Mostly, the smaller and lighter indoor drones are designed for kids and children (to learn the basic flying) for FPV flying or photography. They are affordable, easy to maneuver and won’t require long-range and special features like GPS. While flying drone indoors, you have to be very careful and take required safety measures, especially around kitchen and around furniture. Before investing in an indoor drone, we suggest you consider the following key factors to grab your right option.
Flight Time: An average indoor drone can achieve a flight time of up to 8 minutes. It is hard to increase a flight time per battery, yet replace the batteries to grab good flying time. So, a drone with a single battery lets you spend more time charging it rather than flying. Charge Time: The charging time of the battery is essential to consider, which ranges from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Based on the model, a few batteries with limited life are designed to use for small drones. Also, the battery of small drone models will be recharged with a USB cable. Motor Power: The built-in motor will determine the drone’s flying speed and supports its tricks like flips or rolls. Based on the size of the drone, a drone has one or more engines. The thrust power of an engine is expressed in pounds and it should be twice the weight of a drone. The engine increases balance and stability. Also, it should be equipped with proper propellers for perfect flying.
To help you in selecting the right indoor drone quickly and easily, we have shortlisted some of the Best Indoor Drones after having thorough market research. Also, we are here with a detailed “Buying Guide” to know more about indoor drones and how to choose your best one, as per your requirement.
Best Indoor Drones 2023
Top Indoor Drones: Reviews
1. Holyton Hand Operated/Remote Control Mini Drone
First on our list is Holyton’s mini drone. The compact size and easy to use features of this mini drone make it ideal for indoor use.
Best Mini Drones Drone kits for beginners Drones Under – $50, $200, $300, $500
This drone makes the flying experience fun and exciting with a wide range of additional features. You can use gesture control to make it do 3D flip, Circle Fly, and Auto Rotating. This drone is ideal for beginners as it is easy to start and operate. You can just throw the drone in the air and start operating it. Additionally, You can control the drone either using a remote or using your hand. The headless mode ensures that you can maneuver the drone in any direction and do not have to rotate the drone. The drone features 3 speed modes that you can select based on space available for flying and your skill in controlling the drone. When flying indoors, there is a high risk of the drone getting damaged, or worse, someone getting injured. To prevent this from occurring, the propellers are covered by protection guards. There are 5 sensors located at the left, right, front, back, and bottom sides of the drone to sense obstacles and avoid them. With 3 modular batteries, you get a flight time of 15 to 21 minutes on a single charge. Best Features
Auto-hover One-key take-off button Headless mode 3 speed modes 3D Flip Circle Fly Auto-rotating 21 minutes of flight time
Pros
Easy to use features Ideal for beginners and kids Safe for indoor use
Cons
Customers’ claims of only 5-7 minutes flight time
2. Holy Stone Kid Toys Mini RC Drone
Holy Stone is one of the major drone manufacturers around the globe and has a drone for almost every kind of user. Hence, in this segment of indoor drones, this Holy Stone Mini RC Drone fits right for our list. Just like any normal drone, it has every useful feature, but in a slightly smaller package that makes it the best fit for the beginners as well as the kids. Inside the package, Holy Stone offers 3 batteries, which deliver a total flying time of 21 minutes. In addition, it has an alarm feature that will let you know in case the battery gets low. For the kids, it is a perfect gift as it is pretty easy to operate and has assistive features as well. With the Auto-Hovering feature, you can lock its altitude level and fly it easily using the remote. Moreover, there is no need to worry about maneuvering it, because the Headless mode makes it move in any direction you want. Not just that, it can do some little party tricks as well, like 3D Flips, that will make your kid enjoy his/her time with this amazing toy. Moreover, it does get the One-Key Take-off/Landing feature for easy operation. For the learners, it has 3-speed modes as well to try your hands-on. Best Features:
Altitude Hold Headless Mode One Key Start/Stop 3 Speed Modes 3D Flips 21 Minutes Flying Time
Pros:
Good for new learners Ideal for Kids Safe for Indoor use
Cons:
Not much durable
3. Hand Operated Drones
