I was looking at this karma and toying with the idea of ordering, then Dji announced the Mavic. It's a total game changer, I'm pleased I didn't rush in and pre order the Karma now.
Just wanted to add an update: You can disable the low battery return home flight (not recommended) and get another 1:45 out of it. So a little over 16 minutes of flight time... still was expecting more, but that's in my acceptable range I suppose. Thanks for watching!
when you buy a new electronic equipment. the new battery should have an adjustment period to use is given, I hope that with the passage of days you obtain a greater amount of flight time, when I bought my gopro battery 1:15 gave me the first 3 days, the second week I could have almost two hours of recording, hope you can post the result
I know with my Karma Drone I have gotten 20 minutes at least on the battery. However, I have nearly gotten 30 minutes at times. It depends on what you are doing with it and other factors.
That test was PERFECT! That is precisely what I asked for. I'm also shocked you got 14.5. I thought it would be at least 16 or 17 minutes, but you did a real and honest test. I would like to see you do all the smart shots for your next test. Thanks for doing this.
Thank you for your honest reviews of your equipment. I am really enjoying your videos especially the progression of the quality of your videos, your editing, and the informativeness of your content. Keep on wheeling my friend!
I plan to purchase one of these bad boys in the future. Thanks again Brad for not only making an informative video but a fun video to watch. I love the part when you almost ate a bug 😁
I was torn between this and the Mavic. Was being the key word. I decided on the mavic. There are two things I wish the mavic had still though. One being a detachable gimbal with audio on the camera for non drone use. Two. I wish the camera had a wider field of view like the GoPro. I've seen some side by side shots ok the air and the GoPro looks so nice when side by side. However, everything else the mavic wins hands down. Just gotta get a new phone before I get the mavic (galaxy s7edge or iPhone 7 plus is the next decision. ).
I hear ya, the detachable gimbal was the biggest seller for me... I love it! The other big one was the all in one controller. The gopro is so fast to setup. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on a Mavic to take a closer look at it. Thanks for the comments!
no problem, hopefully i'll have a mavic myself and be throwing up some detailed videos before the end of the month. i missed out on the preorder window. however i still want that gimbal for my gopro hero silver. lol
I don't know anything about drones, so this is probably wrong. Do you think that their claimed 20 minutes was based on just hovering or something? I could understand maybe 18-19min and calling it 20 for sales purposes but 14:30! That's only like 72.5% of their claim!......... I think.
first of all I rwally would like to thank you very much for this honest and real video. this is exactly what I was looking for. I think that if you make a video testing battery life leaving the drone close to the floor just steady not maneuvering would be helpful as well, i would really appreciate if you test it, how steady it is when you don't maneuver closto the floor. thank you again
I'm sure that they got their 20 minutes in a controlled environment hovering it and not flying it around, but my goal with this test was to see real world flight time. I may do a hover test in the future, thanks!
Thanks for posting this. The Mavic looks nice but, like you mentioned, the set up on my Phantom 3 takes too long and the Mavic isn't much better. If I have to fiddle with my phone and wifi to get flying, I'm less likely to fly. The battery life is disappointing but 15-ish minutes is adequate to get some shots, bring the Karma home and slap in a second one. To me, the set up time far outweighs the battery life. Who cares how long the battery lasts if you never pull out the drone to fly it? And the video looks great. Way better than the soft Mavic footage (yes, I know about the focus issue...still soft) plus you still have a GoPro and the stabilizing grip. Maybe not the best drone out there but there's a lot of value in the package.
I agree 100% The ease of setup (and the handheld gimbal) are why I chose the Karma over the Mavic. I'm bummed about the battery life, but once I have a couple extras I'll be good. The Karma is going to get a lot of use from me! Thanks for the comments!
robin bertschler They do if you're only using a phone of tablet. Then the range is shorter than the Karma. And if you try to use the Mavic without a phone, something I understand is possible, you can't see the video feed so it's line of sight. Besides, I'm not talking about the drone to controller connection. I'm talking about the phone to controller connection. That's wifi and has to be set up prior to flight. One more step.
Depends on your point of view, I guess. I don't think using a phone as a controller is that big of a deal. As for the cord to the phone, I still have to plug that in, hope everything recognizes everything else, etc. More steps means less chance I'll grab the drone and fly it or that I'll get it all set up in time to catch a fleeting shot. I find the Karma's ease of set up a plus. The best camera is the one you have with you and the one that's easy to use.
I'm not sure if temps have any bearing but I'm using one in the UK and only getting around 12 to 13 mins, upsetting for a great easy to fly set up, batteries need updating to last longer, so keep a Parrot Beebop 2 as back up, about 22 mins on that, although, in the running for worst customer service on the planet.
Great info! I think I am getting the Mavic but I did hear that parts/props/arms were easier to change out on the Gopro Karma. I fly FPV racers at work and crashing/repairs are inevitable.
nice review . lucky i go for DJI MAVIC PRO , its easily last me 22 - 24 mins flight time, if you just fly that near . hope to see market come out 40 mins flight time model . just like handphone now day with 5000mah big battery model for me
Yep, I've got the 110v and used it today on the trail. It takes over and hour to charge a battery, but I was able to get a couple flights out of the drone. Thanks!
my bebop parrot only got about 15 minutes but they came out with a extended life battery on it and now I can get about 20-25 minutes out if it. I ended up getting two of those extended life batteries for I think $30 total and they work great. I really wish these drones had a lot more battery life. I love my bebop but I wish I could get at least 30-40 minutes of use out of it. I had high hopes for the GoPro drone. I'll keep watching for somemore video footage
I'm sure that they got their 20 minutes in a controlled environment hovering it and not flying it around, but my goal with this test was to see real world flight time. I may do a hover test in the future, thanks!
yeah but probably all the competitors proclaimed flight time is in hover test as well, so while its not real world - it is "apples to apples". I'd be happy to see that 'real world hover flight time test'. Thanks anyhow and enjoy it! (oh, and BTW, to reply to one of your comments above, GoPro already show on their store spare parts (in 'coming soon' state) and they say 'simplicity' also with regard to changing parts so ignoring the costs, repairs should be easy, according to GoPro).
