter, Remote Control, blade set, spanner, USB Cable, Manual, protection cover, drone battery.

Tech Specifications:

- 3.7V 380mAh Li-Po is the battery specifications.

- It takes around 40 minutes to get fully charged.

- It has a total flight time of 8+ minutes.

- Maximum flying distance is about 100 meters.

- It doesn’t have return key in it.

- 360° Flips & Rolls

- Lightweight airframe with nice durability.

- 480p Camera and 4.3 inch LCD Remote Control Screen.

Pros:

- Great drone having first-person view. You can do small stunts with this as it does flips and rolls.
- It can record videos in 480p and you can see the whole thing in your LCD screen while recording. Pure first-person view through this small drone will definitely give you chills.
- It has 6 AXIS GYRO which is dealing with the latest 6-axis flight control systems. It will make the fly easier for you.

Cons:

- Flight time is really low, only 8+ minutes. Before you know it 8 minutes will be over and you have to charge it again.
- For less battery life it’s really not possible to have a long time flying and shooting.

One quick tip about the battery is you don’t want the battery temperature rise above 45°C when you are charging it. It may cause an accident so it’s better to be in the safe side.

Here we're going to go over the various types of drones that you can find priced less than #200.

Best Drones under $200 With Camera

Drones are most popular for recording videos or capturing photos from long distance. Drones can have multiple type of cameras. It can have FPV or other normal type of cameras. The video resolution depends from drone to drone. Minimum 480p HD resolution is present in almost every drone. Some may have HD resolution up to 1080p. Within $200 there are some amazing drones with great camera resolution.

Best FPV Drones Under $200

FPV means first person view. Drones having FPV features are more popular than drones with normal cameras. Basically what you’re seeing in life, the way you are seeing in your real life is called first person view. And it’s the view we all are comfortable with. Many drones have both FPV features and a secondary camera. Having FPV helps navigating the drone. There are many FPV drones which are under $200. I’ll discuss some of them in this article later on.

Best Toy Drones under 200

Toy drones are mainly the smallest drones in the market. These drones are used indoors and kids love to play with these drones. From $100 to $200 one can get a handy toy drone to play with. Some of the best toy drones under $200 will be covered later on.

So, these were our 15 best quadcopters under $200 for you. We have tried to cover every aspect of the drones so that you can choose the best drone under $200 for yourself.

Not every drone has everything. Some drone has this, other drone has that. We have also featured the best drone under 200$ here. If you are confused about which one to take then you can just go for the featured one.

As the drone market continues to expand, don't just think of drones as "aerial only" RC vehicles. There has been a big expansion lately into remote control boats and cars that are great for kids and adults. Take a look at our Remote Control Boats for Kids Reviews article and our Remote Control Cars for Kids article for more information.

You may have different requirements than others. All you need to do is look for the drone that matches your requirements. And you’ll find the drone you’re looking for.

Now I’ll present some of the frequently asked questions that can come to your mind regarding these drones that cost less than $200.

FAQ Drones under $200

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How long do I need to charge batteries?
It really depends on the specific drone company. There’s no fixed time as every drone doesn’t require same batteries. It can be said that the charging time can be ranged from 20 minutes to 2 hours.

What is flight time?
The amount of time a drone stays up in the air is called flight time.

What is the average flight time of every drones under $200?
Most drones can stay in the air for 10 minutes on average.

Can I continuously fly my drone without any break?
You can but you shouldn’t. After each flight there should be a minimum break of 10 – 15 minutes. As the parts of the drone gets hot. Some time is required to cool it down.

What range can a drone fly on average?
Most drones can fly up to 100-150 meters. There are some advanced ones that can go more than a kilometer.

What does 6 axis gyro do in a drone?
6 axis gyro helps the drone move smoothly. It makes the movement of a drone a lot easier to people.

What does home return button do?
Sometimes drones get out of our sight. If we can’t see the drone, how can we control it and fly it back to our house. For that reason many drones have home return button now.
If you press this button the drone will automatically return to your home. You don’t have to do anything extra at all.

What is the purpose of headless feature?
Headless feature is an amazing thing. If we turn this on then we don’t have to worry about the front of the drone to control it. The transmitter direction will be the drone’s direction. If you move the throttle to the left, the drone will go left. If you move the throttle to the right, the drone will go right.

What do I need to check in a drone if I want to fly it at night?
You need to check whether the drone has LED light feature in it or not. Also you will need LCD monitor to look thoroughly in the dark.

Do drones under $200 have good cameras?
You will find plenty of great drones under $200 which has great resolution camera. Most of them has 720p resolution and some of them can even do live streaming. You just have to choose the right one.

Further Reading

Drones under $100 by Dronethusiast
Small RC Cars Reviews by Dronethusiast

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