Force1 has loads of indoor drones suitable for kids, as we just discussed above. However, if you need just one unit of the Force1 Scoot, you can pick this deal. This small package just includes a drone and nothing else because all it needs to fly is your little help. As there is no controller, people often ask how it would be controlled, but Force1 thinks a little different. Just toss it in the air slightly, and it starts to fly instantly. While it flies, it can maintain the height level with its in-built Altitude Hold feature. The flying time of this Scoot Drone is 8 minutes. And, it takes up to 50 minutes to charge completely, and charging it for furthermore might damage the drone. Moreover, it sports several infrared sensors that can detect if any obstacle comes in its way. If so, it suddenly stops or changes its direction. Because of this feature, you can use your hands to make it move in another direction and control it as you want. On a single charge, it can fly for almost 8 minutes continuously while the bright LED lights will make it shine. The build is quite durable, and the outer shell protects its blades from breaking. Best Features:
Altitude Hold Hand Controlled LED lights Crash-Proof Small size
Pros:
Great for indoor fun Safe for Kids
Cons:
Less Flying Time Slightly Expensive
4. DJI CP.MA.00000123.01 Mavic Mini Combo
It is impossible not to encounter a DJI product when searching for a drone as DJI is the most popular and industry-leading brand that you can pick. The DJI Mavic Mini is not an indoor drone, but if you are experienced enough, you can control it easily indoors as well. The DJI Mavic Mini drone boasts a top-notch quality 12 MP camera that is capable of recording videos in 2.7K QHD resolution. The video output feels so stable and smooth because of the in-built motorized 3-axis gimbal. In addition, there is no need to register this drone with the FAA as it weighs under 250 grams even after having its battery in-built. And, on a single charge of this battery, it can almost fly for 30 minutes continuously. With all the additional assistive features like one-key take-off/landing, Follow Me Mode, Altitude Hold, and GPS Auto-return Home feature, flying this drone is not a challenge for anyone. With DJI’s dedicated drone application, you can even set up a trajectory path for the drone to follow. Although the build quality is best-in-class, it costs accordingly as well. But, once you invest in it, it won’t give you any reasons to dislike it. Best Features:
GPS Auto-Return Home Altitude Hold 7K Quad-HD video recording 3-axis motorized Gimbal One-Key Take-off/Landing 30 minutes Flying time
Pros:
Extremely easy to use Very Lightweight Top-notch Specs No need for registration with the FAA
Cons:
A little expensive
5. Potensic Upgraded A20 Mini Drone
Potensic is yet another great brand to choose if you are looking for a beginner-friendly drone in the budget category. The Potensic A20 has all the necessary features that will help you gain some experience with flying drones. With its adjustable 3 speed modes, you can learn the basics pretty well. However, for the beginners, assistive features like One Key Taking-off / Landing and Altitude Hold are much more helpful. The main housing of the drone is as wide as a smartphone, which means the size is quite small and good for indoors as well. Around its propellers, a good amount of protection is given to save it from collisions and crashes. The drone is fully functional and controllable with the remote, and in case of any emergency, just press one button, and it will land instantly. However, if we talk about its battery life, you get two replaceable batteries in the package, which provide a total flying time of 10-15 minutes. From the kid’s perspective, it is a good deal, but from a learner’s perspective, the battery life is slightly disappointing. Best Features:
Altitude Hold One Key Taking-off / Landing Emergency Landing feature 3 Speed Modes
Pros:
Durable Build Quality Propeller Protection No registration needed Lightweight
Cons:
Battery Life is less
6. SANROCK U61W Drone with Camera for Kids
SANROCK is a dedicated brand that brings up all types of drones for children, beginners and adults. All its drones are known for high quality and performance. Among its drone cameras, this U61W model is especially for kids and beginners as it comes with an easy-to-use remote with a dedicated button to start the drone and stop whenever you want. This drone comes with a HD camera with 720P resolution and 90 degrees angle setting. So, you can record live videos of any place you want with clarity. There is also a smartphone app that the brand provides, which you can use to see the live feed that the drone records. For safety to kids, the drone comes with 4 propellers with protective frame all along to prevent injuries while spinning. Moreover, this drone supports headless mode and height-hold mode, which don’t let the drone fly too high. To ensure endless entertainment, the drone has 2 chargeable lithium batteries that give a flight time of 14 minutes each time. Best Features
Measures 7.6 x 5.3 x 3.5 inches and is portable to carry to events. Emergency landing icon on the app to land the drone faster. Comes with a USB charging cable. When the signal is weak. The drone makes an alarm to land fast. 3 speed levels. 14 minutes flight time.
