Parrot Bebop drone review: bird's eye view without a sky-high price

Third-generation device generates good quality video for a reasonable length of time, but lacks precision control without the custom controller

The Parrot Bebop is a camera drone with a real focus on recording video and some seriously impressive image stabilisation. It is Parror's third generation full-sized flying quatrocopter and is aiming to fly into a sweet spot in the market

The device is a half-way house between a drone designed for carrying a large camera, such as those often used in TV shows like Top Gear and the toy drones intended to entertain. A "prosumer drone", it lands at the fun end of the scale, very much for those looking to make home movies rather than television documentaries, but that's no bad thing

The new drone from Parrot, the French Bluetooth specialist, looks like almost any other quadrocopter. It has four exposed propellers on four extended arms that surround a tube-like body. The arms attach to an under plate, which supports a polystyrene body containing the camera and a tray for the battery on rubber buffers that help neutralise vibration

For indoor flight there are two 10g clip-on polystyrene shells that are designed to protect the drone from walls - and the walls from the drone

They attack easily but a couple of crashes left marks on the wall and chunks cut out of the shells by the blades. The drone kept working just fine, though, even with a near full speed head-on collision with the wall.

The Bebop also comes with a full spare set of propellers that are very easy to swap for broken ones, should the worst happen

The app works on iPhones, iPads, Androids or Windows Phones and connects to the drone using Wi-Fi to display a live feed from the camera. The drone broadcasts its own network, and once connected works at a range of up to 250m from the tablet or up to 2km from the Skycontroller

There are three ways of directly controlling the Bebop using the app: tilt, virtual joysticks or tilt with independent camera control. The tilt control is fun as a toy, but difficult to use for any tight control. THe virtual joysticks work well enough to fly it through an office without too much trouble-precision control is difficult on a touchscreen, however

Users can also plot a route on a map for the drone to fly itself using the built-in GPS ship outdoors

Stable flight

In flight the Bebop is stable and resists both knocks and the wind buffeting it, returning to its original position almost aggressively. It can fly up to 150m from the ground at up to 2.5m/s at a maximum of 2,500m above sea level.

 

Despite maintaining a stable vertical position, however, it failed to deal with the internal circulation of air in our tests. It would spin uncontrollably when flying over simple low airflow vents or desks and drift from side to side when attempting to fly over stairwell

Two batteries are included in the box with the Bebop, along with a separate charger. It will fly for about 10 to 12 minutes per battery. It is also quite loud and the downdraft is enough to blow papers and anything not weighed down all over the place while flying. You can forget sneaking up on anyone

The drone has a 14-megapixel camera in the nose with a fisheye lens and a 180-degree field of view. It records 1080[ video at 30 frames per second, uses digital stabilisation and can adjust the angle of the camera independently from the motion of the drone. The image captured is flat, despite the fisheye lens that normally distorts the picture

The video is ultra-smooth, resembling the kind of motion seen in first-person video games. Even when banking hard with the drone the video is completely flat. The quality of the video is decent, akin to a mid-range action cam, but suffers from graining in poor lighting conditions such as those inside an office

The law

What you do with a drone in your own home is pretty much your business, but the Civil Aviation Authority(CAA) has certain rules about what you can and cannot do with remotely controlled flying objects including drones

The current legislation means that it is illegal to fly a drone within 50m of a building or a person and 150m of a built-up area. In addition, the maximum flight height is 400m and the drone has to remain in line of sight and within 500m of the pilot

For commercial purposes, pilots must complete a training course and apply for a permit to fly the drone from the CAA

Price

The Parrot Bebop drone is available in red, blue and yellow and coats 430 pounds or 770 pounds with the Skycontroller. Two batteries are included, with extra batteries 50 pounds a pop. Spare parts for all of the components of the Bebop are available individually from Parrot

Verdict

The Parrot Bebop is a fantastic toy that allows users to go beyond just flying it around and crashing into things and make interesting videos and take photos from a completely new perspective

The flight time of about 10 minutes is long enough to do something meaningful and the 8GB storage is enough to record most of a flight

