What is the best 4K camera drone in 2021?

Over the past decade, photography has become more accessible thanks to smartphones and lower-priced digital cameras. The same trend is now happening with 4K camera drones: almost any user has the opportunity to easily create professional-grade videos and photos with the touch of a button.

However, there’s an overwhelmingly high number of aerial camera drones available on the market today, and at different price points. How to choose the best 4K camera drone? In this article, we cut through the clutter and highlight some of the most relevant UHD camera UAVs. Our in-depth research is based on feedback from various reliable sources and user reviews (read more about how we work).

Our UHD drone video camera selection features a number of reputable drone manufacturers such as DJI, Yuneec, and Parrot. However, they also share the limelight with lesser-known drone companies such as Autel Robotics or Upair. We indeed strive to provide a comprehensive overview of the 4K drone market, including both popular and more anonymous products.

What is a 4K camera drone?

A 4K camera drone is equipped with an ultra-high-definition camera (4K resolution). 4K drones are typically more expensive than regular camera drones and allow for professional-grade image and video capture.

The best 4K drones in 2021

Overview of the best 4K camera drones in 2019

4K camera drone special mentions

Cheapest 4K drone: Contixo F17+

Priced at just under $230, this affordable 4K camera drone is one of the cheapest 4K drones available on the market. Although it does capture great images, this photography drone’s maximum flying time is limited to 12 minutes only.

The Contixo F17+ doesn’t come with a GPS or autonomous flight modes, so it may be more suitable for experienced hobbyists and amateurs rather than for first-time drone pilots.

Self-flying 4K drone: Skydio R1

Skydio refers to their R1 drone as a “self-flying autonomous camera”. After unfolding the Skydio drone, users have easy control over it via the dedicated mobile app. A range of autonomous flight modes are available, including Orbit, Side, Tripod, Lead, and Follow. However, the user is able to steer the R1 manually through the app too.

Most expensive 4K drone: Airborne Drones The Vanguard

The Vanguard 4K camera drone is a high-end photography UAV for professional use (e.g. surveillance). This premium 4K drone costs around $45,000, a high price tag justified by the impressive specs it offers: 94-minute flights, a 35 km range, a payload capacity of 2 kilograms, and more.

Additionally, this foldable drone’s 4K camera boasts 24 MP and a video frame rate of 60 fps.

Benefits of 4K video drones

Using a camera drone to capture photos and videos offers a number of interesting advantages.

Higher quality videos and photos due to high resolution

It may seem obvious, but 4K Ultra HD resolution enables users to capture high-quality images and video footage.

More post-editing possibilities

Since the photos and videos are of a bigger size, it’s possible to zoom into images and footage and/or crop them while still maintaining very good image/video quality.

Stable aerial shots

Drones give more possibilities than a regular handheld camera. They are able to follow smooth trajectories thanks to the various autonomous flight modes mentioned further below. Most 4K quadcopters also feature image stabilizers (e.g. 3-axis or 6-axis gimbals) for clear, crisp footage.

4K camera drones are typically equipped with many more user-friendly features (autonomous flight, facial recognition, etc.) than regular drones or RC racing drones. This is because they are destined for applications where high stability is required (such as professional filmmaking) and where special flying/shooting modes are a crucial selling point.

4K drone buying guide

Our 4K drone buying guide covers the main decision-making specs and features that drone pilots should consider.

Flight modes and features

There are a number of autonomous flight modes available to enhance the drone pilot’s filming experience. Some of the most common autonomous drone flight modes are:

• Obstacle detection/avoidance: thanks to various sensors, the drone is able to detect obstacles such as trees. In the case of there being an obstacle, either the user is notified in order to manually avoid the obstacle, or the drone is able to avoid it automatically.
• Orbit/POI (point of interest): with orbit mode, the UAV circles around a specific subject indicated by the user. The subject can, for example, be a person, a monument, a tower, a car, etc.
• Waypoint: users may determine a precise trajectory/itinerary for their drone instead of having to navigate the drone manually.
• Follow-me: with this feature, users can simply tell the drone to follow them around without having to manually pilot the drone. The drone “follows” the drone pilot’s controller (different than tracking with facial recognition).