Pros:
Great for indoors and outdoors. Charges in just 30 minutes. Easy to control. HD photos and videos.
Cons:
Video lags a bit.
7. Force1 Scoot Duo Hand Drone
If you are looking for a small toy to give as a gift to your children, Force1 has a pretty good package for you. This deal has two drone units for a reasonable price. Unlike most drones that need a transmitter or a controller to operate, there is nothing as such needed with the Force1 Scoot Duo. In this pack, Force1 is providing 2 Scoot Drones that are very much suitable to fly indoors. To launch the drone, all you need to do is take them in your hand and gently toss it, and it will automatically start hovering. After a charging time of 50 minutes, it offers a flying time of up to 8 minutes. As there is no remote controller involved, you can totally control these drones with your hands, all thanks to the 5 infrared sensors built-in. It can detect if any obstacle is near and can change its direction of flight. With the protective shells, the propellers are very well secure, and it also protects the hands from touching the propellers. Therefore, it is totally safe for the kids and crash-proof as well. As soon as it starts flying, you will love to see the LED lights glowing brightly. Best Features:
Crash-proof shell covering LED lights Altitude Hold Hand controlled Compact Size
Pros:
Ideal for kids Fun to play
Cons:
Flying time is less
How to Choose the Best Indoor Drone:
As of now, you have gone through the best types of drones that are suitable to fly indoors. However, it is all your choice to decide which one is the best suitable for your needs. If you are unsure about choosing your best drone, we have compiled a list of some must to consider factors while shopping for an indoor drone. Let’s get into its details.
1. Motor:
The built-in motor is the primary consideration and deciding factor while shopping for an indoor drone. The motor will determine how fast a drone can move, along with providing some support for tricks (flips or rolls). Based on the size of a drone, a quadcopter comes with one or more engines. However, pounds is used to express the power of an engine’s thrust by most manufacturers. Therefore, it is interrelated with the weight of the drone. It is a must to select the drone with a motor having thrust twice of its weight. For instance, if the drone weighs around 1.7 pounds, the engine’s thrust must not be less than 3.5 pounds. When coming to the number of engines in a drone – generally, the bigger the drone, the more number of engines are fitted on the machine. Furthermore, the number of engines will contribute to the drone’s stability. So, more engines in a drone will increase balance, which is essential when using to capture images or videos. Keep in mind that, engines run at full speed only when they are equipped with proper propellers. So, if the engine has more power, then it can easily run the larger size propellers.
2. Obstacle Avoidance:
Few drones feature an obstacle avoidance system that let them sense anything in their front and thereby adjust their flight path automatically to prevent any collisions. Thus, it helps to avoid accidents or damage to a drone itself or any piece of furniture/object that comes in contact with it. Remember that this obstacle avoidance system won’t work with all drones (or) not found in all drones. So, check the compatibility before buying it. Also, seek out drones that offer simple one-button landing and take-off features.
3. Propeller Guards:
Safety plays a crucial role while choosing indoor drones, particularly those furnished with propellers. They measure as per the size of the drone, which ranges within 1.9 – 5.9 inches. However, the propellers are sharp when the drone is flying at high speed. If you interfere with your drone, you may hurt yourself easily. In the same way, if it gets in contact with a person or pet or kid during flight, then the quadricopter cause considerable harm. So, to get rid of this risk, you can choose drones equipped with propeller protections or guards.
