Streamline
  • Home
  • Spotlight
  • Reviews
    • Action
    • Strategy
    • RPGs
  • Most Hardcore
    • Devices
    • Gifts
    • Gadgets
  • About Us
  • Android-Human Fall Flat-Candyland-001
    Human Fall Flat Mobile Launches Brand-New Level: Candyland
  • Feature image
    Dunk City Dynasty Launches Globally on May 22
  • feature image Sky
    Sky: Children of the Light Review
  • Android--Carrion--001
    Carrion Review
  • Odin: Valhalla Rising title
    Norse Mythology-Inspired MMORPG Odin: Valhalla Rising Launches This Month
  • Android-MythWalker-001
    MythWalker Expands Adventure With Over 20 New Story Quests
  • Tribe Nine feature image
    TRIBE NINE’s Chapter 3: Neo Chiyoda City Arrives
  • Android-Blade of God X: Orisols-001
    Blade of God X: Orisols Review
  • Android-Darkest Hero--001
    Darkest Hero Review
  • Bleach: Brave Souls feature image
    Bleach: Brave Souls Launches Gift Campaign With Smartphone Wallpapers
  • Collect Or Die Ultra Title Screen
    Collect Or Die Ultra Launches On Google Play And iOS
  • Duck Detective: The Secret Salami Android
    Duck Detective: The Secret Salami Review
  • Once Human Launches Cross-Platform Test
    Once Human Launches Cross-Platform Test for Mobile & PC
  • Archero 2 title
    Archero 2 Review
  • upjers feature image
    Upjers Brings ‘Love in Pixels’
Hardcore Droid
Hardcore Droid
  • Home
  • News
    • News
    • Spotlight
    • Interviews
    • Consoles
  • Reviews
    • Action
    • Adventure
    • Strategy
    • RPG
    • MMOs
    • Racing
    • Indie
    • Hardware
  • Best Of
    • Top 10 Games
    • Best RPGs
    • Best Action
    • Best Puzzlers
    • Best Strategy
    • Best Indie Strat
    • Best Indie RPGs
    • Most Hardcore
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Game Jobs
    • Archives
    • Attributions
    • Opportunities
  • Best Of

Review of Aerix VIDIUS HD Drone

  • October 31, 2016
  • Brian Penny
Spread the love

In October 2016 I received a small toy that opened my eyes to a whole new world. It’s the Aerix VIDIUS HD drone, which is an upgrade of the world’s smallest video drone that provides 720p video with low latency to your mobile device.

I tested the Vidius HD drone through a variety of situations before finally realizing how absolutely amazing drone flying really was.

Working around tech, I’m seen drones. At CES, I walked through Parrot and DJI’s new lines of quadcopters, boats, and other RC gadgets for professional and hobbyist use. What I mostly covered professionally, however, was the commercial use of drones (with occasional references to military UAV technology).

The Aerix was not only my first hands-on experience with drone flying (I always shied away from using friends’ expensive models out of fear of crashing), it was my first experience with FPV (first-person view) flying.

The experience was so thrilling, I started exploring the drone racing and stunt-flying worlds more extensively and even started working on a drone-related project with a VR developer friend who’s also a drone enthusiast.

vidius_vr_camera_lens_grande

All the Basics of Toy Drones

Aerix is far from the only drone maker out there, but this nanodrone is truly impressive. Measuring less than two inches across, it’s surprisingly smooth and easy to control. Initial calibration is necessary, which is to be expected, and the included controller is also quite small, making it easily to hold for drone enthusiasts of any age.

Being a drone noob, I was easily able to scrounge up two AAA batteries for the controller while the drone charged off my desktop’s USB port. Syncing and calibrating the controller to the drone was simple enough as well, and within minutes I was starting the motors and appreciating the breeze generated as it blew receipts and gum wrappers I hadn’t noticed off my desk.

Soon, the drones was in the air, and I wasn’t ready for how sensitive the controls are. I was able to maintain a decent height quite easily (and marvel at how well this tiny thing held altitude with steady adjustment) but it took a little bit of work to master the rest of the steering.

After several vicious crashes into my walls, I finally started to master basic navigation and managed my way out the door and halfway down the stairs before crashing it again. With the initial crashes, I worried about breaking this new toy, but after the fourth, fifth, and each subsequent crash, I became more confident in the build quality.

Downstairs, there was much more room, and navigating the wide open space of the living room, kitchen, and dining room were fun until the battery died, and I had to bring it back upstairs to charge again while learning about the video and app.

vidius_vr_goggles_iphone_6s_plus_grande

The Droid Drone Experience

When pairing your drone to the VIDIUS HD app from the Play store on my Galaxy S7, I found even more controls and features available. I was able to steer using the touchscreen (which worked very similar to Android flying simulation games I’ve previously played), draw routes, control various functions and even enable computer assistance for the drone.

After flying another round with the phone controller, it was time to prepare for the next step – using the included VR headset to fly FPV. This was my first foray into the experience. Although I’ve heard of it, I never before felt the experience. On a nanodrone, it’s a whole other way to see the world.

Turning the phone into VR mode, I inserted it into the included goggles to prepare for takeoff. I was soon looking at myself through the eyes of the VIDIUS HD camera. I waved my hand and was impressed by the latency, which was almost indistinguishable, and surely under a second. The drone camera emits a Wifi network that your phone connects to, and it was a pretty strong connection, despite my dual-band router running simultaneously.