There are also self-flying drones such as the Hover Camera Passport or Skydio R1 (mentioned further above) which are able to fly themselves with minimal user input.

Technical camera hardware specs

All of the drones in this list feature a 4K UHD (ultra high definition) camera; therefore, the image resolution is already sure to be above standard. However, there are a few technical specs that users may use to compare different 4K cameras between them:

• Amount of MP (megapixels): the more megapixels there are, the more users will be able to zoom into the picture, crop the image, etc. This spec is mostly important for those who wish to print their images in large sizes or canvases.
• Angle (e.g. 90°): wider angles enable drone pilots to capture wider images. A wide angle is useful, for example, when shooting landscape footage.
• ISO sensitivity range: if a camera has high ISO sensitivity range– ISO 6400 being the highest sensitivity– users have more flexibility when taking photos in low-light situations (more detailed information here).
• Gimbal stabilizer: many 4K camera drones are equipped with stabilizers. The gimbal can be 2-axis, 3-axis, or even 6-axis. A higher number of gimbal axes ensures more image stability when the drone is flying.
• FPS (frames per second): for drone pilots looking to create stunning videos, a high FPS rate is crucial. This ensures that the footage is smooth, especially for fast-action scenes.

Drone video camera shooting modes

Aside from the useful flying modes that are unique to the drone’s flying capacities, 4K cameras also have their own shooting modes. To list a few:

• Dolly Zoom: this technique is used in filmmaking. It consists in zooming into a subject all while moving the camera backwards. This way, the subject remains the same size within the camera’s frame, but not at the same distance. Dolly Zooming is complex to achieve manually, but some drones automate this method.
• Dronie (drone selfie): why use a selfie stick when selfie drones exist? With the click of a button, voice command, or hand gesture, drone pilots can capture selfies on-demand with optimized framing.
• Tracking (e.g. ActiveTrack): some drones feature facial recognition and/or object recognition. Thus, the drone is able to follow different subjects such as a car, an animal, people, etc. The DJI Mavic Air, for example, is able to follow sixteen different targets simultaneously.
• Live streaming: depending on the drone and its transmission power, it’s possible to live-stream first-hand footage. Transferring heavy data (e.g. 4K video) through long distances is demanding though, so most of the time a live video feed is only available in reduced quality and frame rates.

Flight specs

Below are some of the most important attributes to look out for when purchasing a drone:

• Flight time: for how many minutes can the 4K quadcopter fly?
• Range: how far away from the pilot can the camera drone reach?
• Speed: is the drone able to follow a fast-moving target?

Their level of importance depends on the use case that the drone is destined for. If the goal is to capture selfies (or “dronies”), then the drone’s maximum range and speed don’t necessarily need to be exceptional. However, for filming professional scenes or large landscapes in FPV, a large range is almost essential.

Hardware

It’s important for the HD camera drone to have a robust design and build (i.e. carbon fiber material), in addition to propeller guards. Many 4K camera drones offer automatic obstacle avoidance, but there’s always a slight risk depending on the environment and its conditions (e.g. wildlife or wind).

The drone’s size and weight will also matter depending on the drone pilot’s activity. Many of the 4K quadcopters in this list are foldable, making them much easier to transport.

Drone remote controllers

Most 4K drones come with dedicated, intuitive controllers. However, they don’t all feature a screen, and some radio controllers require users to mount a smartphone or tablet onto the controller.

In this regard, it’s up to the user to see what they are more comfortable with. Also, even if the drone ships with a controller, some drones can be easily piloted via a simple, proprietary mobile app (given that the manufacturer has developed one).

Furthermore, it’s sometimes even possible to view live drone footage in FPV (first-person view) via virtual reality goggles! DJI has even developed its own DJI Goggles so that users may pilot their drones in an immersive way.

Camera drones FAQ