4. Battery Life:
The integrated battery is also essential to consider while shopping for indoor drones. However, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries offer a lot of flight time before they have to be recharged. Ensure to read the fine print to know that your battery has adequate power for your daily usage. A smaller drone has less battery life and vice versa. So, make sure to use a drone that comes with a battery life of at least 5 minutes, which is enough for the respective size. For instance, a drone like DJI Mini 2 flies for 31 minutes or the DJI Tello will fly for 12 minutes, yet these are a bit larger as well.
5. Charging Time:
The charging time of the battery is vital to consider when you don’t want to spend a fortune with a spare battery. However, the charging time varies between 30 minutes to 2 hours. There are some batteries designed to use for small drones that will offer a limited life. Also, you can recharge a battery with a USB cable for small drone models.
6. Noise:
Usually, drones are a bit noisy while flying, and their noise level is similar to a car but the buzz they generate is not at all pleasant to the human ear. They may scare or surprise someone with their noise and may lead to accidents. So, it is essential to check the noise levels (number of decibels) your drone is generating before buying, and ensure to pick the least noisy drone. Till today, there is no silent indoor drone. Hence, prefer to fly them in non-populated areas.
7. Size and Range:
One has to consider the size of the drone to know whether they can easily handle it or not before making its purchase. The smaller drone has more space to move around and thereby allows you to easily adjust the trajectory and to have a lot of fun doing flips/rolls. As far as the range is concerned, there is not much to expect from a drone that is built to fly indoors. On average, most drones have a controlling range of about 150 ft. that seems to be good enough for indoor environments. There will not be an issue if you fly it in the backyard, but it is not recommended if the weather is too windy as your tiny drone can go out of control due to its small size and lesser weight.
8. Build Quality:
An indoor drone should be tough to withstand collisions and knocks, why because when flying inside, the risk of smashes is a bit higher than outdoor flying drones. Some drones may crash or break easily to the ground when they encounter an obstacle (or) while flying in rainy or windy weather. So, it’s better to avoid low-end indoor drone models, why because a poor quality quadricopter gets to break into thousand pieces with a minimum shock. However, propellers are a more vulnerable part, in which there should be proper protection around them. Also, check there are some spare parts available in the pack. Always pick a durable and long-lasting drone that is made with good materials and its assembly quality is sufficient for the intended use.
9. Weight:
We recommend a lightweight drone to fly inside, why because a lighter one doesn’t cause too much damage, even if the operator lost its control. Moreover, these drones are not at all suitable to use outdoors. They simply blow away due to a little wind/air. However, almost all drones in the above-mentioned list are considered lightweight.
10. Stability:
While planning to fly a drone in smaller indoor spaces, you need to select an impartially stable drone. Thus, it doesn’t drift off into the nearest couch or wall, yet fly as expected.
11. Reliable Flight Performance:
The flight speed, time, and stability of the drone to know about its flight performance. However, a good-quality decent drone will provide a flight time of at least 6 minutes. If not, you have to buy additional batteries and has to spend more time on changing batteries. Moreover, drones having diverse speed modes provide the best flying experience to have a lot of fun or exciting occasionally. A drone will hover stably while flying will give confidence and also offers easy control. However, it is harder to increase the flying time per battery, but surely there is a way to get a good amount of total flying time by replacing the batteries. Most brands out there offer multiple batteries inside the package to enjoy a much longer time. If your drone offers a single battery only, you may spend a lot of time changing the battery rather than flying the drone.
12. Speed:
Indoor drones are used to learn the basics of flying, just like a toy for kids. The drones made for playing don’t have much higher speeds. However, the advanced ones might have several speed modes to adjust. In case you want to learn the basics, start to fly the drone at the slowest speeds possible, and gradually increase it as you get more used to it. Due to their lightweight aspect, these drones can easily achieve good speeds of up to 45 km/hr. But flying drones at such speed won’t be practical if you are indoors. On the other hand, these small drones that fly at such high speed’s suits best for racing. But ensure you have enough experience with the drone to fly at higher speeds and always fly responsibly.
