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This is a review of the Syma X5C-1 drone. In my opinion, this is the best drone for adults and teenagers that may want to further pursue the hobby of flying drones. This is my belief because it is a low cost drone that does not have many of the extra features like altitude hold and headless mode. Learning to fly with a drone that does not have headless mode forces you to understand roll and pitch depending on how the front of the drone is facing. You can learn how to fly a drone and make beginner mistakes before purchasing a more expensive aerial photography drone like the DJI Mavic.
The Syma X5C-1 drone is probably the most popular outdoor toy drone so spare batteries and spare parts when you damage the drone are easy to find and purchase.
At the time of this writing this drone is being sold on Amazon for $49.99.
Check current price on Amazon.com.
Manufacturer Specifications
- Weight: 1.34 pounds
- Product Dimensions: 12.2″L x 12.2″W x 3.1″H
- Flight Time: About 5-7 mins
- Maximum Range: 30 Meters
- Battery Charging Time: About 100 mins
The Package
The box is sturdy and could be able to handle some light damage without damaging the drone. The box has a convenient handle at the top that allows to easily carry the box with the Syma X5C-1 drone and all of its parts to your flying destination. The drone can be stored with the propellers attached. You will need to check the bottom of the packaging for the spare parts like the SD card reader and screw driver.
Package Contents
X5C-1 Drone
The Syma X5C-1 is a light weight drone that should be flown outside with very little or no wind. As mentioned previously because of its lack of advanced features, this drone forces you to understand flying with roll and pitch based on which direction the drone is facing. This is a great drone because it is a stable flyer that you can mistakes with and not lose a great deal of money if you lose it or damage it.
You may notice that the above pictures show red tape on the front of the drone. It is important to note that the drone does not come with this red tape. This is my personal modification. One of the difficulties of flying this drone is that it is difficult to identify the front from the back. I added the red tape to the front so that if the drone get turned around while flying I will be able to notice and orient flying to the proper roll and pitch based on the front of the drone.
Camera
The camera is a 720p and can be used to take photos or videos. The photos and videos are not a good quality. Like many other toy drones, the Syma X-5C1 will often have the jello effect where the drone is shaking which causes the videos to shake and the photos to not be clear.
Transmitter
The transmitter is sturdy and has a high quality feel to it. It would likely be able to be dropped and not be damaged. This transmitter requires four AA batteries that are not included.
It has a square shape that is not quite as comfortable as a transmitter that slightly tapers down in size towards the bottom to fit in your hand like the transmitter for the Aomla S5. However, it will fit in most teenagers and adults hands and allow for access to the throttle sticks and buttons with no issues. Children will prefer to handle a smaller transmitter like the transmitter for the HS 210 Mini Drone.
An annoying part of this transmitter is that the buttons on the bottom do not actually do anything. The buttons are just for appearance. This is confusing at first because the buttons on the right appear like they would be used to navigate the small LCD screen. In my opinion this was a poor design choice.
Instruction Manual
Battery
The Syma X5C-1 comes with one 500mAh LiPObattery and a USB battery charger. The advertised flight time is 5-7 minutes and my flights have confirmed that this is correct. The charging time of the battery is approximately 100 minutes.
Additional Parts
The Syma X5C-1 drone comes with
- four propeller guards
- screw driver to add propellers and propeller guards
- 4GB micro SD card
- SD card reader
- USB battery charging cable
Conclusion
The Syma X5C-1 is a cheap drone that is a stable outdoors flyer. It is a great drone to learn to fly and spare parts can easily be purchased.
Check current price on Amazon.com.
If you are interested in a fun outdoor toy drone then check out our review of the LBLA S5 FPV drone.
If you are interested in an indoor toy drone then check out our review of the Holy Stone HS210 Mini Drone.
Here are some more articles you may be interested in:
Review Of Syma LBLA S5 FPV drone
Review Of Holy Stone HS210 Mini Drone
Review Of KINBON Drone Landing Pad
Six Simple Accessories To Improve Aerial Photo/Video Flights