12 drones that are great for GoPro cameras [Early 2017 Edition]

If you already have a top-quality action camera and are looking for a top-class drone to pair it with, then you have come to the right place. Perhaps you are a professional photographer and are looking to widen your expertise? Perhaps you are aiming to become a professional aerial photographer? Whatever’s the case, if you are looking for great drones compatible with GoPro cameras, this list is going to help you with your task. Choosing a good professional aerial platform can be quite a tricky task, especially considering there are lots of drones to choose from. They all have different payloads, gimbals and stabilization systems, which makes them quite tangled up in the long run. Luckily, this list could become your best friend when looking for a top-quality drones for GoPro. Why? Well, check it out and see for yourself!

Table : Drones For GoPro 2017

Name	Image	Flight time	Range	Price
7. Ionic Stratus		10 minutes	120 meters	See it !
6. AEE AP9		23 minutes	500 meters	See it !
5. Xiro Xplorer G		22 minutes	1000 meters	See it !
4. Traxxas Aton		18 minutes	200 meters	See it !
3. DJI Phantom 2		18 minutes	1000 meters	See it !
2. Typhoon G		22 minutes	2000 meters	See it !
1. 3DR Solo		23 minutes	1000 meters	See it !

UNDER $200

Syma X8G

We are starting this list off with Syma’s X8G drone. It’s one of the cheap drones that work with GoPro. It comes with a full HD 8MP camera whose quality is not exactly the best on the market. Luckily, with just a little bit tampering around with the connector, you can pair it with your GoPro in a matter of minutes. When it comes to its specifications, it has to be said that it possesses 6-axis gyro system for optimal flying (and image) stability. Other than that, it is equipped with hovering mode, 360 rotation and headless mode. Specification-wise, its flight duration is around 12 minutes while its range goes somewhere around 100 meters. All in all, it’s a great starters drone that is definitely worth opting for.

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Ionic Stratus Drone

This beautiful-looking drone is compatible with most Hero cameras at an insanely low price of just $120. It supports headless mode, one key 3D rolls, LED lights, one key return, and is shock resistant with its sturdy cradle head. Specification-wise, its flight duration is up to 10 minutes and its respective flight range goes around 150 meters. All in all, it is an outstanding budget drone with GoPro support and this list would not be complete without it. If you already have a GoPro and you are looking for a proper aerial platform for recording great footage, you cannot go wrong with the Ionic Stratus drone. This could easily be the best drone for GoPro in this price range.

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$200 TO $500

AEE Technology AP9

When talking about drones with GoPro mount, we simply can’t skip this drone. Among the best drones in this entire list is the AP9 by AEE Technology. Don’t get me wrong, there are many better GoPro ready drones on this list, but when it comes to price / performance ratio, it does not get any better than this. It does not come with a pre-bundled camera but it does come with GoPro and AEE S-series mount support which is most likely what the majority of you are looking for. It is extremely fast and can reach up to 44 miles per hour. Its cruising speed is half that, which is just enough for you to capture some amazing aerial footage. When it comes to its specifications, it is safe to say that it will not disappoint you. With around 25 minutes of flight time and more than 500 meters of lag-free range, this drone is by far the best bang for the buck in this list!

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XIRO Xplorer G

Another great bang for buck drone is coming from XIRO. Their Xplorer G version does not come with a dedicated camera, but it does come with a 3-axis gimbal which is perfect for your GoPro. It has amazing stability and offers a perfect aerial recording experience to its users. The video and image smoothness is nothing short of spectacular. You can even see a real time live preview by attaching your smartphone to the controller. Other than that, it is important to add that this little guy has handy features such as follow me, circle around me, hovering, and real time live preview which we already mentioned above. And finally with its flight duration of 25 minutes and great range (up to 500 meters), there is no doubt that we are talking about a truly great drone.

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Traxxas Aton

Another one of popular drones with gopro mount comes from USA based company Traxxas. Traxxas has been a steady player in the industry. With their Aton drone they have gained a massive amount of sympathizers craving for more. And indeed, the Aton is a great drone capable of carrying quite a decent payload. Your favorite GoPro camera is not a burden to this bad boy, don’t you worry. When it comes to the features this little fella is equipped with, there’s dual GPS systems, air brakes, return to home, 2 flight modes (sport and film) and a rather bright LED lights along with their respective status bar. As we already mentioned in the previous sentence, the Aton has 2 flight modes. The sport mode is used for drone racing – while its switched on, the drone clocks in at over 50 miles per hour (80 km/h). The film mode is, as its name suggests, used for filming. The speed is lower but the controllability and stability are greatly improved. With around 15 minutes of flight time and cca 300 meters’ flight distance, this guy is a true steady Eddie in its price range. All credits to Traxxas – great job, this is potentially the best drone for GoPro!