13. Durability:
It is more likely to crash the drone on the ceiling or wall while flying indoors, without any matter of experienced or beginner. A good drone can survive most indoor crashes or simply break the spare parts as propellers that we can replace easily without damaging the whole machine.
14. Easy to Use:
Since the indoor space is limited, novice pilots or kids become nervous to operate this drone. If they are featured with easy-to-use functions like low battery alert, auto take-off and landing, and return to home will remove the pressure and adds fun to fly this drone.
15. Fun To Fly:
Flying inside will limit the possibility of aerial photography. The fun you get while flying is an essential thing to consider. However, drones that can bounce, flip or fly in different speed modes will provide much more joy and fun.
16. Warranty and Customer Service:
These indoor drones are much more prone to get damaged, why because the indoor environments have various obstacles to dodge. So, it is a must to have a drone that is covered under warranty. Most manufacturers offer a minimum of 3 months to a 1-year warranty on their products. Irrespective of your experience in flying a drone, it is more prone to encounter technical issues with electronic products. So, it is a must to have good customer service that quickly responds to your queries and try to resolve them. Consider this facture while purchasing an indoor drone.
17. Age Limit:
One has to check the age requirements mentioned on the drone before making its purchase. Several times lower limits are depending on the flight time, battery size, etc. Based on your
18. Controller:
The drones are available in various sizes, shapes, and designs, in which all these are operated/fly with remote control. Most of them feature adjustable controls that let you customize the drone to have a better flying experience. Yet, all these drones will serve the same purpose to control the flight modes or take videos and pictures from the air. Some drone models offer a few add-on features like attached cameras to record everything in the air (or) extra battery packs for additional flight time.
19. Camera:
Most of these indoor drones won’t have a camera, especially a toy indoor drones used to play with kids, as there is no point to include a camera in this toy type drone. However, racing with drones is getting a sport now, which makes people prefer to buy and fly a small drone. A few products on our list that offer pretty decent cameras showing the first-person view (FPV) from a drone’s perspective, which is essential for racing. Alternatively, there are a few popular brands that make small drones, particularly used for movie-making. They are not built to fly indoors, yet an experienced person can make it happen with a small size drone.
20. Other Features and Accessories:
Few indoor drones have integrated cameras to take stills or to stream live video. Other models offer tool kits to perform various routine tasks and allow for easy control through a dedicated remote device or smartphone.
21. Price:
Based on the type of drone you are using, drone prices will vary widely. For instance, an average indoor drone comes around $25 – $40 and a good DJI inspire 2 pro kit could be up to $3000. The price depends on what’s your budget and your requirements.
Types of Indoor Drones:
There are three main types of indoor drones available in the market. They are….
Toy Indoor Drones FPV Racing Indoor Drones Professional Indoor Drones
Let’s know about them in detail.
1. Toy Indoor Drones –
This toy indoor drone is specially designed for hobbyists that are safely flown indoors. Here are the main features of toy indoor drones.
Lightweight: This type of indoor drone weigh less than a pound that let you use it with ease. Short Battery Life: Toy indoor drones only offer a flight time of 5 – 15 minutes. No Cameras: Most of these drones won’t have any cameras. If you purchase a model that has a camera, then it is not of high quality. Affordable: These drones are relatively inexpensive that costs less than $100. Safe to Use: All these drones feature propellor guards or prop guards, which are lightweight that won’t hurt your things or people even if they crash as well.
2. FPV Racing Indoor Drones –
Racing indoor drone is a special type of indoor drone that is made to fly in big or open spaces in indoor scenarios with indoor drone race tracks. They are not made to fly in your living room. Here are some key features of racing indoor drones.
First Person View (FPV): This indoor racing drone is all going to be FPV, with goggles or a screen that let you see through what the drone sees as it flies in real-time. Fast: Since these are made for racing, they can fly/go so fast. Not to Fly at Home: These are probably not to fly at home, as they go so fast that you won’t want to fly them at home or indoors. Safety But Not Guaranteed: Unlike toy indoor drones, these racing drones won’t come with propellor guards. These are available as an extra purchase.
