AV News: DroneDazzle - Toy Drone

Last week we brought you our favorite follow me drones, this week we are bringing you the best toy drones. With hundreds of options out there, who better the test and tell the tales than our in-house tiny drone enthusiast, Tyler Mason. There’s a quite a bit of crossover between the video game community and the drone racing community. The folks at Rotor Riot think they’ve got a new product that will appeal to folks on both sides. Introducing the Rotor Riot controller. Is it a video game controller or a drone controller? The answer is both. The Rotor Riot controller was primarily designed to be used for mobile games played on a phone or tablet. But it can also work as a drone controller capable of piloting several different drones. Among them are the DJI Spark and DJI Mavic Air, which both bind directly to smartphones. The Ryze Tello, Parrot Bebop and the Teal One drone also work with the Rotor Riot controller. Rotor Riot CEO Chad Kapper says the company also plans to release an FPV freestyle app in April that is more of a game than a true FPV simulator. “Then in the future we’ll be able to get that out to the mainstream public that are already exposed to our brand through the controller. So then, once we have people that are familiar with the brand, now they’re getting familiar with the culture, it’s a little easier to get them involved and interested in the hobby. So that’s kind of the bigger vision.” One of the big parts of the controller is the L3/R3 joysticks, which Kapper says had previously not been available on any mobile game controller. That function should appeal to gamers, who sometimes cross over into the FPV and drone world. “Our controller, because it’s a gaming controller, it closes that gap between a gamer and a drone pilot and it allows a gamer to use something they’re already used to to do something new with it. Even if they got a Tello, the Ryze Tello, which is a $100 drone, they plug it into their drone and they fly it with this controller. It gives them the sense and experience of what FPV flight is. That’s the idea is that we meet the gamer on their grounds and then we give them an opportunity to experience some kind of FPV experience.” There are plenty of other great options in the toy drone category this year for the holidays. The Propel Star Wars drone isn’t a new product, but it remains a great option for Star Wars fans young and old who might also be interested in flying drones. Propel offers several different aircrafts: the X-wing, the X1 and the Speeder Bike. The system includes a multiplayer function that allows for battle between drones. A flight simulator is also included, which serves as a good tool to practice flying before taking the drones to the sky. As for the controller, it plays Star Wars music and other sound effects to immerse you in the flight. Originally retailing for $150, the Star Wars drones can be found for as low as $50 on Amazon — a perfect option for that Star Wars or drone enthusiast in your life. Finally, if you had a little miss in mind this holiday season, you can try out the Barbie Starlight drone. They’ll cost you around $50 new or $25 used - she’s been a big hit around the holidays in the AirVūz Offices. Can’t forget about that Barbie drone. In next week’s DroneDazzle, we’ll hear from award-winning aerial cinematographer Jay Worsely and founder of Women Who Drone Elena Buenrostro to get their takes on some of the best starter drones. Rotor Riot Video Game Controller Propel Star Wars Drone Barbie Star Light Drone