Hey Guys, just fyi, I got a new drone for Christmas. I wasn't quite expecting to get one, but sure enough, my brother Justin got me a drone. It is a holy stone 220 drone.
This drone officially marks my first time owning a drone. Also, prior to the holy stone 220 drone, I had no experience flying drones, so it is definitely a learning curve for me. By the way, per FAA regulations, I already registered my drone and will be flying it as a hobby / recreation for now and you can see my drone footage on youtube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmfAZz-9RmsNHZfi7kEiAUg or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/media/set?set=a.787319709502&type=3.
Per FAA laws on recreational use of drones, I won't be able to host drone footage videos on my blog as I do have ads on this site. Also as a beginner drone pilot, I am not ready to pursue the Part 107 certification at this time. Maybe someday, when I am more experienced and if the Lord wills it, I could consider buying a more professional grade drone (second level drone for me will likely be either the holy stone 100, 700 or 720 drones, one of the 3, haven't decided which one, though the 720 is a newer model and has a longer range and flight time, so 700 is more likely) and pursuing that certification and develop a career out of it. By the way, apparently the FAA is developing an exam that even recreational drone pilots will have take at some point anyways (probably not for a while with coronavirus going around), so by then the Part 107 exam might be more appealing, but we shall see for sure. For now, I will be posting drone footage on my drone youtube channel (it is a new one I created in addition to my main one) as well as on my Facebook albums. By the way, I while know people can make money on Youtube too from Adsense ads, however, even if I wanted to make money on Youtube, my Adsense account got disabled years ago (the ads on this page are from Amazon and Adhits instead). It is a weird story on how that happened. In my point of view, basically, I tried advertising this particular blog on Google Adwords (trying to get more traffic to the site), but they wouldn't take this site due to their "site policy" and eventually suspended my account (I guess they didn't want to take blogs with ads on them as they can think those kinds of blogs are more "bridge pages" than anything else). I turned to a different ad network to advertise my site where you can buy clicks (forgot the name of the site, but it was an ad exchange or something like that) and next thing I knew, I got the dreaded email saying that my adsense account got disabled because it was at risk of invalid clicks activity (probably had to do with turning to on of Google's competitors for advertising my site). I tried to appeal, but I wasn't able to get it reversed. Problem with Google is that when they suspend you or disable your adsense account (same for adwords), it is permanent and they don't seem to give second chances (and no, they don't always warn you if you are doing something you shouldn't), so it is what it is. Unless if my adsense account gets reinstated, I don't expect to make money on Youtube at this time and will be hosting Adhitz ads and Amazon ads (along with Clickbank ads) instead on this blog. But on youtube, that is kinda a good thing for me as it won't look like I am using the drone videos for financial gain on youtube at this time as I don't expect to make any ad revenue from those videos.
Hey, if the Lord wills it that I go for my part 107 certification, then maybe a year or so from now I can start seriously considering going down that road. However I am a learner right now and it is too early for me to go down that road (still need to get the basics down first). It is like learning to drive and getting your driver's license. First you do drivers education, pass that course, get plenty of hours in driving, and then you can do the tests required for the licenses, and then you can use the car for driving to work or wherever you are going. Also, the drone I have is more of a starter / beginner grade drone too, so it is not like I can get professional looking footage anyways. By the way, eventually, I will consider getting a second (and more traditional grade) drone. Obviously, Mavic Pro and Phantom 4 are too expensive for me (they sell for over $1000+). Instead, I will probably be looking at either the Holy Stone 100, 700 or the 720 drones (both 100 and 700 are similar to the Phantom drones, but not nearly as expensive and 720 is more like a Mavic Pro, but comes with a $300 price tag instead of a $1000+ price tag, so I would probably invest in one of those before going to the higher end drones). Haven't decided which one I will buy at this time, but when the time comes, I will probably go with one of the 3 (most likely the 700 as it is a newer model than the 100 and has better range), may have to upgrade my phone or buy a tablet before then too as the one I have will not likely have enough storage space for two drone apps. By the way, I can share animal footage I get on my youtube channel (for example, I caught an eagle flying overhead with the drone a few days ago, plus both my family and neighbors have dogs, so they may appear on the drone footage sooner or later too.).
First impressions review of the Holy Stone 220 Drone:
The Good
+ control lay out is pretty simple (basically shaped like an xbox one controller)
+ Works best in video mode instead of photo mode
+ comes with headless mode. Makes it easier to fly the drone without having to worry about the orientation of it. Normally, the controls change depending on where the drone is facing. By the way, sometimes you can inadvertantly turn the drone while causing it to rise or descend, and headless mode makes it easier to learn that way.
+ Considering that most beginners are likely to crash the drone sometimes, it is damage resistant and doesn't break easily. Propellers can get chipped sometimes though.
