Yuneec Typhoon G disappoints on camera utility

As more Yuneec Typhoon G users attempt to flex their video and camera options, glitches with the gimbal operations of the RC quadzopter and communication issues between the controller and camera options have led to disappointing results.

The Yuneec Typhoon G is a Yuneec drone that is often compared to the DJI Phantom 3, even though any DJI vs Yuneec comparison is often skewed.

DJI Phantom drones are generally more expensive but do have much more powerful technology, such as Lightbridge or Lightbridge 2, which has a clearer edge in term of transmission distance. In the Phantom 3, that means 2,000 meters compared to 600 meters for the Typhoon class.

The distance metric captures the attention of first-time users in particular because of concerns about losing control and damaging a drone. That problem surfaces more with Yuneec models such as the Yuneec Typhoon G because of an internal WiFi card that pales in data links to the controller compared to Lightbridge 2. As well, a poor solder job for the antenna on the Yuneec internal WiFi card means users have to send it back to the factory for repairs.

Those problems on the Yuneec Typhoon G and other models manifest themselves even more as drone operators gain control confidence. Many want to focus on camera action either for good aerial shots, or for work-related projects that become possible with higher-end drones. Businesses such as roof repair contractors, for example, have taken to the skies to drum up business by surveying houses, office building and garages for patchy cover.

DEW2 said that one big problem in finding out problems with Yuneec drones and camera operations, which would include the Yuneec Typhoon G, is when the warranty is over.

“It took me calling six times about an issue I was having with the gimbal,” DEW 2 said in a review. “After being ran through several ‘trouble shoots’ they wanted me to send it in for ‘testing’. $80 an hour plus whatever needs to be fixed. Purchased in the winter, past its six-month warranty.”

That’s a big problem for the Yuneec Typhoon G, a drone designed to accommodate mounting a GoPro on the three-axis gimbal. Other problems with the Yuneec Typhoon G in that area include the neec to remove the struts to attach the unit onto the gimbal just below the undercarriage by using the Yuneec SteadyGrip. The fit can be awkward and the drone unsteady, according to several Yuneec Typhoon G reviewers as the SteadyGrip is made of weak plastic and sits uneasily on the bulky Yuneec drone.

A separate, but apparently larger issue for most Yuneec Typhoon G buyers is that the controller that comes with the unit does not communicate directly to the GoPro camera, requiring users to turn the camera on separately.

“I returned the product because the buttons that are on the controller to be used to do snapshots and videos could not be used with the GoPro hero 4 camera,” Skip writes. “ITS really stupid to have to buy a separate camera for the Typhoon G and not be able to use it.”

Even once the camera on the Yuneec Typhoon G is operating however, the short video transmission range and need to be ready to quickly switch to line-of-sight flying if the GPS drops, or the battery gets hot and dies faster than expected, grate on users.

 

 

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