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Walkera QR X350 Pro

This neat-looking drone is packed with GPS system, altitude hold, one key return, failsafe auto return, and comes with an outstanding DEVO7 transmitter. Included in the price is its respective gimbal (sold separately for around $12) which supports GoPro’s and other similar action cameras. When it comes to its specifications, you will be happy to find out that it can be in midair for around 25 minutes which is extraordinary for its price of only $350. If you’re willing to take your game to the next level, perhaps buying a G-2D gimbal is a good choice. It will give your GoPro even better stability and will allow you to shoot smooth and crystal clear aerial footage.

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3D Robotics Iris+

The Iris+ is a rather compact and clean looking drone that simply breathes quality all around itself. Its payload capacity is 400g which is more than enough to suit your GoPro camera. Even with its casing on, it will not go over 150g which is nowhere near 400. We are talking about a ready-to-fly drone here which means all you have to do once it arrives is to charge it up, attach the props and you are good to go. Specs-wise, this little fella has around 16 to 22 minutes of flight time (depending on the payload) and can travel up to 800 meters even with the FPV turned on. All things considered, there is no doubt that Iris+ has what it takes to be your next drone!

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OVER $500

DJI Phantom 2 V2.0 with Zenmuse H4-3D

Of course, this list could not finish without at least one of DJI’s Phantom drones. For this occasion, we have handpicked their Phantom 2 V2.0 bundled together with the amazing Zenmuse H4-3D gimbal. Of course, there are other bundled gimbals as well that might suit your GoPro (such as the H3-3D for example) better. Keep in mind that you will have to install and calibrate the gimbal with the software provided by DJI. After doing that, your GoPro will be fully synchronized with its gimbal and you are good to go. For optimal results (if you were to buy this drone), we recommend you have the well-known Hero4 Black Edition as it can fully utilize gimbal’s stabilization features. And finally, this beast can fly for around 25 minutes and its respective range is cca 1 kilometer.

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Yuneec Typhoon G

The folks at Yuneec did an amazing job with their brand and can now brag about being among the most popular drone manufacturers out there. But this is coming as no surprise to anyone who is following the industry since they’ve been releasing one great drone after another. This all peaked with their newest models, the Q500 and Typhoon G. The latter is in the focal point of this paragraph since it is one of the best GoPro ready drones currently available for purchase. It is packed with great features such as watch me, circle around me, altitude hold and follow me. Needless to say, it has a great 3-axis gimbal stabilizer on which you can easily mount your GoPro’s or other similar action cameras. It will give you amazing stability and will make sure that you get the perfect aerial shot time in and time out. Of course, it comes with its dedicated ST10+ transmitter which enables it to reach great distances. While we are at it, you will be happy when we inform you that Typhoon G is able to reach more than 800 meters away from its transmitter without even breaking a sweat. You will still have a crisp clear FPV image and no lag issues whatsoever. When it comes to battery duration, to be honest, we expected a bit more from it. For a drone that’s been this good in all other departments, it is kind of sad to see it achieve only around 20 minutes of flight time. If we were to be completely honest with you, we expected at least 25 minutes, especially considering the reputation behind Yuneec – the people who always make sure their batteries are nothing short of brilliant. Still, despite this minor issue (I mean, don’t get us wrong, 20 minutes is still more than enough), the Typhoon G will be amazing no matter what scenarios you are planning to use it for. It’s a great drone and we warmly recommend it to anyone who already has a top-class action camera.

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3DR Solo

This is one of the most popular drones for GoPro cameras. For $630 not only will you get a brand new 3DR Solo drone, but you’ll also enjoy a hard-carrying case, 8 props, GoPro gimbal and an extra battery. Sounds good, right? It is marketed as the smartest drone currently available on the market due to the fact it runs on 2 processors. One of them is located inside the drone while the other one is inside its dedicated controller. They work via a dedicated WiFi signal which allows for greater responsiveness and improved connection range. It is equipped with several Smart Shot modes which will enable the drone to fly all by itself, allowing you to control on getting the perfect shot time and time again. Specification-wise, 3DR Solo’s flight time is around 20 minutes while its flight range is more than decent – 800 meters.