+ The emergency stop button works well. Useful if the drone starts to fly away or malfunction.
+ Comes with 4 different speeds. I recommend starting out with the first level speed, though faster speeds work well when it is windy out.
+ videos / pictures can be taken in the app and save directly to your phone / tablet (can upload or share the videos that way on facebook, youtube, etc)
+ Calibration is pretty easy to do with the push of a button
+ comes with 2 modes: folded mode and unfolded mode. Folded mode works best indoors and is useful if you want to get some experience flying it. Unfolded mode is useful if you are flying outdoors and want to get pictures or videos with the built in camera (doesn't work in folded mode)
The Bad:
- It is a light weight drone and it can easily get caught in the wind. Probably best to fly it when there is little or no wind out.
- I don't know about other holy stone 220 drones, but I know mine doesn't hover in place very well. Usually starts to drift, making it difficult to keep it in one spot. The trimmer button is easy to use when the drone starts to drift.
- This drone works best at short range. The manual says it is good for about 50 meters and can only fly up to 110 feet. If you are looking for a longer range drone, then the 220 isn't for you.
- Also, flight time is only good for about 7 minutes on average and it takes at least an hour or so to charge it between drones. You might consider buying extra batteries if you want to fly it longer. You won't be able to fly very far in 7 minutes
- Fly aways can happen. I've noticed on more than one occasion, that the drone will get a mind of its own sometimes and I almost lost mine on more than one occasion. Best way to fix the problem is to hit the emergency stop buttons. Causes the drone to crash, but at least you don't have to worry about losing it. Also, the propellers don't break easily and the drone is relatively cheap compared to other drones. Not really sure what causes fly aways (probably more likely to happen if you fly more than 50 meters away from you)
- Camera only faces whichever the drone is facing, so that does limit what you can get in the footage. No way to adjust the camera direction besides raising and lowering the drone itself.
By the way, due to coronavirus going around as well as the fact that most if not all Snohomish County Parks don't allow drones, I will be mainly flying it in my backyard for now. Plus the one I have only works for about 7 minutes before having to charge again and works best at close range. Maybe someday I can scout out some public fields to fly it in (may have to go to Skagit county for that, either that or the Meadowbrook Farm Park in North Bend considering that some people fly drones there), but for now, I will be doing it in the backyard. I have several acres of land, and not too close to the Harvey Field airport, so I will be doing it in the backyard for now. Do get some wildlife coming through, like eagles, rabbits, coyotes, bobcats, etc so I could catch some wildlife in the yard sometimes too.
That is all for now.
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| picture of the drone I have |
Per FAA laws on recreational use of drones, I won't be able to host drone footage videos on my blog as I do have ads on this site. Also as a beginner drone pilot, I am not ready to pursue the Part 107 certification at this time. Maybe someday, when I am more experienced and if the Lord wills it, I could consider buying a more professional grade drone (second level drone for me will likely be either the holy stone 100, 700 or 720 drones, one of the 3, haven't decided which one, though the 720 is a newer model and has a longer range and flight time, so 700 is more likely) and pursuing that certification and develop a career out of it. By the way, apparently the FAA is developing an exam that even recreational drone pilots will have take at some point anyways (probably not for a while with coronavirus going around), so by then the Part 107 exam might be more appealing, but we shall see for sure. For now, I will be posting drone footage on my drone youtube channel (it is a new one I created in addition to my main one) as well as on my Facebook albums. By the way, I while know people can make money on Youtube too from Adsense ads, however, even if I wanted to make money on Youtube, my Adsense account got disabled years ago (the ads on this page are from Amazon and Adhits instead). It is a weird story on how that happened. In my point of view, basically, I tried advertising this particular blog on Google Adwords (trying to get more traffic to the site), but they wouldn't take this site due to their "site policy" and eventually suspended my account (I guess they didn't want to take blogs with ads on them as they can think those kinds of blogs are more "bridge pages" than anything else). I turned to a different ad network to advertise my site where you can buy clicks (forgot the name of the site, but it was an ad exchange or something like that) and next thing I knew, I got the dreaded email saying that my adsense account got disabled because it was at risk of invalid clicks activity (probably had to do with turning to on of Google's competitors for advertising my site). I tried to appeal, but I wasn't able to get it reversed. Problem with Google is that when they suspend you or disable your adsense account (same for adwords), it is permanent and they don't seem to give second chances (and no, they don't always warn you if you are doing something you shouldn't), so it is what it is. Unless if my adsense account gets reinstated, I don't expect to make money on Youtube at this time and will be hosting Adhitz ads and Amazon ads (along with Clickbank ads) instead on this blog. But on youtube, that is kinda a good thing for me as it won't look like I am using the drone videos for financial gain on youtube at this time as I don't expect to make any ad revenue from those videos.
