These have been a really helpful set for videos. As a kayak fisherman, I was recently alerted to this new drone. Your tests and commentary are extremely helpful.
Thanks for watching! We are both using it close to water. I just received the Hover Air 1 Max Pro.. It's supposed to be able to fly above water. I plan to test it over the weekend so stay tuned!
@@Fishaholicboyoh please!!! Need your help in deciding with drone to buy. I already have a DJI mini4 pro and would love to add another drone to track me better when cycling or packrafting.
5:09 actually you CAN adjust the height/distance with your phone in the Quickshot modes, just tap on the small RC icon in the bottom left and you'll get the virtual joysticks on screen, no gimbal adjust though.
I was flying mine, and on two OCCASIONS ,it just went totally rogue, suddenly accelerated , and crashed on the nearby walls, once almost hitting some passersby. Please watch out if you get the notification like - 'Unable to hover precisely' or something to that effect. Other than that, I absolutely loved flying it, and used it as a great vlogging tool. Not to mention great improvement in Video Quality after all the software updates.
I’ve noticed that direction track is dependent on your direction. That means if you start direction track and walk towards the Drone, it will go backwards if you start direction track, and do anything else. It will follow you.
You are so brave with your drone! I'm so nervous to fly mine while paddling - I saw one ditch right by me at high speed last year and can't afford to make the same mistake!
I told you man, my Neo is swimming on the bottom of the lake and you almost had to expirience it yourself 😂 You're very lucky with that first try! Neo and water = a no go! (Without controller)
Yesterday i had to dive in to the bottom of the lake. It happened when i tried the dronie quickshoot without the controller and phone, the drone go crazy and drowned in to the water. That was 3 mintes of drowning. After all night i'm not using it. Today the neo was great like it never drowned before.
I have never used a drone but would like to add one at some point .. There are a lot of restrictions on where we can fly them in our area... Awesome information and a super sweet roll at the end ✌️
I believe the Neo could be a great drone for you.. on land I believe it works super well. I’m not sure about the restrictions you face over there but the Neo weighs under 250 grams which makes it easier to fly without having to fill in paperwork. Might be different over there though!
Hey, another very nice test and you had really a luck 🍀 in that windy 🍃 condition. As I mentioned before my Neo drowned 2nd day after purchase during my paddleboard test when I was using circle mode in light wind condition... Looking forward for more of your testing 👍
hehe super good luck with the wind. There's a typhoon around this part of the world but it's heading towards Taiwan instead of HK.. but we could still feel the strength of the wind. It was a good test to push the Neo to the limit!
Great fun times buddy, and a few nice roll too. As you know I built and flow drones for over 13 years and all camera drones have one thing in common. Because of the sensors they hate being close to the Water.
FYI, I lost mine over water. It sank. It needs a textured surface. Your slight waves in the water were probably enough to provide "texture". I had a super calm day... it just went crazy over the water and I couldn't control it. I was connected via the remote RC-N3 in manual mode the whole time. Somehow, the height visuals can throw the drone into chaos. I was at about 50m above the water when it happened. I'm waiting on DJI to review my flyaway case. But I'm expecting the water to be the answer.
And after this happened to me, I've been reading up on all of this. I'm new to drones. The official marketing Neo video has a disclaimer at the bottom during the SUP scene indicating to remain in manual control. The Neo Beginner Guide, section 3.2 states to stay above 6m over water. And the manual states simply "DO NOT FLY over water" in caps. Talk about confusing messaging.
Good video man! Perhaps try using a CPL filter to eliminate reflections, which might enhance tracking ability? Also, consider putting a floaty on the drone in case it falls into the water.
I had one also but I never had issues over water, of course I flew it with the remote and at least 30-50 m above water level. I’ll buy the Neo but naturally I don’t expect it to fly by its own above water. I’ll fly it with the remote.
I have a Mini 2 and I felt it was fine over water.. but also maybe because I was flying it manually. I am sure there will be improvements in the future.
