Drones cover a wide range of prices, from super cheap toys to thousands of dollars worth of professional gear. But what if you have $150 and want to find the best drone for your money? Lucky for you we have picked out what we believe are the four best drones on the market, each with its own awesome features.
Let’s take a look at some of our favorite drones now, and see the reasons why we believe they are worth a purchase.
Contents
Quick Summary
- If you want a DJI drone for under $150, the DJI Tello is the way to go. While it is definitely not as big and robust as other DJI drones, for the price it is a very competent drone.
- If you are looking for a drone for your kids, you want the Robolink CoDrone Lite. It will allow your kids to fly it around the house or your yard, and also will teach them some coding as they customize it for themselves.
- If you want an affordable drone with a good range, check out the Potensic T25. It has a max range of 300 meters which is more than enough to have fun and adventure the skies above.
- If you want a drone with 1080p video, the only option is the Holy Stone HS120D. This drone has a 1080p camera on the bottom that takes sharp videos, head and shoulders above the others on this list.
Who Should Buy This?
If you are new to drones and are looking to buy your first one, these drones are great choices. Most people are scared to invest a lot of money in a drone when they are just starting out due to fear of crashing and ruining it. This is a somewhat valid fear, so buying in at a lower price point is a great idea.
These drones also make good drones for kids. If your children are showing an interest in flying a drone, check out some of the educational and training drones to help them learn how to fly them safely. There are a few on this list, and all of these would be good with adult supervision.
Best Drones Under $150: What to Consider in 2022
Range
A drone that has a limit range is not going to be nearly as fun to operate as one that can fly further away from your location. The ability to explore the sky above and spaces around you are what make flying a drone fun. The further the range, the more fun you will have.
Battery Life
This is something that drones struggle with. Batteries tend to only last for a very short amount of time, leaving you wishing for more. Finding a drone with decent battery life should be on the top of your priority list.
Video Resolution
Taking aerial videos and seeing the world from a different perspective is what makes flying drones an amazing experience. While just the act of flying the drone around is a fun recreational activity, to be able to record the flight and play it back later is mesmerizing.
Best Drones Under $150: Our Picks for 2022
1. DJI Tello
DJI is the premier name in drones, and their entry-level offering is the DJI Tello. This package comes with the Tello, a backpack, and some cleaning accessories and extra propellers. You get quite a bit of kit here for under $150, but is it worth it?
The range of the Tello is rather limited, coming in at only 100 meters. The battery life is okay at 13 minutes per charge, but we would have liked to squeaked out a couple of more minutes. The camera takes 720p video, but the quality is very muddy, but decent for this price range. Overall it is a decent entry-level drone with the DJI quality you expect.
- Range: 100 meters
- Battery Life: 13 minutes
- Video Resolution: 720p
2. Robolink CoDrone Lite
If your children are wanting to learn to fly a drone and even code it to work how they want, the Robolink CoDrone Lite is a wonderful drone for them. This drone is built specifically to allow kids to program them to their liking, giving them an education into coding and hours of fun allowing the drone to do what they want.
You don’t need much range for this, so the minimal 65 feet is not too concerning. The battery only lasts 8 minutes, but given the small size, that is to be expected. There is no camera here, so don’t expect to get any images out of the box. This is a fantastic drone to help your kids learn how to operate one, and to learn a bit of coding as well.
- Range: 65 feet
- Battery Life: 8 minutes
- Video Resolution: N/A
3. Potensic T25
The Potensic T25 is a drone that takes a lot of cues from the DJI Phantom line as far as the design of the body. That is definitely a good thing, as the Phantom is one of the most robust and efficient designs on the market. While the build quality certainly does not live up to the DJI, it is still adequate, especially for this price.
The Potensic has a range of 300 meters, which is very respectable and gives you plenty of room to fly and adventure. The 720p camera is mediocre at best, but the real let down is the 10 minute battery life. With such a large body you would hope they would be able to put in a more large capacity battery, giving it more life. This would be a huge thumbs up from us if not for that, but it is still a very good drone nonetheless.
- Range: 300 meters
- Battery Life: 10 minutes
- Video Resolution: 720p
4. Holy Stone HS120D
Holy Stone, while not as big name drone company, still produces some high-quality drones at affordable prices. The HS120D that we are reviewing here is quite possibly the best drone you can buy under $150, and that is saying a lot.
The 300-meter range is fantastic, and you get a full HD 1080p video recording with this drone. That puts it above all the other drones on this list, but isn’t even the most impressive thing. This drone gets a whopping 18 minutes of battery-operated fly time. That is a huge improvement over all the other drones in this price range, and makes it an easy two thumbs up recommendation from us.
- Range: 300 meters
- Battery Life: 18 minutes
- Video Resolution: 1080p
Useful Tips and Resources
If you buy a drone, we suggest you buy a landing pad as well. This will give you a “target” to aim for when landing your drone, and make it feel more like a game. It also makes the landing a bit more stable if you are doing so out in the grass.
Since you are going to grab a landing pad, why not go all out and buy some obstacle course hoops. There you can set up around the area you plan to fly the drone, and try to fly it through the hoops and land it on your landing pad at the end.
Final Words
Buying a drone doesn’t have to be the most expensive hobby, but knowing what drones are good and which ones to avoid is extremely important. All four of the drones we listed above are good choices in this price range, and each fits a certain need perfectly. Review each one, see which fits your needs the best, and go from there.
Have you ever operated a drone or are you looking for your first one? Let us know in the comments below!