3. Professional Indoor Drones –
Moreover, racing and toy drones are made specifically for flying – either you have to fly for fun (or) to race. But a professional indoor drone is used in a variety of different scenarios that include.
Collect visual data for inspection purposes inside industrial assets like pressure vessels, chimneys or boilers. Replace the need for a human to enter into a hazardous or confined space. For instance, indoor drones can easily replace human’s needs in nuclear power plants. Thus, they reduce the radiation exposure, yet can easily collect visual data. Easily enter into the space where it is difficult for humans to access, such as mines, sewers, or even some parts of amusement park rides. These days some industries like Gas & Oil, Mining, and Power Generation use professional indoor drones.
How to Fly an Indoor Drone?
One has to learn some basics of flight and how to use the controller sticks before they start to fly a drone indoors. Here are some guidelines that help you in performing some standard mode of operation.
The right stick is used to handle backward, forward and sideways movement. The left stick is used to move/go up and down for reducing or raising the motor spin. Also, the left stick can handle rotation, if moved the stick right or left. Ensure that there is no expensive electronics or other things around the area before flying a drone indoors. This will prevent causing damage to them and let you operate safely. If you feel that you lose control over drone operating, then keep the left stick all the way down, and cut the power from the motors. Follow all these tips to handle the drone safely in emergencies.
Flying Tips for Indoor Drones:
However, it is great fun to spend time flying a drone, yet doing it outdoors is not possible all the time, due to various reasons like outside weather conditions. So, it’s better to relax on a couch and enjoy flying a drone indoors. Yet you have to take some precautions for safe and effective flying. Here are some indoor drone flying tips that help to pilot the drone safely around the home and have a lot of fun. Select the Right Drone – Though drones are available in various sizes and designs, in which pick the right type of drone to fly indoors (smaller variants). A mini or micro drone suits perfectly for an apartment or home use. Based on the space available/room length, you have to choose the drone size, which has adequate room to navigate with. Reset If Needed – Few drones may recall and adapt to their previous flight conditions. For instance, if used on a windy day outside, then it impacts its indoor performance. If your drone, does it, then try to reset the drone to prevent this behavior. You can find information about this in the user manual. Adjust the Controls – Few drone models offer preset controls to fly indoors or outdoors. If your drone model has this option, then swap to indoors to have better control over its flying, Also, you can adjust the sensitivity manually to have better control over the drone’s operation. Use Propeller Guards – Use propeller guards when you find a higher risk of striking. This specially designed accessory will protect the fragile propellers from damage and also prevent causing injury if a propeller strikes a person. Moreover, it extends the protection to fragile pieces of furniture. Stay Away from Walls – Ensure that drone will fly at least 2 meters (6ft) away from the walls where you are flying in. Also, the drone won’t move faster than 1 meter per second (3 feet per second or 1m/s). If the drone moves faster than this rate, then you are close to the objects or walls and may damage the drone. Reach Out of Children and Pets – If you have a curious kid or pet, then take care of them by not allowing them too near to the drone. Thus, it prevents any sort of injuries that arise, either damaging the drone (or) hurting you or them. Give your kid goggles to wear while flying smaller drones. Don’t Overreact – If you get into a spot of trouble, then instead, try to correct the issue/situation with little movement. Yet don’t overreact and make the situation even worse. For instance, if you get close to anything (or) drone starts falter, then don’t panic and stay calm and try to control & correct the issue. Get Permission – It is a must to get permission to fly drones indoors, especially if you are not a drone or homeowner. If you are a minor, then seek help and permission from your parents or guardian before flying these indoor drones.
Conclusion:
Based on your requirements, you can pick any product from the list, but we will feel glad if you choose to pick one from our recommendations.
In case you are looking for a compact and speedy drone, the Holyton Hand Operated/Remote Control Mini Drone Racing Drone is the best pick. However, the Holy Stone Kid Toys Mini RC Drone is good for new learners or can be a good toy for the kids as well. On the other hand, if you are into movie-making, you can consider the DJI Mavic Mini because of its small size and 2.7K QHD camera.
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