Whether you travel the world for a living, vlogger, or simply love taking selfies, a hover drone has many applications. Unmanned aerial vehicles are getting smarter and more autonomous each day, coming with plenty of convenient features. If the first models required high flying skills, there are now plenty of models on the market that can hover by themselves while taking photos or recording videos. The following sections explore the best hover drones on the market right now!

What Is a Hover Drone?

Essentially, a hover drone implies that it is self-flying and can be still in mid-air, so you can take photos or record high-quality videos without having to control the device manually. A hover drone should come with some technology to help you immortalize each moment, making for a fantastic companion when you are on a trip or vacation.

Despite their name, these drones can always be controlled manually if you want, and they are budget-friendly, so you do not need to spend a fortune on a model. Hover drones can also be used for commercial purposes, being suitable for a wide range of industries, including energy, agriculture & farming, security, and more.

An excellent hover drone should come with a follow-me mode if you use it for photography or videography. This smart feature makes the device follow you instantly, without you having to control the device. In some cases, these drones may also allow you to add a pre-defined routine you want them to follow, making them autonomous. You could also opt for a voice-controlled or gesture-controlled model that allows you to control it by speaking your commands for extra convenience.

Best Hover Drones Review

AirSelfie Air Pix

Air Pix is a pocket-size device that boasts 1080P videos and 12MP photos. It is one of the best hover drones on the market due to its ability to take exquisite HD photos. Then, you can easily share them on social media or with your family. The drone is very compact and small, so you can take it with you wherever you go.

With excellent self-flying and manual flying capabilities, Air Pix is a useful asset for any professional photographer. All you need to do is press the AutoFly button for the drone to find you. Once it does, it keeps taking photos of you or recording you automatically.

Once you are done, Air Pix allows you to edit all of your photos in the app. It boasts numerous customizing features, including rotation, cropping, zooming, brightness adjustments, filters, and even stickers, making the images ready for social media. Users with an iOS can use the drone to stream directly to their YouTube channel or Facebook page.

Skydio 2

Skydio 2 is dedicated to professionals or advanced users. For commercial purposes, this drone is one of the main industry-leading models with a lightweight design, robust safety mechanisms, and one of the latest AI-powered engines on the market. It can track people and vehicles, and it can be used for security, inspections, and more.

From the consumer’s perspective, Skydio 2 comes with advanced features that recommend it for both beginners and pros. It has deep-learning algorithms which help it avoid obstacles, and it boasts excellent following and hovering features. Skydio takes pride in the drone’s user-friendliness, marketing it as the easiest drone to fly, even for beginners.

This drone is highly recommended for traveling or sports enthusiasts who want to capture each moment. It comes with the Skydio Beacon, a controller that can be used to make the drone follow you and, no matter what you do, t also turns every second into cinematic footage. This is possible thanks to its six cameras that amount to 48MP resolution and due to the fact that it is powered by the high-end Nvidia Jetson computer.

Hover2

Hover 2 comes with the same worry-free experience and HD images and videos. It can fly up to 23 minutes and boasts high-end obstacle avoidance sensors for extra safety. It is a great solution if you need your drone to smartly follow you in uncharted territories. This is possible due to its algorithms that use Visual Inertial Odometry and SLAM 3D mapping.

The drone is ready to start capturing precious moments right out of the box. Apart from this, it sports numerous features that help you take the perfect photos. For instance, AutoFrame allows you to choose full-body captions, waist-up, or even birds-eye. It is also possible to switch the angle when it follows you, choosing from the front, side, back, and others.

Hover 2 also boasts a computer vision system. It is able to detect obstacles and adjust the tracking strategy if the view is obstructed. As a result, you are always the main focus, and you can capture high-quality videos and photos, even in a crowded environment. The drone comes with a remote that can be used to take pictures from up to 5 km (3.1 miles) out of the control range or the palm pilot with a maximum distance of 120m (almost 400ft). The mobile phone app has editing and sharing features.

Hover Passport

Weighing half a pound, Hover Passport was one of a kind on this market when it was launched. Despite its basic, foldable design that resembles a small tape, it is an affordable solution when you are always on the go. If you already have a bulkier model, you will surely consider Hover Passport a hassle-free accessory you can have with you at all times.

The drone is specially designed for 13MP photoshooting and 4K videos. It is suitable if you need close-up captions or you’d like a drone to follow you closely. This is because the drone has a 60-feet connection range; if it gets disconnected due to a bigger distance, the drone will simply hover until you get close enough to reconnect it.

One of the best highlights of the little Hover Passport is that it is so compact that you can use it to take indoor photos. This is simply not achievable with a bulkier model, but Hover Passport manages this successfully. In addition to this, the company made sure that it has all it takes to hover perfectly where it needs to, adding special features, such as sonar sensors. In other words, you can easily use it indoors without worrying that it might crash into furniture or walls.

3DR Solo Quadcopter

3DR Solo quadcopter is the first drone on the market considered a fully “smart” aerial vehicle. It is powered by two computers and can stream flawless, crisp HD video from the GoPro to your mobile phone. Boasting an excellent follow-me mode, the 3DR Solo quadcopter is an affordable hover drone. It is suitable for traveling and outdoor adventures, flawlessly capturing your every single move.

Similar to the Air Pix above, 3DR solo has a selfie mode that focuses on you. It is a combination of landscape and portrait, taking photos of you or recording you while capturing the surroundings. Photos and recordings can be sent straight to your mobile phone, so you can easily save and even share them on social media or with your friends and family.

The 3DR solo hover drone comes with a Solo gimbal specially made for GoPro Hero 3 and Hero 4. It can also be operated using dedicated dials, ensuring maximum control over your user experience. The hover drone also offers the option to mount your phone directly on the transmitter for ease of use and convenience.

Snaptain A10

Snaptain A10 is a budget-friendly mini-device with a 720P HD camera. One of its main highlights is the voice-controlled operation, so you can give different hands-free commands, such as “landing,” “take off,” “right,” “left,” and more. At the same time, you can also use gestures to make the camera take photos or start a recording, which is highly convenient if you want to keep your focus on your beautiful surroundings and adventures instead of device control.

The glamor of this drone is all about its versatility and functionality. Apart from hovering, the drone uses technology that allows you to draw a path on your mobile phone app, and it will fly according to your specified route. It can also perform a plethora of tricks, including circle flying, 360-degree flip, and even high-speed rotation.

Snaptain a10 could be the best choice if you want a drone for casual outdoor time or exciting adventures with your family or friends. It has three different speed modes, so you can use it to improve your flying skills, introduce your kids to the limitless world of drones, and many more. The altitude hold mode is highly accurate, recommending it as one of the most user-friendly hover drones on the market.

Summary

All in all, these are some of the best hover drones on the market. They are varied and budget-friendly, while the automatic hovering mode recommends them for beginners and professionals alike. This mode can be extremely valuable if you want to capture selfies or you often go on outdoor adventures. It helps you immortalize each moment without the hassle of holding a smartphone, and these models come with crisp images and high-quality footage.