Drones or quadcopters or whatever you would like to call them, have quickly gone from tools only Hollywood filmmakers use to something every 5th grader is crashing into your backyard. Once delegated to the film set, you can buy one of these things for under $20 and fly it around your house with a smartphone now. Companies like DJI have done a fantastic job at maintaining that high-end, professional focus it cut its teeth on while now offering up some very capable and pretty affordable machines for the rest of us.
While you will still have to fork out some decent cash for even the most affordable flyer from a well-known company, we recently spotted a new LEGO-style drone courtesy of Force Flyers at a much more affordable price. With a universal block building design, some light STEM learning features and the build it yourself LEGO like approach, it certainly caught our eye.
We definitely recommend the DJI or Parrot options, but they are more than likely going to be too expensive for your average weekend pilots or for your very first flying experiences. Thankfully, you can grab a mini flyer on Amazon for less than $20 and there are even fully equipped camera drones starting at around $60 or so. But you won’t necessarily see the LEGO-like approach of the new Force Flyers DIY Fly n Drive Building Block Drone.
Let’s get some of the specs out of the way first. It measures roughly 6 x 6 x 2-inches at about 4-pounds and is made of a “crash resistant” ABS plastic. It features a 6-axis gyro enabling all of the 360-degree stunt flips your heart could ever desire. You can also expect some light auto flight stabilization, about 10-12 minutes of flight time on a single charge and everything you need to get going included in the box. You can charge the flyer over USB with the included cable, get up to 75 meters of range on the controller and there are some “spare parts” in the package as well. It takes about 60 minutes to fully re-charge the DIY Fly n Drive Building Block Drone.
The actual building elements here aren’t officially from LEGO, but according to Force Flyers it is compatible with all “major building block brands.” And you can choose to keep the wheels on the ground here as well in RC car mode.
Force Flyers says the new drone is “great for STEM development” by way of the custom building elements of the product. Users will get a handle on some basic aerodynamics concepts as well as weight distribution. We said “light” STEM elements here, and we meant it. In other words, if you put this entire 10-pack of LEGO minifigs on the drone, it won’t fly as smooth, but it will be glorious when you crash it on the neighbor’s driveway. Send us the video too.
Force Flyers building block drone/car combo pack allows you to construct your own flying or driving machine in whatever design you desire. Super fun to see all the ways you can configure and fly. Great for STEM development. Teaches aerodynamics, weight distribution, and many other concepts. Easy to build, fun to drive or fly. Compatible with all major building blocks for maximum versatility. The digital proportional control allows for incredibly precise flight through tight spaces that will challenge even the most experienced pilot.
The new Force Flyers DIY Fly n Drive Building Block Drone is available now for under $50 on Amazon, but you can get it for just $33 at Electronicsforward Specials.
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