Hey, if the Lord wills it that I go for my part 107 certification, then maybe a year or so from now I can start seriously considering going down that road. However I am a learner right now and it is too early for me to go down that road (still need to get the basics down first). It is like learning to drive and getting your driver's license. First you do drivers education, pass that course, get plenty of hours in driving, and then you can do the tests required for the licenses, and then you can use the car for driving to work or wherever you are going. Also, the drone I have is more of a starter / beginner grade drone too, so it is not like I can get professional looking footage anyways. By the way, eventually, I will consider getting a second (and more traditional grade) drone. Obviously, Mavic Pro and Phantom 4 are too expensive for me (they sell for over $1000+). Instead, I will probably be looking at either the Holy Stone 100, 700 or the 720 drones (both 100 and 700 are similar to the Phantom drones, but not nearly as expensive and 720 is more like a Mavic Pro, but comes with a $300 price tag instead of a $1000+ price tag, so I would probably invest in one of those before going to the higher end drones). Haven't decided which one I will buy at this time, but when the time comes, I will probably go with one of the 3 (most likely the 700 as it is a newer model than the 100 and has better range), may have to upgrade my phone or buy a tablet before then too as the one I have will not likely have enough storage space for two drone apps. By the way, I can share animal footage I get on my youtube channel (for example, I caught an eagle flying overhead with the drone a few days ago, plus both my family and neighbors have dogs, so they may appear on the drone footage sooner or later too.).
 |
| Here is a picture of the backyard I got with my drone. |
The Good
+ control lay out is pretty simple (basically shaped like an xbox one controller)
+ Works best in video mode instead of photo mode
+ comes with headless mode. Makes it easier to fly the drone without having to worry about the orientation of it. Normally, the controls change depending on where the drone is facing. By the way, sometimes you can inadvertantly turn the drone while causing it to rise or descend, and headless mode makes it easier to learn that way.
+ Considering that most beginners are likely to crash the drone sometimes, it is damage resistant and doesn't break easily. Propellers can get chipped sometimes though.
+ The emergency stop button works well. Useful if the drone starts to fly away or malfunction.
+ Comes with 4 different speeds. I recommend starting out with the first level speed, though faster speeds work well when it is windy out.
+ videos / pictures can be taken in the app and save directly to your phone / tablet (can upload or share the videos that way on facebook, youtube, etc)
+ Calibration is pretty easy to do with the push of a button
+ comes with 2 modes: folded mode and unfolded mode. Folded mode works best indoors and is useful if you want to get some experience flying it. Unfolded mode is useful if you are flying outdoors and want to get pictures or videos with the built in camera (doesn't work in folded mode)
The Bad:
- It is a light weight drone and it can easily get caught in the wind. Probably best to fly it when there is little or no wind out.
- I don't know about other holy stone 220 drones, but I know mine doesn't hover in place very well. Usually starts to drift, making it difficult to keep it in one spot. The trimmer button is easy to use when the drone starts to drift.
- This drone works best at short range. The manual says it is good for about 50 meters and can only fly up to 110 feet. If you are looking for a longer range drone, then the 220 isn't for you.
- Also, flight time is only good for about 7 minutes on average and it takes at least an hour or so to charge it between drones. You might consider buying extra batteries if you want to fly it longer. You won't be able to fly very far in 7 minutes
- Fly aways can happen. I've noticed on more than one occasion, that the drone will get a mind of its own sometimes and I almost lost mine on more than one occasion. Best way to fix the problem is to hit the emergency stop buttons. Causes the drone to crash, but at least you don't have to worry about losing it. Also, the propellers don't break easily and the drone is relatively cheap compared to other drones. Not really sure what causes fly aways (probably more likely to happen if you fly more than 50 meters away from you)
- Camera only faces whichever the drone is facing, so that does limit what you can get in the footage. No way to adjust the camera direction besides raising and lowering the drone itself.
By the way, due to coronavirus going around as well as the fact that most if not all Snohomish County Parks don't allow drones, I will be mainly flying it in my backyard for now. Plus the one I have only works for about 7 minutes before having to charge again and works best at close range. Maybe someday I can scout out some public fields to fly it in (may have to go to Skagit county for that, either that or the Meadowbrook Farm Park in North Bend considering that some people fly drones there), but for now, I will be doing it in the backyard. I have several acres of land, and not too close to the Harvey Field airport, so I will be doing it in the backyard for now. Do get some wildlife coming through, like eagles, rabbits, coyotes, bobcats, etc so I could catch some wildlife in the yard sometimes too.
That is all for now.
Sponsored links section
Featured ads from Amazon
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