Hi Friend! Beautiful rolls!! I agree that the Neo is more of a entry level selfie drone sort of in the same category as the Hover Air drone. I use the DJI Mini 3 for the assurance of it handling winds, the reliable RC connection and ability to get back to 'home point' with ease if an issue happens or if i need to land quicker than anticipated. For me, it's just a more substantial drone that the entry level Neo and Hover Air. I take the Mini 3 out for nearly every kayak trip and most times flying just a few feet above water. You will get a warning message if you fly below a certain height (I think around 10ft), but as long as you keep track of the height, it works great. I dont typically track myself, but the Mini 4 has improved tracking compared to the Mini 3. Maybe check into it - I think either the Mini 3 or 4 will work great for the tracking shots. Just wondering: how do you compare the difference in rolling the Rebel to rolling the Trak?
hello!! You haven't been posting lately and missing your videos! I wanted an easy drone to play with so I don't need to fumble around while launching it off a kayak.. but I didn't get what I wanted hehe. Rolling on the Rebel Greenland T is out of this world. I hate to blame anything on equipment but rolling on the Greenland T is a dream. It almost feels like it wants to get back upright by itself with only a bit of body rotation. Hope you get it try it out!
@@Fishaholicboy Yes, rolling a Grenland inspired boat does feel effortless! The Rebel is certainly designed to be rolled for sure. I had an opportunity to use it during rolling practice when I was waiting my NDK Pilgrim Expedition to arrive. I was curious about your thoughts on rolling the Rebel verses the Trak because of the light feeling the Trak has, which I also find easy to roll as well (even though the back deck is higher than the Rebel). Also, as for the drones, I completely get it - the Neo does seem like a perfect solution for hands free tinkering when paddling, but I guess I'm still a little hesitant with drones that operate without an RC to manually override a potential issue. I think DJI does a good job at customer feedback and maybe will improve its sensors to fly over water more consistently with less issues. Until then, if I record myself with a drone, I'll usually launch from land and then let it track me (or just hover) and then head to a safe landing spot to land the drone - I usually hand catch it, but still prefer to paddle over to land in the event I miss catching it😂 And yes, I have been slackin' on uploads lately.😂 It's been quite a busy few months on the water and I actually have a ton to share, but it's time that is the limiting factor. I'll just need to make the time and put together a few clips of some of the summer's surf and rough water classes soon. Great videos as always - oh and I love your custom PFD - is that special order PFD? it looks awesome and compliments the Rebel!
Thanks for doing this. I have a mini 2 and have to get out of my kayak for some shots unless on flat water. I had some hope for the Neo but maybe they will do a firmware update or the neo 2 if it arrives. Just out of interest how warm is the water
Im not experienced with drones, I tried using a Neo with a phone. My problem was I needed a shot of a worker on a cherry picker, but I couldn't get a slow close video clip. The App speed control is just not refined enough for me.
The phone remote is definitely not the most refine.. I used the RC2 remote with my Mini 2 and it felt great. Not sure about investing in the RC2 remote just for the Neo though
@@Fishaholicboy are you launching from the South side of HK island? I heard the fishermen killed all the sharks there? is there any sailing opportunity there?
Be careful with this drone. I've been watching videos on how this drone performs over water, and it's bad. So, I tried to only fly it by the beach. Guess what? Even just by the beach, with no water below, right after it took off, it drifted quickly sideways, far from me, and I almost hit a person about 30 meters away! I couldn’t do anything, it was completely uncontrollable. I couldn't even land it, and it all happened so fast. The sea was very calm that day.
@@ivanau9615if you’re using the phone. There’s a little manual control button in the lower left corner. If you click on it, you can make height and distance adjustments. Look at 4:49 mark on this video. There’s a button that looks like “+O”
@@Fishaholicboy thank you! Your video helped me feel more confident about taking it on rowboat trip this morning. Based on your experiences, I kept it connected to the phone which saved me when the phone went to the launch location after a quick shot and the boat drifted quite a bit.
@Fishaholicboy UA-camr "Blueskyver" filmed about 2 weeks ago. FPV and with the loops and rolls performed towards the end. Very strange river as it's current goes one way while waves go the other way very cool seeing the surfers
This was a ridiculous test. Your results had 0% to do with surface/terrain/water but 100% fact that you were operating a $199 drone in conditions WELL beyond its design envelope. All the drone failings were wind related.
These have been a really helpful set for videos. As a kayak fisherman, I was recently alerted to this new drone. Your tests and commentary are extremely helpful.
