Easy to professional
Drones at Warentest: These models are really worth it – from 75 to 950 euros
With drones like the Mini 2, manufacturer DJI clears Stiftung Warentest
© DJI / manufacturer
Whether as a fun toy or as a real professional tool: there is a wide range of uses for drones. And corresponding price differences. Stiftung Warentest has now tested eleven models and reveals which are worth their price.
Whether for film-ready mountain biking chase scenes or as a mobile selfie camera: Drones also enable hobby photographers and filmmakers to take views and recordings that were previously unimaginable without a helicopter. And they are also really fun. The current test by Stiftung Warentest quickly shows that how much fun it depends on the model.
Because while in some markets, such as notebooks, according to the product test, the quality has increased so much that even the lower places still do well, there are still huge differences in the drones. The price is a surprisingly clear indicator: the best models cost between 700 and 1000 euros, the good mid-range around 500 euros. Then the quality decreases increasingly, the very cheap models can only be used as toys.
Drones at Warentest: a clear winner
The clear winner of the test is the Chinese drone king DJI. Regardless of whether in the class over 250 grams or in the less strictly regulated light models that weigh less: DJI is always right at the front, sometimes with almost two notes behind the second. Only one Parrot model can perform similarly.
By far the best drones are DJI Air 2s (from around 950 euros) and the DJI Mavic Air 2 (from around 750 euros). Both do very well in almost every respect, from the flight characteristics to the camera, they are superior to the competition in almost every respect, and in addition to the standard tricks such as automatic return to the take-off position, they also master great additional functions. They were the only drones in the test to reliably track a cyclist independently and always keep him in the picture.
The most important difference between the two models, which weigh almost 600 grams, is the camera: The Air 2s films in a maximum of 8K resolution, while the Air 2 is “only” 4K. The only real weak point is the use on Android smartphones: The app is not available in the Play Store but has to be loaded from a website, which is a laborious process. But then it works. The overall grade can be seen accordingly. With “very good” (1.3), the two top DJI models share the drone throne.
Only competitor: Parrot
The only serious alternative is that Parrot Anafi. With a weight of 320 grams, it is still in the more strictly regulated weight class over 250 grams, but it is still considerably lighter than the large DJI models. And much cheaper: It can be obtained for less than 500 euros. The flight characteristics are very good, the automatic mode unfortunately not quite as sophisticated as with the DJI: Instead of flying completely behind you, you have to control the drone behind moving targets yourself. At least she keeps an eye on the subject on her own. The photos are excellent, the videos are good. The overall rating “good” (1.8) can be seen accordingly. But if you want to strike, you should hurry: According to the product test, the model is no longer manufactured and is only available for sale.
If you don’t want to struggle with the stricter rules for large drones, you have only one good choice, according to the product test. the Mini 2 is DJI’s small model and weighs just 236 grams. This does not affect the quality. Despite the less robust construction, according to the product test, it is very well made and has great flight characteristics. The automatic mode and the camera are a bit slimmed down compared to their expensive siblings. Nevertheless: The Mini 2 is the only “good” (1.9) among the lightweights. The price is around 220 euros.
Cheap toys
If you want to pay less, you have to accept serious compromises. The cheapest drone m test that Icon from Revell, costs just under 75 euros, but the performance is correspondingly poor. Thanks to the lack of GPS, the drone cannot find its way back on its own and sometimes has problems keeping the connection even after a distance of ten meters. Even with a stable connection, the flight characteristics leave a lot to be desired, the controls are sluggish, complain the product testers. The photos and videos are not convincing either. If the battery is empty after only nine minutes, it simply sinks from the sky at precisely this point. The overall rating is correspondingly poor with “sufficient” (4.5). If you are just looking for a simple toy, you could still have fun.
You can find the full test for a fee at test.de.
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