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Splash Drone (Mariner 2)

If you are looking for a state-of-the-art waterproof drone with a ton of tricks up its sleeves than you should seriously consider purchasing the Mariner 2 by GARLUS. While they haven’t been a big player in the drone market, they have showed their strength with their newest amphibious UAV. We are talking about an extremely easy on the eye drone with sturdy frame and above all – excellent build quality. As you can see, it is among the most expensive drones on this list and as such, it should not be taken lightly. It even has a fully waterproof 2-axis gimbal that allows you to tilt your GoPro’s to get the perfect aerial shot every time. You don’t need to worry about splashing water over it while enjoying a smooth live feed. That’s not where its pros end – not only can you control it via its dedicated controller (comes inside the package) but it responds to app based controls as well. In other words, you can use your smartphone to, for example, create autonomous missions during which the drone will follow a specific waypoint route that you have designed. All things considered, it is quite clear that the folks at GARLUS did not mess around while making this masterpiece.

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Walkera Tali H500

This alienlike hexacopter is the most expensive drone on this list. With a whole set of features and amazing specifications, it fully justifies its rather expensive price. But, enough bragging, let’s see what this little guy is actually made of. For starters, it is equipped with a pinpoint accurate GPS system that will greatly improve your controllability and give it handy functions such as position hold, hover and such. Even though it comes with a full HD camera, we are not going to talk much about it (it’s a regular full HD camera, nothing special in any way) since we assume you have a GoPro. What’s more important than its camera is, of course, the gimbal on top of which its mounted. G-3D is the name of this 3-axis gimbal and it is a brushless one, supporting GoPro Hero 3 and other similarly sized action cameras. It operates via DEVO F12E transmitter that works on 12 channels and supports useful OSD information alongside a big 5 inch LCD screen, mainly used for FPV and telemetry readings. When it comes to its features, you will be happy to find out that this beast has one key return to home, position hold, circle around me, failsafe return to home and their own Advanced Intelligent Orientation Control… or as we like to call it – AIOC. And finally, specifications: The Walkera Tali H500’s 22.2V 5400mAh LiPo battery is able to endure around 25 minutes of flight time which is more than enough for such a drone. When it comes to its range, truth be told it’s not all rainbows and butterflies. With the stock DEVO F12E, H500 is able to travel up to 500 meters without disconnecting or having any lag-issues with FPV. All things considered, I am sure you see that Walkera did a great job with their H500 and that there’s no doubt it is the best model they have ever created.

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Overview of latest GoPro cameras

In this section of this article we are going to show you the differences between the most popular GoPro action cameras. As you already might know, there are many variations of them, but for the sake of keeping this article from reaching a massive word count, we are just going through some of the most important aspects of 3 most popular ones. So, without further adue, here are the most popular GoPro models that are still available for purchase:

GoPro Hero

The very first GoPro Hero installment is still among the most popular ones, even though the time took its toll. It is able to capture full HD videos at 30 frames per second which is not that bad, but it excels at 720p where it can capture at 60 fps. The 5MP lens shots single images, time lapses and even burst photos up to 5 fps. Add in its great durability and waterproof (40m) and you’ll understand why this $177 action camera is still among the most popular ones.

 

GoPro Hero5 Black

The newest installment to the HERO Black series is this bad boy. It is capable of capturing 4K videos and 12MP photos in all modes as described above. It’s waterproof even without casing (up to 10m), and it automatically sends all of your footage to your GoPro Plus cloud. In addition to that, it has a handy 2-inch touchscreen which allows you to trim, edit and share your videos on-the-fly.

 

GoPro Hero5 Session

The newest addition to the Session line up has been making quite a decent name for itself on the market in recent time. As is the case with its Black sibling, it is capable of recording 4K videos along with time lapses, bursts and standard images with its 10MP lens. The GoPro Hero5 Session is insanely compact (as was the case with all previous Session models), sturdy and waterproof. Its state-of-the-art image stabilization and perfect audio levels will make you instantly fall in love with it.

CONCLUSION

And there you have it guys, those were the best GoPro-ready drones that are currently available on the market. As you could see for yourself, there are many great drones that fit your needs perfectly. Ranging from $100 to $1,500, there’s something for everyone. With this being said, I hope that you found this list informative and that it, in the end, helped you make the right decision.

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