7 Cool Stunt & Trick Drones

#1 Hubsan X4 (H107L) 4 CH RC Quadcopter

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Editor’s Rating: 4.5/5

My pick for the Best Budget drone is the agile Hubsan X4 quadcopter. It’s an excellent choice for beginners eager to get into fancy flying. Its tough one-piece frame is a key selling point here.

• Best feature 1: Durable (crash-resistant) one piece main frame
• Best feature 2: User-friendly controls
• Plus points: Flight customization, fast, good range, cheap parts, excellent customer service
• Minus points: Hard to master in advanced mode, shortish battery life

The X4 is a good option for novice pilots. Hubsan is famous for their range of easy-to-fly quads, and this puppy is no exception. The low price also means you can practice stunts and tricks with more confidence than with costly models. The user-friendly controls get a lot of praise as does the decent control range, cheap spares, and superb customer service.

Flying the Hubsan X4 Quadcopter

The X4 Nano is lightweight, compact, and sits comfortably in the palm of a hand. There are few limits to what you can do with this little quad once you get confident. It’s capable of daredevil maneuvers in the tightest of spaces. Newbies should develop their flying skills in Beginner mode before they move to the much faster Expert mode. The drone then has a stack of customization options to experiment with.

The battery recharging time via USB port is only 30 minutes. That’s fast compared to many other models. It’s just as well considering the short flying time (see below).

The Not So Good

The X4 is easy to control for everyday flying at the beginner mode, but it’s fast in Advanced mode. The high speed makes performing flips and other aerial stunts more of a challenge. My advice is to stay away from Advanced mode until you feel ready. Expect to buy plenty of replacement parts if you don’t. You might want to invest in a spare battery as the flying time is only 7-minutes max.

#2 Potensic F181DH Quadcopter

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Editor’s Rating: 4.6/5

The Potensic F181DH Quadcopter is my Best Value, feature-packed toy-grade drone. Its built-in altitude hold feature is welcome at any level but especially reassuring for newbies.

• Best feature 1: Built-in altitude hold
• Best feature 2: 720P FPV HD camera + LCD screen
• Plus points: 360° rollover flips, one-button takeoff/landing, headless mode, LED lights
• Minus points: Poor flight time, no return to home feature

You get to perform some impressive 360° rollover flips with relative ease when you fly this drone. General flight control is a joy with a few handy flight modes to boot. It has one-button takeoff and landing, headless mode, stepless speed, and some cool LED lights. What makes this quad so special, though, is its 720P First Person View (FPV) camera and 5.8 GHz LCD screen.

FPV means the camera becomes your eye in the sky. You see what the lens sees via the 5.8 GHz LCD screen (included). Enjoy high-definition (HD) live video feed and take photos from the air. You can then save all your stills and video on the 4GB TF card and view it via the USB card reader. Overall, this is a fantastic feature-packed quadcopter suitable for all levels.

The Not So Good

The F181DH has limitations as a stunt drone, but it’s still a nifty flyer. The 8-minute flight time is poor yet typical. It can go longer with careful, uneventful flying. It does come with a bonus battery though. The biggest disappointment for many pilots is the absence of a return-to-home safety feature.

#3 DJI Mavic Air, Fly More Combo

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Editor’s Rating: 4.8/5

My Top Pick of stunt and tricks drone is the DJI Mavic Air. It’s more tricks than stunts, but hey, it’s an impressive flying camera all the same. Let’s take a closer look.

• Best feature 1: Compact, foldable design
• Best feature 2: SmartCapture Gesture control
• Plus points: Fly by phone, 4K Video, 12.0MP onboard camera, camera stabilization
• Minus points: Noisy, no side sensors, average flight time

The DJI Spark and Mavic Pro are hugely popular drones. The foldable DJI Mavic Air probably takes the best parts of both those models—assuming they’re what you like. There’s so much to love with this compact quadcopter and its foldable design. You wouldn’t buy the Mavic Air as a stunt drone, but it’s sure to impress anyone with its plethora of party tricks.

Hand gesture flight control is something you must see in action to believe. It’s one of those jaw-dropping out-of-this-world tricks that never fails to impress. So, what happens when you need more control and extra range? Well, you choose to fly it by smartphone, the dedicated, foldable controller, or both. It’s such a cool and entertaining model, but it’s also a serious camera quad.

