Before we get down to it, let’s talk about what you should expect in the best camera drone under $300. Obviously, you want to get the best product for your money, so it’s essential for you to be aware of what to expect in terms of specifications and features in this particular price and category. We summarized it all so you can easily know what you’re looking for in a camera drone under $300.
What should you expect from the best camera drone under $300?
Flight Time
Let’s go ahead and get the word “average” out here because it is going to be a predominant description. For this price, you should expect average performance in pretty much all areas. Average flight time should be between twelve and eighteen minutes for cinematography drones. While some brands do focus on longer flying time as a selling factor others prefer to focus on features or specs, however, any cinematography drone on this budget with a flight time under ten minutes would be considered below average.
Any FPV racing drones you are looking at in this price range will have between 3-5 minutes of flight time. These racing drones are built for speed and will drain your battery quickly to get that increased speed and performance.
Control Range and Features
Average control range for a cinematography drone is considered to be around 200 to 500 meters in this price range. Everyone likes being able to fly their machine beyond eyesight, and the best camera drone under $300 should deliver. As with flight time, some brands tend to focus on the long-range flight instead, and some flyers can get a distance of 1000 meters.
Performance
At the $300 price range, you should also get great performance. Even without a pilot’s input, the average performance of a drone at this price should have accurate controls, great flying capability in high winds, and steady hover.
Features
Features at this price point should be competitive; companies add more and more features in order to compete with companies at the same price point. This means the best camera drone under $300 is most likely going to come with a plethora of features such as GPS, Follow Me, Waypoint Flight, Orbit, Auto-Return, Low-Battery Alert, Auto Landing and Takeoff, and other such additions.
Camera Quality
This is an important question since the product you are looking for is a camera drone. In this area, however, quality still varies somewhat. Nonetheless, most come with good quality image cameras as well as live video transmission. You should be able to get both aerial footage and photos to proudly share with others, with some even being good enough for school projects and the like.
Just so you know, most of these drones are also powerful enough for carrying an action camera such as GoPro as well, which is recommended if you are looking for strong 4K and HD quality footage.
Okay, let’s get started!
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Best HD Camera Drone Under $300
UPair One Drone with Camera
This is a great drone for beginners; it is quality-made of premium materials and comes at a great value.
This camera drone comes equipped with a Sony Full HD camera and 7-inch screen with transmission, taking drone shooting to a whole new level. You can enjoy live video feed in high definition straight to the device (7-inch screen), which also comes with all new FPV features as well. With a ninety percent adjustable angle, this camera will capture both high-quality aerial video and photos.
In addition, you’ll also enjoy Real-Time Viewing right from your remote control with the UPair One. It’s definitely ideal for taking the ultimate selfies! Use it for catching every moment of your vacation or for getting a birds-eye view of your surroundings.
The functions are also easy to operate; both headless mode and altitude hold are easier to operate without having to worry about orientation. Simply pressing a button will keep the drone-oriented at a previously set height. The UPair also utilizes the easy-to-use GPS One Key Return: when the drone is flying, press just one key, and the drone will return.
The Upair One also has one of the longest battery life in this price range as well, with an average of eighteen minutes. The powerful 11.1V 5400 mAh battery makes this photography drone one of the best in its price range and category.
See what other reviews say:
Customer Reviews
The UPair One Drone with Camera actually has a good, solid rating as well with 3.7 stars out of 5 with a solid seventy-five percent of verified buyers giving this camera drone five stars. It is always important to check out reviews before buying a product, and this product has some excellent reviews. Buyers felt the UPair operated better than expected, was a quality drone, and well worth the price.
UPair One PROS:
• Quality product for the price point
• Great for beginners
• 7inch Song Full HD camera
• Easy to use
• One key return
UPair One CONS:
• Can’t change the antennas, but the range is already 800 meters
• Some may not like the simple design and no accents color scheme
Buy on Amazon
Best FPV Camera Drone Under $300
Emax HAWK 5 Racing Drone
The EMAX Hawk 5 is EMAX’s latest FPV quadcopter, at 5 inches, that was specially made for racing. We love this FPV racing drone and had to add it to our list. It has a camera for FPV functionality, but it should not be confused as a cinematography drone.
The frame’s shape is unique, adopting carbon fiber for strength and allows for a body without any welds, which means its lighter in weight and easier to manipulate.
This drone comes with a low latency micro camera with On Screen Display (OSD). The Hawk 5 not only has a vibrant image, but also makes it easier to access important info such as signal quality, battery information, and overall drone performance.
The product comes with the EMAX F4 Magnum complete with built-in flight controller, ESC, receiver, and Betaflight OSD. These features make the quad much easier to maintain while greatly reducing the amount of wiring as well.
The brushless motors support maximum efficiency as well as supplying massive power. The AVAN Flow Propellers are selected to give the quadcopter aggressive performance and speed. The Hawk 5 drone is strong, fast and durable and well worth the price.
Check out our full review: EMAX Hawk 5
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Customer Reviews
This drone ranks four, and five-star ratings across retailers with Amazon currently rated it four out of five stars. Verified purchasers say the quadcopter is super fast and lots of fun. One complaint even said the pilot accidentally ripped his drone not expecting it to be so fast. (So, be careful!) Independent reviewers also ranked the EMAX Hawk 5 highly.
EMAX Hawk 5 PROS:
• Super fast
• Affordable price
• Nice, strong, solid build; durable
• Ready out of the box
• 150-degree wide-angle lens perfect for fast racing
EMAX Hawk 5 CONS:
• There’s not much we can put here!
• Not the strongest motors (but its light weight gives it a great thrust-to-weight ratio)
Buy on Amazon
Best GPS Camera Drone Under $300
Hubsan H501S Quadcopter
This drone gives you 5.8GHz FPV in real-time, bringing the world right up to your eyeballs. The 1080P HD camera allows you to both take amazing pictures and record amazing videos as well. If you want a drone for photography, this may just be the one for you.
Flying time is extended due to the large capacity of the intelligent battery, giving you up to twenty minutes to take photos and videos. In addition, the built-in GPS can also lock the drone’s position allowing the craft to hover at a specific altitude.
The H501S has a range of three hundred meters. Don’t worry if you lose track of your craft; the automatic return home ensures calling back your drone with no delays.
Features include One-Key landing and return, Follow Me mode, Headless mode, GPS position hold, and others.
See what other reviews say:
Customer Reviews
Verified Buyers seem pretty happy with their Hubsan H501S Quadcopter, giving it a 3.7 out of 5-star rating. Over fifty percent of purchasers gave the craft five stars and bragged about everything they loved about it. Most were surprised at the affordable price. Others mentioned its smooth operability and are easy to handle. Many showed pics and videos from their own H501S, and they’re very impressive. Be sure to check them out yourself.
Hubsan H501S PROS:
• 1080P HD Camera
• Easy to fly
• Affordable price
Hubsan H501S CONS:
• Possible firmware glitch/fly aways
• No stabilization
Buy on Amazon
Conclusion
We hope you have enjoyed our review of the best camera drone under $300. We want to do the research for you, making it easier for you to make a choice for your purchase without spending too much time. No matter which type of camera drone you are looking for, we hope our review has helped you. Especially if you are looking for the best HD camera drone , FPV camera drone , or GPS camera drone.
These are the best camera drones under $300, and we think one of them is right for you! Thanks for reading.
If you’re still on the fence, or if you’d like to check out something slightly different, check out our article on the Best FPV Racing Drones to buy under $300.
Come back sometime and check out some more of our product reviews and best-in-class lists.