I've got 18 minutes from my Spark :D (I killed it's camera so I took it apart and took the broken camera out, that reduced the weight a bit but man that battery life :D)
Man, all I see and hear is how bad the Karma sucks. My DJI Phantom 1 has a longer battery life than the Karma lol. It's even more stable and doesn't drift away. The Karma can't even hover in place, it just drifts all over the place.
i've been kind of torn between getting this one and the Mavic but with the DJI don't like the hassle of connecting to your phone and crap would rather just power on and go
Karma is awesome but i think I only get like 12 mins or less in fly time. the green bar up top will show like 20 mins or something but that dwindles down super fast. no way it last 20 mins. I dont even think it can push 15 mins. it sucks cause everything else about the drone is cool.
That Michael Kincaid guy was able to get 24 minutes with 10% battery remaining on his Mavic. The Karma has a 5100mAh vs the Mavic's 3380mAh battery yet it performs so much poorly. Some serious optimization necessary. Wait for the next iteration i suppose.
The Karma is heavier. Takes more juice to keep it in the air. Hopefully, GoPro will introduce some firmware upgrades to maximize battery life and maybe add a few features. In any case, its a good first attempt and the added value of a separate camera and the Karma Grip make it a much better value for most hobbyists.
i ll bet there will be no karma 2.0, do you think go pro will compete in the drone with that size??? mavic sure will be 2.0 with compact / smaller and longer baterry life. but i agree for some reviewer that tap to focus is suck. they should stick to fix focus like the Phantom sereis.
Informative? Check To the point? Check Not some whiny youtube celeb getting free shit? Check Didn't fly over people, property or in the middle of the city like an asshole? Check Liked this video.
Hey there, can you do another test with full speed flight? I would like to have a fair comparison with Mavic. The following are my flight condition, mode and result. Thanks in advance for your effort ^^, I did a Marvic Realtime battery with the following condition: Temperature: 30c Wind: Small Breeze to no wind Speed: Max (Full throttle) Path: Fly front 1 KM, U-Turn, fly front 1 KM, U turn, fly right 1 KM, U-Turn, right 1 KM, U-Turn, back 1 KM and so on to simulate real battery drain and aero dynamic of the aircraft. Testing Height: 70-120 meters Remaining battery upon complete landing: 15% The result: For normal mode with front vision sensor on (10m/s max), I flew for 24 mins, avg speed around 9m/s, total distance travel is 11.7 km. For normal mode with vision sensor off (15 m/s max speed), I flew for 18.06 mins, avg speed of 13.5 m/s, and total distance of 13.11 km Sport mode not tested.
Bummer on the poor battery life but as with anything testing was probably indoors in a controlled environment. So you will probably need say about 4 batteries minimum for some decent trail footage. Unfortunately GoPro has been losing market share to all the cheaper competitors out there so maybe the battery life/cost is part of the new business model to keep the $$$ flowing in. Footage looked good though regarding the stability. Can't wait to see more.
Yep, I'm going to need a few batteries and keep them charging on while on the trail. Still love the drone and ready to put it through it's paces! Thanks for the comments!
Nice video but realistically you should try without recording full time because that is a lot of 4K video to test drone battery life and anyways you will fight that in video editing software and cut so much. That my imho. Great jobs, it takes a lot of time to do all these. Thanks again
You make a good point about filming the whole time, but when I use my DJI I hit record the minute I take off and leave it running the whole time. I have missed some good shots because I get too focused on flying and forget to hit record. So for me, a real world test, is filming for the duration. Thanks for the comments!
It's a shame about the battery life, GoPro have stretched the flight longevity a little too far imo. It won't help with their credibility as a new player on the drone market, maybe they should lower the price of the battery's to reflect the fact that their customers are trying to be loyal to the brand. There is a video on YT, a guy doing a similar test with the Mavic, he had 28 minutes flight time.
I doubt they got 20 min out of it. They most likely got 17-18 min, hovering in a closed room, with no crosswind or maneuvering. 14.30 is paltry, compared to what they advertised. They are going to get in some serious sh*t if they can't supply an update to maximize it. Imagine if you bought this over the Mavic and this is what happened..I would me MAD
hovering will use more power than moving and flying. So, you can test the battery life by flying it a lot. In that case, I think you may get a different number.
That's a good point, I might have been able to squeeze another minute or 2 out of it, but I'd never fly it with that setting off.... so not really real world. Thanks!
If price does not matter, then go with another drone. If price does matter, you really can't go wrong with Karma. I bought my Karma about 2 months ago, I love mine. I bought an extra battery so I have enough to fly over 25-30 minutes. The Karmas battery powers the gimbal and camera and drone, so that plays a role in batty life. Paid 499.99 for Karma and 249.99 for Hero5. I did not like the use the phone for controller on DJI, plus I could not touch a DJI for 750 plus tax.