Thanks for watching! We are both using it close to water. I just received the Hover Air 1 Max Pro.. It's supposed to be able to fly above water. I plan to test it over the weekend so stay tuned!
@@Fishaholicboyoh please!!! Need your help in deciding with drone to buy. I already have a DJI mini4 pro and would love to add another drone to track me better when cycling or packrafting.
As a kayak fisherman, I would like to thank you about this review. I'm gonna wait for some new updates.
Happy this video helped!
5:09 actually you CAN adjust the height/distance with your phone in the Quickshot modes, just tap on the small RC icon in the bottom left and you'll get the virtual joysticks on screen, no gimbal adjust though.
Thanks for the tip!! This really helps. Appreciate it
I was flying mine, and on two OCCASIONS ,it just went totally rogue, suddenly accelerated , and crashed on the nearby walls, once almost hitting some passersby. Please watch out if you get the notification like - 'Unable to hover precisely' or something to that effect. Other than that, I absolutely loved flying it, and used it as a great vlogging tool. Not to mention great improvement in Video Quality after all the software updates.
It'd definitely a great drone to have in your arsenal. I enjoy mine alot and will keep using it!
Thanks for sharing your experience with the Neo. You have perfected your rolls! Wonderful rolls!
Haha thanks. Still a long way to go with the rolls.. so many more to learn!
I’ve noticed that direction track is dependent on your direction. That means if you start direction track and walk towards the Drone, it will go backwards if you start direction track, and do anything else. It will follow you.
Very interesting! I will need to test it out again :) thanks for sharing
You are so brave with your drone! I'm so nervous to fly mine while paddling - I saw one ditch right by me at high speed last year and can't afford to make the same mistake!
I think it’s stupidity rather than bravery haha I just wanted to test the limits of the Neo :)
I told you man, my Neo is swimming on the bottom of the lake and you almost had to expirience it yourself 😂 You're very lucky with that first try! Neo and water = a no go! (Without controller)
Haha I deserve whatever happens right?
@@Fishaholicboy haha yes you sure do man! Happy for you that your Neo is still with you ☺️👍🏽
@@SkydiveToma for now… 😅
Is it okay to fly over water if using the N3 controller? What about flying with the phone app?
Yesterday i had to dive in to the bottom of the lake. It happened when i tried the dronie quickshoot without the controller and phone, the drone go crazy and drowned in to the water.
That was 3 mintes of drowning. After all night i'm not using it. Today the neo was great like it never drowned before.
I have never used a drone but would like to add one at some point .. There are a lot of restrictions on where we can fly them in our area... Awesome information and a super sweet roll at the end ✌️
I believe the Neo could be a great drone for you.. on land I believe it works super well. I’m not sure about the restrictions you face over there but the Neo weighs under 250 grams which makes it easier to fly without having to fill in paperwork. Might be different over there though!
Hey, another very nice test and you had really a luck 🍀 in that windy 🍃 condition. As I mentioned before my Neo drowned 2nd day after purchase during my paddleboard test when I was using circle mode in light wind condition... Looking forward for more of your testing 👍
hehe super good luck with the wind. There's a typhoon around this part of the world but it's heading towards Taiwan instead of HK.. but we could still feel the strength of the wind. It was a good test to push the Neo to the limit!
With that kind of wind, I would not use the NEO anyway. I would use a heavier drone with spotlight option in this situation.
haha agreed! Got too greedy testing it.. fortunately I found another area which was less windy
Can it film underwater like reefs and follow me scuba.?
Unfortunately it’s for the skies only :)
Great fun times buddy, and a few nice roll too. As you know I built and flow drones for over 13 years and all camera drones have one thing in common. Because of the sensors they hate being close to the Water.
13 years? I’m curious about it now! I’m waiting for the Hoverair drone which should be better on the water
FYI, I lost mine over water. It sank. It needs a textured surface. Your slight waves in the water were probably enough to provide "texture". I had a super calm day... it just went crazy over the water and I couldn't control it. I was connected via the remote RC-N3 in manual mode the whole time. Somehow, the height visuals can throw the drone into chaos. I was at about 50m above the water when it happened. I'm waiting on DJI to review my flyaway case. But I'm expecting the water to be the answer.