As a Camera Quadcopter

The DJI Mavic Air is a camera quadcopter that checks all the right boxes for a drone in its price category. The camera capability doesn’t disappoint. Here’s a brief glimpse of its appeal as a significant aerial photography and videography tool:

• 3-Axis mechanical gimbal for steadier shots
• 4K 30fps UHD recording at 100 Mbps
• 1080p 120fps slow-motion video
• HDR algorithms for ultimate exposure
• Horizontal, vertical, 180° and 32MP sphere panoramas
• Six QuickShots: Rocket, Dronie, Circle, Helix, Asteroid, & Boomerang
• ActiveTrack follows and films moving targets
• MicroSD card slot, 8 GB internal storage

The QuickShot features are creative video filming modes. You can check the drone’s flight and film ability on YouTube to see what a joy this beauty is to use. It’s an eye-catching quad both in the air and on the ground. It’s enjoyable and simple to fly, has amazing stills and video capability, and makes the perfect travel companion. Yes, you get to show off with the Mavic Air in the sky and on the screen.

The Not So Good

It’s noisy folks. The sound can be especially bothersome if you’re using it around others. Another—more serious complaint—is the absence of side sensors. That means you must be careful of obstacles when flying in a sideways direction. The final gripe is the average flight time. DJI says 21 minutes, but I found 15 minutes to be far more realistic.

#4 Wonder Chopper RC Stunt Kids Quadcopter

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Editor’s Rating: 4.2/5

The Wonder Chopper is a radio-controlled stunt quadcopter aimed at kids. It’s light, agile, and sports a 3-prop design for improved thrust and power efficiency. It even comes with a practice landing pad.

• Best feature 1: Lightweight & agile
• Best feature 2: Adjustable speeds
• Plus points: Easy-to-fly, 3-bladed props, 360° flips, LED lights, extra battery included
• Minus points: Short battery life, fragile

This is primarily a kid’s stunt drone that’s easy to fly at any level. It comes with adjustable speed control that gives new users time to get familiar with the craft. Its main trick is the 360-degree flip that it performs remarkably well. The bright LED Lights are a nice touch and add to the drone’s acrobatic display in low light. The LEDs also let pilots keep track of the quad when flying in the dark.

The drone has a cool design, but it’s still a no-thrills quadcopter. That’s a good thing as there’s very little to distract youngsters as they learn to control their fun toy. It even comes with a bonus battery.

The Not So Good

The biggest complaint is that the Wonder Chopper is too fragile. That contradicts with the sales spiel that boasts of a crash-proof design. Impatient kids may also fly this craft at its fastest speed before they’re ready. It’s wise for first-time users to operate at slower speeds or beginner modes for any drone that has them. It’s the only way to avoid crashes, collisions, and broken parts.

The other complaint is the all too common short battery life. This RC stunt quadcopter is lucky to get six minutes on a fully-charged battery. The bonus battery effectively doubles flight time to 12 minutes. However, always allow the small motors to cool down for about 10 minutes between swaps.

#5 Holy Stone HS230 RC Racing FPV Drone

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Editor’s Rating: 4.7/5

Meet the Holy Stone HS230. It’s a fast 45Km/h RC racing drone with First Person View (FPV) capability. It comes with a 120° 720P HD camera to track routes and record daredevil flights.

• Best feature 1: Fast 28mph quadcopter
• Best feature 2: First Person View capability
• Plus points: Three speed modes, headless modes, 360° rolls, bright LEDs, low power alert
• Minus points: No altitude hold, no return-to-home, short battery life

There’s a much higher risk of crashes and collisions the faster you fly. The good news is the Holy Stone HS230 is a racer that’s tough and forgiving. The three speed modes allow new users time to master this quick quad at a pace that suits them. The headless mode is another beginner-friendly feature that lets racing pilots control the craft without worrying about its orientation.

A Racer, First & Foremost

The showoff moves are the quick acceleration, insane top speed, and 360° rolls. Winning races is the main reason to own the Holy Stone HS230. The low power alert gives you time to bring the quad back to base before the battery dies. The bonus battery is a welcome addition but always allow a 10-minutes cooldown time between flights. The customer service is first-rate if you have any issues.

The HS230 is NOT an ideal choice for aerial photography and videography. There are better camera drones around for that purpose. The 120° 720P HD camera is primarily for racing in First Person View. And you don’t need a phone screen thanks to the neat LCD Monitor built into the dedicated transmitter.

The Not So Good

Holy Stone’s HS230 quadcopter lacks altitude hold and a return-to-home feature. Altitude hold is an especially reassuring feature for new pilots if they get into a panic. The battery life is also a disappointment at just seven minutes. The good news is there’s a bonus battery included in the box.

#6 Contixo F17 4K 360 Stunts Quadcopter

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Editor’s Rating: 4.3/5

My sixth pick is the Contixo F17. It’s an RC quadcopter with powerful, long lasting brushless motors. It comes with a 4K UHD camera and a mount to attach a GoPro HERO action camera.

