Sanrock U61W – Cheap drone with smartphone control
The Sanrock U61W is a mini drone with camera and live FPV image transmission. It is easy to control and is suitable for beginners as well as a drone for children. The Sanrock U61W comes with two batteries and can be flown indoors and outdoors.
Design and weight
With a weight of approx. 63 grams, the Sanrock U61W is a real lightweight. The dimensions of the black and red mini quadcopter are 14 x 14 x 4.4 cm. To protect against collisions as well as bystanders, the drone has a fixed propeller guard around all four rotors.
The remote control strongly resembles a classic game controller and has a smartphone mount for attaching a mobile device.
Easy control via controller or smartphone
The Sanrock U61W can be controlled either by remote control or by smartphone. For viewing the live image of the drone (FPV view), the smartphone can be attached to the controller.
Takeoff and landing can each be performed by simply pressing a button. The range of the Sanrock U61W is approximately 33 to 55 yards (30 to 50 meters) when controlled with the controller. If you control the drone with the smartphone, the range is significantly less.
Even though the Sanrock U61W does not have a GPS module, it can still independently maintain its current altitude (Altitude Hold). As soon as you release the control joysticks of the controller, the drone remains in its current position.
When controlling the drone with your smartphone, you can determine where the drone should fly by simply tilting the mobile device in different directions.
Up to 16 minutes flight time thanks to 2 batteries
The flight time of the drone is about 6 to 8 minutes per battery charge. Since the drone comes with a total of two batteries (3.7 V, 500 mAh), you can experience up to 16 minutes of flying fun before the batteries need to be recharged via USB charger.
We generally recommend getting one or more spare batteries right away – fortunately, this is not necessary with the Sanrock U61W.
Headless mode and emergency stop button
If you still have problems with the classic drone control at first, you can also switch to the so-called Headless mode with the Sanrock U61W. In this mode, simplified control is available to you. When Headless mode is active, it doesn’t matter whether the front or the rear of the drone is facing you when you execute control commands to the left, right, front or rear. The drone will always fly in the direction you moved the control joysticks, no matter how it is currently oriented in the sky.
We found the emergency stop button, which can be selected via the app, to be particularly handy, as it allows the drone to land automatically should you ever lose control. Another safety feature is the audible and visual low battery warning. As soon as the battery is almost completely discharged, a continuous beep as well as a flashing of the LEDs informs the pilot that he should land the drone promptly.
The camera of the Sanrock U61W
The Sanrock U61W has a fixed 720p HD camera. The camera can be adjusted vertically by up to 90° before flight. The angle ranges from vertically downwards to horizontally forwards.
The quality of the camera recordings is rather modest. Even though an HD camera is installed, the recordings are still not as high quality as one might expect. This is mainly due to the lack of a gimbal, which usually decouples the drone’s own movements from the camera in more expensive camera drones.
For a first FPV feeling, the recordings might be sufficient, but if you want to create high-quality videos, you should definitely buy a different drone.
Since the Sanrock U61W does not have an SD card slot, the photos and videos are stored directly on the smartphone.
Conclusion
The Sanrock U61W is a low-cost mini drone with camera and two batteries that is perfect for first experiences with multicopters. It can be controlled either by controller or by smartphone and even offers the possibility to view the live image of the drone in real time on the smartphone.
For a price of about 50 dollars, you get a solid beginner drone that you can use both indoors and outdoors. Only the lack of quality of the camera shots stands out negatively, otherwise the drone is a good choice for anyone looking for an inexpensive drone for first flight experiences!