And after this happened to me, I've been reading up on all of this. I'm new to drones. The official marketing Neo video has a disclaimer at the bottom during the SUP scene indicating to remain in manual control. The Neo Beginner Guide, section 3.2 states to stay above 6m over water. And the manual states simply "DO NOT FLY over water" in caps. Talk about confusing messaging.
It’s definitely confusing with the different messages! 50m above the water seems odd.. I didn’t think it would impact the drone that high up!
Good video man! Perhaps try using a CPL filter to eliminate reflections, which might enhance tracking ability? Also, consider putting a floaty on the drone in case it falls into the water.
Very good idea! Will definitely consider it.
Nice rolls.
Where are you?
Appreciate it! I’m in Hong Kong
I have had the Mavic Air for a few years. I more or less stopped using it due to the trouble of flying it over water.
I had one also but I never had issues over water, of course I flew it with the remote and at least 30-50 m above water level. I’ll buy the Neo but naturally I don’t expect it to fly by its own above water. I’ll fly it with the remote.
I have a Mini 2 and I felt it was fine over water.. but also maybe because I was flying it manually. I am sure there will be improvements in the future.
Hi Friend! Beautiful rolls!! I agree that the Neo is more of a entry level selfie drone sort of in the same category as the Hover Air drone. I use the DJI Mini 3 for the assurance of it handling winds, the reliable RC connection and ability to get back to 'home point' with ease if an issue happens or if i need to land quicker than anticipated. For me, it's just a more substantial drone that the entry level Neo and Hover Air. I take the Mini 3 out for nearly every kayak trip and most times flying just a few feet above water. You will get a warning message if you fly below a certain height (I think around 10ft), but as long as you keep track of the height, it works great. I dont typically track myself, but the Mini 4 has improved tracking compared to the Mini 3. Maybe check into it - I think either the Mini 3 or 4 will work great for the tracking shots. Just wondering: how do you compare the difference in rolling the Rebel to rolling the Trak?
hello!! You haven't been posting lately and missing your videos! I wanted an easy drone to play with so I don't need to fumble around while launching it off a kayak.. but I didn't get what I wanted hehe.
Rolling on the Rebel Greenland T is out of this world. I hate to blame anything on equipment but rolling on the Greenland T is a dream. It almost feels like it wants to get back upright by itself with only a bit of body rotation. Hope you get it try it out!
@@Fishaholicboy Yes, rolling a Grenland inspired boat does feel effortless! The Rebel is certainly designed to be rolled for sure. I had an opportunity to use it during rolling practice when I was waiting my NDK Pilgrim Expedition to arrive. I was curious about your thoughts on rolling the Rebel verses the Trak because of the light feeling the Trak has, which I also find easy to roll as well (even though the back deck is higher than the Rebel). Also, as for the drones, I completely get it - the Neo does seem like a perfect solution for hands free tinkering when paddling, but I guess I'm still a little hesitant with drones that operate without an RC to manually override a potential issue. I think DJI does a good job at customer feedback and maybe will improve its sensors to fly over water more consistently with less issues. Until then, if I record myself with a drone, I'll usually launch from land and then let it track me (or just hover) and then head to a safe landing spot to land the drone - I usually hand catch it, but still prefer to paddle over to land in the event I miss catching it😂 And yes, I have been slackin' on uploads lately.😂 It's been quite a busy few months on the water and I actually have a ton to share, but it's time that is the limiting factor. I'll just need to make the time and put together a few clips of some of the summer's surf and rough water classes soon. Great videos as always - oh and I love your custom PFD - is that special order PFD? it looks awesome and compliments the Rebel!
wonder how it would behave with your blue kayak ? if it's the kayak more than you, that its tracking, if so, would color change anything ?
I guess I need to do more testing to find out!
@@Fishaholicboy if you do, it will be interesting. as you say, something to do with water, because it follows you find on land ?
Thanks for doing this. I have a mini 2 and have to get out of my kayak for some shots unless on flat water. I had some hope for the Neo but maybe they will do a firmware update or the neo 2 if it arrives. Just out of interest how warm is the water
I’m waiting for the Hover Air! The water temperature is around 29C/85F… still very warm so rolling isn’t an issue until December/Jan!
