Is the heavy and expensive Yuneec Q500 worth its price tag?

The Yuneec Q500 is marketed as a drone that can be used for film and photography, but the ultimate use is, really, up to the pilot and some of the restrictions in the design and what might be considered a shortage of R&D.

While the battery life in the Yuneec Q500 is reasonable, it doesn’t last as long as the battery in the DJI Phantom 4.

The Yuneec Q500 has a control unit that fashions a big display screen on the remote, a screen that is almost too big and low res. There are other issues with the Yuneec Q500 controller. The buttons and switches are not organized in the most logical or intuitive manner. And using it can be an overly complicated affair even for experienced pilots.

It is also worth considering that the Yuneec Q500 isn’t supported by a mobile app as efficient as the DJI Go app.

The tracking features on the Yuneec Q500 are decent but fail to live up to those in many a DJI model. In fact, a DJI Yuneec lawsuit underway is based on the similarities of some of these features between Yuneec drones and those from DJI.

The Yuneec Q500 is part of the effort by Yuneec China to challenge DJI – the largest among the world’s UAV drone manufacturers.

The DJI vs Yuneec contest underway is fairly interesting but one that DJI appears to be winning with some ease.

With the Phantom 4, DJI has further cemented its position as the undisputed leader in the market. Yes, the Yuneec Q500 can be an attractive looking drone with a bit of flair in its design, with a swept-back body and curved surfaces but its plastic material is far from classy or tasteful and it can also raise questions about the strength of the drone.

The shiny silver-and-white plastic skin of the body makes the Yuneec Q500 look more like an oversized toy than the serious device that the Yuneec Q500 is supposed to be.

The design is decent but not completely free from flaws – a fact that points out why DJI is the clear winner in terms of R&D and consumer focus.

DroneCompares reviews have overwhelmingly acknowledged the Yuneec Q500 as a drone with reasonable operating range with automated takeoff and landing. Having said that, against a DJI Phantom 4 comparison, the vast majority of experts endorse the DJI drone’s easy handling and control.

The Yuneec Q500 control unit may be a bit tricky to the first time user as well. While DJI features like ActiveTrack or TapFly put the Phantom series in a separate class from the Yuneec Q500.

Another major point of DJI Phantom 4 comparison against the Yuneec Q500 is the camera. The Yuneec Q500 costs more than most other drones Yuneec and other manufacturers. But pilots with first-hand experience are labelling the Yuneec Q500 camera as disappointing. The resolution seems to be inferior to even the older DJI Phantom 3 model. The Yuneec Q500 lens feels cheap and the image quality sometimes may look like it was shot with an amateur smartphone lens.

On the other hand, almost every DJI Phantom 4 review has showered an abundance of praise on its camera.

Overall, the Yuneec Q500 is an interesting drone with numerous flight modes and an ok camera but the biggest drawbacks for the Yuneec Q500 are performance inconsistencies and some of the features that are overcomplicated and difficult to use.

 

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