Despite being super smooth, the video is not of professional quality, but is perfectly good enough for most consumers. The biggest issue are the restrictions on where you can fly a drone. It is still fun to fly around indoors, but the lack of precision control with a touchscreen leads to more crashes than you would like for a 400 pounds machine

Pros: super smooth video, easy to set up, robust enough to survive a crash, fun to fly, two batteries in the box, GPS

Cons: graining in low-light conditions, difficult to control precisely, legislation on drone use restrictive, expensive for a toy

legislation on drone use restrictive

difficult to control precisely

graining in low-light conditions

robust enough to survive a crash

easy to set up

leads to more crashes

the lack of precision control with touchscreen

the lack of precision control with a touchscreen leads to more crashes than you would like for a 400 pounds machine

is still fun to fly around indorrs

the biggest issue are the restrictions on where you can fly a drone

is perfectly good enough for most consumers

is not of professional quality

despite being super smooth

is enough to record most of a flight

is long enough to do something meaningul

from a completely new perspective

crashing into things and make interesting videos

allows users to go beyond just flying it around

spare parts for all of the components of the Bebop are available individually from Parrot

with extra batteries 50 pounds a pop

is available in red, blue and yellow

apply for a permit to fly the drone from the CAA

pilots must complete a training course

for commercial purposes

in line of sight

has to remain in line of sight and within 500m of the pilot

in addition, the maximum flight height is 400m

a built-up area

150m of a built-up area

the current legislation means that it is illegal to fly a drone within 50m of a building or a person

with remotely controlled flying objects including drones

the Civil Aviation Authority has certain rules about what you can

suffers from graining in poor lighting conditions such as those inside an office

akin to a mid-range action cam

the quality of the video is decent

banking hard

when banking hard with the drone the video is completely flat

resembling the kind of motion seen in first-person video games

the video is ultra-smooth

despite the fisheye lens that normally distorts the picture

the image captured is flat

can adjust the angle of the camera independently from the motion of the drone

uses digital stabilisation

at 30 frames per second

a 180-degree field of view

has a 14-megapixel camera in the nose with a fisheye lens

sneaking up on anyone

can forget sneaking up on anyone

weighed down all over the place

anything not weighed down all over the place while flying

the downdraft is enough to blow papers

will fly for about 10 to 12 minutes per battery

along with a separate charger

are included in the box with the Bebop

drift from side to side when attempting to fly over stairwell

would spin uncontrollably when flying over simple low airflow vents

failed to deal with the internal circulation of air in our tests

despite maintaining a stable vertical position

resists both knocks and the wind buffeting it

the wind buffeting it

is stable and resists both knocks and the wind buffeting it

the built-in GPS ship outdoors

to fly itself using the built-in GPS ship outdoors

can also plot a route on a map for the drone

tilt with independent camera control

tilt, virtual joystickor tilt with independent camera control

are three ways of directly controlling the Bebop using the app

once conneced works at a range of up to 250m from the tablet

the drone broadcasts its own network

connects to the drone using Wi-Fi to display a live feed from the camera

the app works on iPhones

should the worst happen

are very easy to swap for broken ones

comes with a full spare set of propellers

head-on collision

with a near full speed head-on collision with the wall

kept working just fine

chunks cut out of the shells by the blades

a couple of crashes left marks on the wall

are designed to protect the drone from walls

two 10g clip-on polystyrene shells

for indoor flight

help neutralise vibration

a tray for the battery on rubber buffers that help neutralise vibration

supports a polystyrene body containing the camera

attach to an under plate

has four exposed propellers on four extended arms that surround a tube-like body

looks like almost any other quadrocopter

looking to make home movies rather than television documentraries

lands at the fun end of the scale

a prosumer drone

intended to entertain

designed for carrying a large camera

is a half-way house

is aiming to fly into a sweet spot in the market

full-sized flying quatrocopter

some seriously impressive image stabilisation

with a real focus on recoding video

lacks precision control without the custom controller

third-generation device generate good quality video for a reasonable length of time

bird's eye view without a sky-high price