• Best feature 1: Powerful brushless motors
• Best feature 2: Contixo 4K Ultra-HD camera
• Plus points: 360 Stunts, LED lights, WiFi + HDMI support, decent flying time, good range
• Minus points: Charging, no return-to-home, upside down camera mount, storage box

The drone is fun and easy to fly, and the 360° rolls are a breeze to perform. It’s an affordable start to aerial photography and videography, but it’s no cheap performer. The choice of an onboard camera or attaching a GoPro HERO are not the only standout features. The efficient brushless motors give up to 50% more battery life than their brushed counterparts. That’s significant in RC terms.

The F17’s party tricks include stunts like 360° flips; front flips, backflips, and barrel rolls. It’s a confident all-around performer despite its somewhat gangly look. Even novice pilots can fly this camera quadcopter with total confidence in no time. The craft has bright LEDs that make night flights possible and let users know the drone’s orientation at any given time.

The 4k Ultra-HD Camera Capability

The Contixo F17 comes with a 4K camera app. That means you can view the live stream from any modern smartphone screen. App controls let you record UHD aerial footage and even shoot time-lapse video from 0.5–60 secs. You can take great aerial 16MP shots like solo or group selfies and spectacular landscapes. The onboard camera doesn’t miss a trick with its 170° wide-angle lens.

The drone has a MicroSD card slot that supports memory up to 64GB. The Wi-Fi connects to a smart device up to eight meters away. You can view, arrange, and edit your footage or instantly transfer photos and vids to social media accounts. Another option is to connect to the quad’s HDMI port and view everything on a modern flat screen TV.

Best and Worst Flight Times

The flight time of the Contixo F17 is an impressive 18 minutes in optimal conditions. That’s not as long as some costlier camera drones, but it’s more than double most cheaper models. Expect to lose around 3-minutes flight time with the landing gear attached, and 6-minutes with the camera, guards, and landing gear. There’s no bonus battery with the F17 either, so you may want to buy one or two extras.

The Not So Good

Extra batteries are a good idea, especially with the long charging times. The charging time here is at least two hours. Another complaint is that there’s no return-to-home feature. The action camera mount is upside-down—for some reason. The final gripe is the aluminum storage box. The problem is that you can’t fit an assembled drone into the case. That means you must dismantle the quad to store it.

#7 Swagtron SwagDrone RTF Racing Drone

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Editor’s Rating: 4.4/5

My final pick for this guide is the Swagtron SwagDrone 150-UP. It’s a ready-to-fly (RTF) racing quadcopter. It comes with First Person View (FPV) and a much more.

• Best feature 1: Three flight modes to match skill levels
• Best feature 2: latest F3 flight system
• Plus points: Ultra-lightweight, sturdy build, 600TVL camera, long range, emergency features
• Minus points: Learning curve, short flight time

The SwagDrone is lightning fast, lightweight, and has a crash-resistant carbon fiber frame. Don’t let the power scare you if you’re a newbie. There are three flight modes to match skill levels. The primary mode is perfect for new users to practice basic flying tricks and stunts like acrobatic loops and 360° aileron rolls. You can then move up to the Mid and High levels as skills develop.

The quadcopter has the latest F3 flight system with an STM32 processor. It’s this powerful flight processor that powers the quad and pushes it to the limits. You’re in for a real treat if drone racing is your thing. You don’t have to pack up and go home when the sun sets either. There’s an optional night-vision camera that gives you an eye in the sky even when darkness falls.

SwagDrone’s First Person View (FPV) Capability

Racing quads in FPV is what it’s all about. Plus, the drone may not always be in the line of sight (LOS). FPV also provides an immersive experience like nothing else can. The 600TVL wide-angle 110° FOV camera and 4-UP FPV goggles offer vivid aerial footage with incredible clarity. This kit comes equipped with a 5.8G transmitter and dual receivers that give a 500m control range.

SwagDrone’s emergency features are some other advantages of this competent little racer. Simply hit the failsafe and kill-switch if you lose—or think you may lose—control of the quadcopter. There’s also a handy locator alarm if you do happen to lose it.

The Not So Good

There is a learning curve even at the basic flying level. The thing is that most problems occur from impatience. I suggest reading the detailed Quick Start guide before you even attempt to set anything up. It will then make a lot more sense when you start to prepare the SwagDrone 150-UP for its maiden flight. A little patience goes a long way here and is sure to make you a more proficient pilot.

The final gripe is with the usual short flight time. You’d be lucky to get 7-minutes with fast flights so be sure to invest in a couple of spare batteries. Alas, Swagtron hasn’t stated the battery charging time.