Once I was in the air, I started pulling the preprogrammed flips and barrel rolls I hadn’t noticed during my first few flights. It was like being the fly on the wall in my own house, and I was instantly hooked. The use-case scenarios instantly started coming to mind. I even paired it with the Vufine+ to steer it with FPV PIP (picture-in-picture).

After a week, we had put the brushed motors through about 30 full charges and discharges with over two dozen crashes (some of which required a bit of maintenance) before they finally needed to be replaced.

c7cfk1xz

A Great Intro to FPV Drones

While this FPV drone experience managed to impress even in an environment with PSVR and other virtual, augmented, and mixed reality applications. The inclusion of some replacement rotors and tools was welcome, and replacement motors are cheap enough at $11 a piece.

The Aerix Vidius HD is a fun camera drone to use around the house or indoors, but its usability gets more varied outdoors. Its limited range and small size makes high-wind usage next to impossible. On an even slightly windy day, it was a struggle to control VIDIUS, although not entirely impossible. Calm days did make it easy. Sudden gusts are hard to predict, but you’re only in the air for a few minutes.

One problem I came across was the tendency to fly away when the battery was too low or the radio connection was severed. In my house, this meant it grinded into the ceiling for several minutes as I watched in amazement that it managed not to break. Outdoors, that would have meant the end of my drone flying experience as it flew off into the sunset, never to be found again.

If you’re unfamiliar with drones, it’s important to know you’ll need to perform some minimal maintenance to keep this running. The engines build up hair and debris from crashes, and the motors are likely only good for 40-50 charges if you’re lucky. Factor that into the usage.

Still, the Aerix VIDIUS HD is a really capable drone with a lot of extras packed into the tiniest frame on the market. There are other drones out there, but this is the smallest, lightest one that still provides a ton of fun for everyone from the noob like myself to the experienced drone operator who walked me through a crash course in drone piloting and the world of R/C.

If you’re looking for a great experience, the VIDIUS HD drone is only $75 from their website.

  • SCORE
Related Topics
  • Android Hardware
Brian Penny

is not a gamer. At least that’s what he told his parents after secretly dropping out of AZ State to play Smash Bros & Goldeneye. After two years of battling a crippling World of Warcraft addiction, he walked away from a successful career as an analyst in the mortgage industry to blow the whistle on corruption. When he’s not tea bagging fellow gamers, Brian kills time writing for The Huffington Post, Mainstreet, Lifehack, and more. He documents his experiences working with Anonymous, fighting the banks, and practicing meditation and yoga on his blog.

Previous Article
  • Best Of
  • Hardware
  • Most Hardcore

10 Most Hardcore Android Gaming Accessories of 2016

  • October 13, 2016
  • Brian Penny
View Post
Next Article
  • Best Of
  • Most Hardcore

The Most Hardcore Android Game Emulators on Earth 2.0

  • June 5, 2017
  • Travis Fahs
View Post
You May Also Like
Best Android and iOS Games of 2024
View Post
  • Best Of
  • Spotlight

The Best Android and iOS Games of 2024

  • Allison Van Oirschot
  • May 28, 2024
best-offline-android-rpgs
View Post
  • Best Of
  • Offline Android Games
  • Spotlight

Best Offline Android RPGs

  • Al Jackson
  • April 3, 2024
BEST-DROID-RPGS
View Post
  • Best Of
  • Spotlight

Android Hidden Gems: The Best Droid RPGs You Never Heard Of

  • Al Jackson
  • February 12, 2024
offline-android-strategy
View Post
  • Best Of
  • Offline Android Games
  • Spotlight

Best Offline Strategy Games for Android

  • Al Jackson
  • January 29, 2024
best-android-RPGs-2024
View Post
  • Best Of
  • Spotlight

The Best Android RPGs of 2024

  • Jack Brassell
  • January 1, 2024
best-android-strategy-2024
View Post
  • Best Of
  • Spotlight

The Best Android Strategy Games of 2024

  • Trevor Wells
  • January 1, 2024
Hidden Gem feature image
View Post
  • Best Of
  • Spotlight

Hidden Gem Android Games: The Best Android Games You Never Heard Of

  • Dave Weber
  • July 19, 2023
best of multiplayer feature image
View Post
  • Best Of

Best Android Multiplayer Games in 2024

  • Dave Weber
  • July 2, 2023
The Latest
  • Human Fall Flat Mobile Launches Brand-New Level: Candyland
  • Dunk City Dynasty Launches Globally on May 22
  • Sky: Children of the Light Review
  • Carrion Review
  • Norse Mythology-Inspired MMORPG Odin: Valhalla Rising Launches This Month
  • MythWalker Expands Adventure With Over 20 New Story Quests
  • TRIBE NINE’s Chapter 3: Neo Chiyoda City Arrives
  • Blade of God X: Orisols Review
  • Darkest Hero Review
  • Bleach: Brave Souls Launches Gift Campaign With Smartphone Wallpapers
Meta
  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
Hardcore Droid
  • Reviews
  • Spotlight
  • Hardcore
Core Gaming on the Android OS

Input your search keywords and press Enter.