Z8W WiFi 720p Drone
Starting under $40
Pros/Cons
- PROS:
- 720p camera
- Caged Design
- Wide FOV
- CONS:
- No Onboard SD card
- Limited Range
Specs
- Range: 30 meters
- Flight Time: 6 minutes
- Camera: 720p
The Zhicheng Z8W is a drone with a completely enclosed propeller design. It is similar to one of our favorite kid-friendly drones the Box Flyer, but larger and with a few upgrades. Right now you can get an even better deal from TomTop with the code: HTY4ZR.
You can also get this drone from Banggood but they may be selling an older version (we can’t be sure). The original version reportedly does not include this drone’s secret weapon – an ultra-wide field of view. Let’s take a closer look.
The Z8W Design
The Z8W features a cage that helps protect the drone from obstacles in every direction. Unlike traditional propeller guards that only protect the drone from light bumps this cage shields the quadcopter from almost everything.
That makes flying this drone a lot like flying a bumper car. You can bounce off of obstacles and keep on flying. It also helps keep the pilot safe from the spinning propellers. Even with brushed motors getting hit by a prop can hurt.
The Z8W Camera
The Z8W has a surprisingly-wide 126 degree horizontal field of view. That is wider than even our GoPro in wide-angle mode, which is only 122 degrees with stabilization turned off. This is the widest field of view we have ever seen on a toy drone! Paired with a 2MP HD camera, the Z8W is actually an excellent quadcopter to fly FPV (first person view). FPV is when you pilot the drone using a live video feed from the onboard camera. This is how drone racers pilot their machines.
The image quality from the Z8W is not anything to write home about. The center of the image is out of focus while the edges are in focus. The center is also heavily corrected for distortion while the edges are not. These are interesting choices, but ultimately the image quality does not degrade the flight experience.
The FPV is achieved by streaming the video to your smartphone via WiFi using a free smartphone app. There is a bit of lag, but it isn’t bad. This drone may be the easiest indoor drone to fly FPV that we have ever tested.
The Z8W Features
The Z8W features altitude hold which helps make the quadcopter quite stable. It isn’t the best altitude hold we have tested, but it isn’t bad. It also has multiple speeds, headless mode and does flips with the push of a button. It claims to have a return to home button, but like all non-GPS drones it is hit or miss. We don’t recommend you used this feature.
Should You Buy a Z8W?
If you are looking for an easy to fly quadcopter then you should definitely take a look at the Z8W. This is a fun quadcopter with a unique design and is ideal for beginners.Right now you can an extra $4 from TomTop with the code: HTY4ZR.
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Learn More…
If you want to learn more about taking great pictures or flying FPV then check out our comprehensive guides on those topics. Also take a look at our articles on how to choose the right drone for great aerial photos or for getting started flying race drones. Learn more about drones and how to get the most out of them in our Drone Academy. In the Academy we also detail some of the advanced testing we do, including our recent addition, drone thrust testing.
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