Parrot Airborne Night – mini drone with fun factor
With the Parrot Airborne Night, the French drone manufacturer launches the next interesting toy/fun drone and once again shows why mini drones are currently so popular. The company already landed a big hit with the Parrot Mambo.
3 different versions available
Not least the various extras and the special capabilities of the drones from Parrot make the entry into copter flying so interesting and attractive for children, teenagers and adults.
The Parrot Airborne Night is available in three different versions: Airborne Night Maclane, Airborne Night Blaze and Airborne Night Swat.
The functionalities of the three drones are identical, the differences are mainly visual. For example, the Airborne Night Maclane comes in blue with a police print. The Airborne Night Swat doesn’t stand out at all in the night sky with its deep black color – until you turn on the powerful LED lights and can illuminate even the darkest corners. If you prefer something a little more colorful, the Airborne Night Blaze is a good choice – red and yellow dominate the picture here. With this drone, you are guaranteed to stand out at any drone flying site!
For Indoor & Outdoor
The Parrot Ariborne Night mini drone has repeatedly performed well to very well in various tests on the Internet or in trade magazines in the months after its release. The fact that the drone cuts such a good figure in the review is on the one hand due to the many small extras of this drone, and on the other hand due to the good workmanship and the robust design. The Parrot Airborne Night is suitable for use in your own four walls, as well as for smaller outdoor flights.
Robust Propeller Guard
The propeller guards, which give the Airborne Night models the appearance of a particularly rounded drone, serve more as a secondary visual completion. First and foremost, these guards are designed to ensure that even beginners can safely fly their drone indoors without damaging the rotors or furniture, walls and other things.
The pre-mounted propeller guard is designed to effortlessly withstand not only light collisions with a wall. Even the hardest crashes with other drones, for example in the context of a small drone race, the propeller guard easily puts away.
Material and processing
If you buy a Parrot Airborne Night, you get a mini drone of the more robust kind. Made of polyamide plastic, the quadcopter from Parrot is very sturdily built and its compactness is designed to withstand not only light crashes, but also serious accidents relatively unscathed. And if damage does occur, you will find all kinds of spare parts in the Parrot accessories store that can be easily and quickly installed.
Special protection mechanism
Another special feature that the Parrot Airborne Night has revealed in tests is the special protection mechanism when things touch the running rotors. In the event that the drone flies without propeller protection or a flight maneuver results in the propellers being touched from below or above by a foreign object, the drone automatically shuts down.
In indoor use, this is particularly interesting in that such a collision with the wall or a piece of furniture causes the propellers to stop immediately and the drone to fall to the ground. Damage caused by multiple impacts of the propellers on wood or walls is thus avoided – a good safeguard, especially for indoor flights.
Stability due to ultrasonic sensor
The ultrasonic technology installed in the Parrot Airborne Night is also very practical. An ultrasonic sensor is installed on the lower side of the mini quadcopter, which helps the Airborne Night stabilize at a height of up to 12 feet (4 meters). The low height at which this sensor works shows that this function is primarily intended for indoor use. However, it significantly improves the stability of the drone in flight and makes it easier to control.
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Also ideally suited for use on the road
Compared to a larger quadcopter such as the Parrot Bebop Drone 2, the Parrot Airborne Night is also wonderfully suited for use on the go as a mini drone. Of course, you can also carry a classic quadcopter in an appropriate bag or carrying case, unpack and assemble it at the place where you want to fly, and then fly it there.
But the Parrot Airborne Night really fits in any bag compared to other quadcopters of this quality. With the propeller guard, it comes in at 180 x 185 x 40 millimeters and weighs 63 grams. Without the protection, the drone measures 150 x 150 x 40 millimeters and has a weight of 54 grams.
The fact that you don’t need a classic remote control for the control, but that the control works completely via the smartphone and the corresponding app, makes it even easier to take the drone everywhere.
The Parrot Airborne Night comes with these extras
The special heart of every review of the Parrot Airborne Night is always the question about the special extras that the mini quadcopter can come up with. And indeed, the Parrot Airborne Night has a lot to offer in its three different configurations. In addition to the very eye-catching and individually selectable look, the Parrot Airborne Night comes with several LED lights, some of which are very strong in comparison.
