Coming with an adjustable camera with a wide field of view, the Holy Stone HS175D will capture just the perfect shots. Of course, one of the main reasons for buying drones today is to enjoy aerial shooting.
And the HS175D has much more going for it. Thus, in this review, we are going to look at its features in detail. We shall also look at its pros and cons.
While Holy Stone makes good drones, like other drones, the HS175D has its downsides. However, these are not deal breakers.
For instance, there have been some complaints about the app, with some users saying it is not as responsive as it should be. However, we realize that this could be caused by things such as your android or iOS version.
Another thing that you might want to know is that even in the lowest velocity wind, the drone might prove hard to trim.
As we said, these are not deal breakers. Keep reading to see the main features of this quadcopter.
Holy Stone HS175D Features & Technical Details
Holy Stone packs many features in their drones, even in their smallest ones. Of course, this hikes the price a bit, but it is worth it.
Design and Build Quality
This drone comes in a foldable design. It is even better because it comes with a storage case. If you want a good aerial camera to record your outdoor and travel adventures, you need to get this drone.
You will notice that the drone has nice contour lines in the top panel. These just make it look unique and beautiful and perhaps they help to make the drone more streamlined. That way, it makes its way through the wind easily.
This is a lightweight drone since it weighs 215g. Thus, you do not need to register it with the FAA because it falls under the 250G registration threshold.
The HS175D has brushless motors. These motors are not as loud as the brushed ones. The noise decibel level is low. These motors also last longer than the brushed ones. They also do not need too much maintenance because they do not overheat.
The manufacturer has used high quality ABS plastic material. This kind of plastic is strong, durable and it will not rip apart when the drone crashes.
Finally, when the drone is delivered to you, it comes assembled and ready to fly. Thus, you do not have to tinker with anything. Just refer to the user manual to know how to calibrate the drone for flight.
Camera Quality
This drone has been equipped with a real 4K camera. This has a photo resolution of 4096 by 3072P even when you store the footage in the smartphone.
The camera field of view is wide at 110 degrees. Also, the vertical angle of the camera is adjustable from the remote controller by up to 90 degrees.
You will also enjoy a stunning FPV experience over a long distance of 500 meters. The long distance real-time image transmission is enabled by the 5GHz connectivity. You will just have to download the drone’s app to your smartphone to see what the drone can see as it flies.
The HS175D also comes with a slot for a TF card. It supports TF cards of up to 64GB. This will store your footage so that you can capture more and transfer it to your computer later.
This UHD camera captures vivid footage. It captures color details vividly and correctly. The only thing that might hamper the quality of your footage is if there is wind.
The maximum image transmission distance is 300 meters.
Batteries and Flight Time
This is where Holy Stone has truly met and exceeded expectations. The two pieces of 7.6V 1700mAh Lithium Polymer batteries are going to give you a long flight time.
Each battery can give you 23 minutes of flight time on a full charge. Thus, there will be no need to buy a third battery because these two will be enough.
When the drone is delivered, you will see that one battery is already installed in the drone. The second battery is in the case.
By design, these are modular batteries. Thus, they charge outside the drone. They are very safe too, for handling or charging. For instance, they have overcharge protection. Even if you leave the battery charging, it will never overcharge.
Use the charging cable that the battery comes with to avoid damage. The charging time for one battery is 150 minutes/2.5 hours. This is a fair charging time if you will get 23 minutes of flight time.
The high quality brushless motors do not consume as much firepower as the brushed motors. This is one of the things that enhance flight time and performance of the drone.
Remote Controller and App
There are two ways to fly and control a drone – the remote controller and the app. When you use the remote controller, you fly the drone blindly. When you use the app, you can access FPV and see what the drone can “see” as it flies.
The remote controller is simple by design, with the requisite buttons, the trim and throttle sticks and an uncluttered face. It also has keys for videos/photos, one key takeoff/landing and so on.
It has retractable handles beneath and on the top side; it has a foldable smartphone holder. It also has a USB port, which we assume is for charging the built-in battery.
The overall control distance for the remote controller is 500 meters. As long as you fly the drone in a place without obstruction on a calm day, you should enjoy a fun flight.
Flight Modes
There are many flight functions, which will make it easy to fly this drone even for a first-timer. They are as follows:
GPS Positioning and Return
With this function, the drone can turn and come back home if there is power loss or when the signal is disconnected. GPS positioning also ensures that you always know where your drone is all the time.
Follow Me Mode
In this mode, the drone locks onto you and follows you all the time, wherever you go. It also keeps you in the frame to keep you in the footage.
Circle Mode
You can get the drone to fly around a monument taking footage from all angles. You just have to access the map interface on the app and then choose the place that you want the drone to circle. It will fly around it taking nice shots.
Altitude Hold
Altitude hold enables the drone to hold its height for the entire time that it will be flying. Thus, you do not have to bother about keeping the aircraft up as it will do that on its own. Just concentrate on taking footage and flying the aircraft ahead.
Speed Modes
You can adjust the speed of the aircraft from low to medium and to high. This is good for a beginner because lower speeds are safer.
Headless Mode
Engage headless mode so that the aircraft can adjust itself according to the position of the pilot. That way, you will not have to worry about the direction that the quadcopter faces.
Short Summary of Feedback from Existing Owners
This is a good drone and it flies nicely, but only when the weather is very calm. If there is so much as a whisper of wind, it starts becoming hard to trim. Havi N.
When Holy Stone builds a drone, they build it very well. The HS175D comes with many flight functions, has many features and the camera is excellent. This is worth the money! Lee K.
The app is a bit hard to use and it seems to lack some features. Apart from that, this is a good quadcopter, is powerful and takes nice photos and videos. The Drone Guy
The price is good considering the features. The app won’t work with the old versions of android, but that is no surprise since most don’t. John S.
Two batteries with a long flight time, nice storage case and the low price make this a good starter package for a beginner drone pilot. Carter J.
Holy Stone HS175D Pros
- The package comes with 8 spare propellers
- It packs small in its storage case
- No registration with the FAA is required
- So easy to fly even for a beginner pilot
- Has many automated flight modes
- The camera takes clear, high quality footage
Holy Stone HS175D Cons
- Hard to trim even in the slightest wind
- The app could be better
Who Should Buy The Holy Stone HS175D Drone?
Holy Stone drones are good for beginners as well as skilled pilots. For a person who is looking to start their drone hobby, the HS175D is easy to fly, hard to crash and hard to lose.
For a skilled pilot, the FPV, the high quality camera and the flight range are worth paying for. Mostly, even if this is your first drone to fly, chances are you won’t want to upgrade to a bigger one in the near future.
Conclusion and Recommendation
This is a high quality drone at an affordable price. It comes with everything that you need to improve your flying skill set. Once you buy it, read the user manual first to see how to calibrate it. You also need to fly it when it is very calm.
Start flying the Holy Stone HS175D on low speed but you can adjust to a higher one. While the drone is not too loud thanks to the brushless motors, the noise is high enough to spook animals. Thus, fly it in large, open and unoccupied spaces.
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