Idea for FPV with Android Tablet - Crazy or might just work?

[Thiago Pereira]

Hello Phatom Pilot friends,
As I have posted on some other threads, I have been flying my beloved DJI 1.1.1 for a good 25+ hours now. Loving every minute of it.

I have started thinking about the FPV quite a lot and actually researched a bit here and there and found very interesting information. Although, the price for a brand new FPV setup (with the camera, transmitters and receivers as well as the LCD to display the live image) may vary from $450USD to $1000USD+ if you let it, here I am talking about FatShark, LCDs with Tripods etc.

To cut down the cost of my first FPV, I thought about using the WiFi on the GoPro Hero3 Silver to stream to my iPhone. Thanks to the manual and to this forum, I've realized that is a NO-NO option. (Unless I want my Drone to fly away).

Now, still exploring the option of using the GoPro Hero 3 as my camera to record and capture video at the same time and re-using some of my already existing equipment, I've come up with this idea that it will cost me less than $60 USD. Question being, will it work?

On my DJY 1.1.1:
Camera: GoPro Hero 3 Silver - Cost: $0 (Already have it)
Transmiter: http://www.rctimer.com/product-1239.html - Cost: $49.99 (Includes the receiver as well)
Cable to connect the GoPro to the transmitter: http://www.readymaderc.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=11_66_67&products_id=1295

On the ground (To see the images being transmitted):
Display: Android Table iConia Tab a100 - Cost: $0 (Already have it sitting somewhere)
Receiver: http://www.rctimer.com/product-1239.html - Cost: $0 (Included in the package with transmitter)
EasyCap to connect Receiver to the tablet:http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=A2VWG2H34RIIQL Cost: $6.78

This would put me at $56.77 + shipping! Sounds too good to be true.

Now I am falling to understand how I am going to power the transmitter up there in the air... Can I use the Drone battery as source of power for it? Or I will need a specific battery for the transmitter?

Also, will this crazy setup work?

Sorry for the long post, I hope it helps others who might be thinking the same set up.

Cheers from Brazil, folks. Have a fun weekend flying up the drones!
Thiago Pereira

 

[Pilot_FML]

How well your FPV system works will primarily depend on how powerful your video Tx is and what kind of antenna is being used to both send and receive video.

Looking at the links you provided shows no reviews from other flyers so I'd recommend doing more research to hopefully find other opinions of this equipment.

Personally, I think trying to save money on FPV only ends up costing you more money in the long run. I've read countless stories where results were so bad with cheap equipment (i.e. dropped video at short distance, video that continuously breaks up, etc.) that most wished they'd bought better (i.e. more powerful & better Tx and antenna systems) from the very beginning.

Regarding a battery... many prefer separate power sources for their FPV systems because they're not at the mercy of the flight battery. Although it adds more weight, many don't want to risk loosing video to see with while flying out of sight. A separate battery also provides longer power for a lost model locator in case you multicopter goes down because of problems with your flight battery.

The old saying is true... you get what you pay for.

 

[Thiago Pereira]

Regarding a battery... many prefer separate power sources for their FPV systems because they're not at the mercy of the flight battery. Although it adds more weight, many don't want to risk loosing video to see with while flying out of sight. A separate battery also provides longer power for a lost model locator in case you multicopter goes down because of problems with your flight battery.

The old saying is true... you get what you pay for.

Pilot_FML, thank you very much for such insightful response. Any recommendations of a light separate battery for an FPV system? Also, I am very interested on what you have mentioned about "lost model locator", I believe I do not have one now on my DJI 1.1.1. I will research more about it.

Again, thank you very much.
Thiago Pereira

 

[Pilot_FML]

Pilot_FML, thank you very much for such insightful response. Any recommendations of a light separate battery for an FPV system? Also, I am very interested on what you have mentioned about "lost model locator", I believe I do not have one now on my DJI 1.1.1. I will research more about it.

Again, thank you very much.
Thiago Pereira

Sorry but I can't recommend a particular battery for an FPV system... I'm only at middle of doing research on the subject and am not ready to recommend any specific choices.

The lost model locator options are many and varied and a good choice involves knowing both the advantages and disadvantges of each.

My current (but not final) choice is the Marco Polo unit.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2013953

I'd recommend doing your own research though... chances are, whats important to you may not be important to me.