Try it with a paddle board while standing it might work good that way
I also thought that being on a paddle board would really make a difference!
Follow works well yes, "Direction Track"...not so much, except if you're walking. And yes way TOO MUCH wind for the Neo in the beginning ;-)
I was a little disappointed when I arrived and the wind was so strong.. but I guess I pushed the Neo to the limit!
What is the name of your phone case (0:28) ? Do you like it?
The phone case is just the one from Apple.. or do you mean something else?
@@Fishaholicboy Incorrect translation. I mean phone holder.
I wonder f you put a poloride filter on the bottom sensor would it stop the water glare
I haven't tried.. but good idea to test
Oohhh good testing Thank u
Hope it helped!
@@Fishaholicboy yess u do bro thank you 😇
Lucky you. My drone just fell into the water and gone forever.
Oh no… did you have DJI care?
@ nope. I don’t think I would work.
Good review
Thanks as always!
Im not experienced with drones, I tried using a Neo with a phone. My problem was I needed a shot of a worker on a cherry picker, but I couldn't get a slow close video clip. The App speed control is just not refined enough for me.
The phone remote is definitely not the most refine.. I used the RC2 remote with my Mini 2 and it felt great. Not sure about investing in the RC2 remote just for the Neo though
@@Fishaholicboy I'll see if the reviews from Hoverair are better, as I really don't want a controller
I am waiting for mine! I got the set with the beacon as I also don't want a controller.
I don’t take risk flying above water,I fly only track road it fine and large area like field
I definitely suggest not flying on the water. As you said, stick to roads :)
Doing that roll was pretty selfish and egoistic... Do you imagine that little drone's fear when you just dissapeared like that?
Haha you’re right… I should’ve been more considerate of Neo
where is that? very pretty landscape, I mean water scape
The footage is from Hong Kong.. we have beautiful waters over here.. and warm too!
@@Fishaholicboy are you launching from the South side of HK island?
I heard the fishermen killed all the sharks there?
is there any sailing opportunity there?
Be careful with this drone. I've been watching videos on how this drone performs over water, and it's bad. So, I tried to only fly it by the beach. Guess what? Even just by the beach, with no water below, right after it took off, it drifted quickly sideways, far from me, and I almost hit a person about 30 meters away! I couldn’t do anything, it was completely uncontrollable. I couldn't even land it, and it all happened so fast. The sea was very calm that day.
Ahh sounds hectic! Glad you were able to retrieve the Neo though
@@Fishaholicboy yeah thankfully, i still really like this drone, but I will be very more careful flying it
Please test how dji neo under water
Haha.. if only. Then it could become a submarine!
You can switch on manual controls while in follow mode and move the drone up. It’ll stay higher.
can switch back to manual mode when fist fly with drone preset mode?
@@ivanau9615if you’re using the phone. There’s a little manual control button in the lower left corner. If you click on it, you can make height and distance adjustments. Look at 4:49 mark on this video. There’s a button that looks like “+O”
THIS REALLY HELPED! Thank you.. I tried it and it's so much better
@@Fishaholicboy thank you! Your video helped me feel more confident about taking it on rowboat trip this morning. Based on your experiences, I kept it connected to the phone which saved me when the phone went to the launch location after a quick shot and the boat drifted quite a bit.
Way to windy for that drone
Agreed. Fortunately I found a sheltered area to test
Funny I saw a Canadian UA-camr flying the Neo over a river and it had zero issues. That was before the first update.
Do you know if they did manual flying? Would love to know how he controlled it!
@Fishaholicboy UA-camr "Blueskyver" filmed about 2 weeks ago. FPV and with the loops and rolls performed towards the end. Very strange river as it's current goes one way while waves go the other way very cool seeing the surfers
This was a ridiculous test. Your results had 0% to do with surface/terrain/water but 100% fact that you were operating a $199 drone in conditions WELL beyond its design envelope.
All the drone failings were wind related.
Definitely.. The DJI Neo wasn't made for the water, it's a selfie drone. That is why it was more fun to test the limits
Not water test you are bad boy
haha. It's On Water test :) The Neo is not waterproof