This allows you to fly the Parrot Airborne Night safely and elegantly at dusk and even in the dark. Indoors, the Parrot Airborne Night is also wonderfully suitable as a small highlight at parties due to its lights. Flying the drone in a darkened room and illuminating the party room only by the LEDs of the drone – this creates a very special atmosphere and mood.
In addition to the LEDs, which are a special extra, the Parrot Airborne Night also comes with a whole range of flight simplifications. For many flight tricks, a simple push of a button in the smartphone app is enough for the quadcopter to perform the trick on its own, virtually on autopilot.
Mini drone with small camera
The camera is another extra that is absolutely worth mentioning about the Parrot Airborne Night when you compare it directly to other mini drones. Only very few mini quadcopters even come with a camera. But when you take a closer look at the Parrot Airborne Night’s camera, you quickly realize that this camera is really only suitable for snapshots.
For one thing, the drone camera of the Parrot Airborne Night is rigidly oriented straight down. It is not possible to control the camera. Thus, you already have to control the drone so that you can photograph the desired subject. On top of that, there is a significant delay between the live image of the camera in the mobile app and the actual triggering of the photo.
Thus, hitting the desired subject becomes a matter of luck. The fact that there are no LEDs on the lower side of the drone doesn’t make it any easier to take photos, especially at dusk and in the dark. Last but not least, the camera only offers VGA quality in a 480 x 640 pixel format with just 300,000 pixels.
In terms of quality, this is similar to the first models of a “normal” digital camera. On the other hand, it must also be noted that with a takeoff weight of just 63 grams and the aforementioned dimensions of the drone, a better onboard camera is hardly feasible. Ultimately, the recording device is sufficient for the one or other nice snapshot in between – you cannot expect more from a camera on a fun drone like the Parrot Airborne Night.
Flight duration and range
Control is exclusively via the manufacturer’s free “FreeFlight” app. The FreeFlight app is available free of charge in both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Shop. You have a variety of control options in the app. For example, you can choose between three flight modes:
- ACE
- Normal
- Joypad
There are two virtual joysticks available in the app, which you can use to control the drone. In Normal mode, you use the left joystick to control the drone’s altitude and rotation, while pressing the right joystick and tilting the smartphone forward, backward, left or right can influence the drone’s direction.
In ACE mode, the right control becomes a directional control. By pressing the respective arrows of the direction control, you specify the desired flight direction. Takeoff and landing are done independently with a simple press of the takeoff/landing button. In the app, you can also turn the headlights on and off and operate the camera accordingly. The trick mode is also very popular. Here, you simply tap on the trick you want the Airborne Night to fly, for example a front flip or a back flip, and the drone performs the flying trick on autopilot.
The most important data at a glance
- Scope of delivery: Airborne Night Drone, 1 battery, 1 USB to microUSB cable, 2 cases, various stickers, 1 quick start guide in German
- Size: 180 x 185 x 40 millimeters with propeller guard; 150 x 150 x 40 millimeters without
- Take-off weight: 63 grams with propeller guard, 54 grams without
- Flight time: 7 – 9 minutes
- Range: 20 – 25 yards/meters
- Camera: 300,000 pixels for VGA quality photography – onboard and non-controllable, pointed vertically downwards
Who is this drone most suitable for?
Unlike high-end camera drones like the DJI Phantom 4, the Parrot Airborne Night is a pure fun drone, without an excellent camera. However, it is perfectly suitable for beginners and anyone who is looking for an inexpensive drone for fun in between. But be careful – the Parrot Airborne Night is absolutely addictive!
Conclusion
A drone with a perfect price-performance ratio that not only inspires beginners, but also offers great fun for adults. The camera is suitable for small snapshots at best – but you can hardly expect more from the camera of a pure fun drone. All in all, it has to be said that Parrot has thrown a solid mini drone onto the market here at a reasonable price and with many interesting extras.