Essential Drone Accessories

Drones have only recently become available to us as a mass market. They’re fantastic marvels of engineering but there are always improvements we can make. If you pick your accessories carefully, you can make some great improvements to your drone.

Some accessories like prop / propeller guards or a carrying case that’s secure, will help keep your drone in good shape. Others such as a tool kit or a crash pack, can often help for when things don’t go as planned.

That doesn’t mean drones are super high maintenance and really boring. Far from it and in fact quite the opposite! You can get performance boosters that double your drone’s fastest possible speed. Flight recorders can track everything your drone sees or does when in the air. This guide is designed to be a good introduction to some of the accessories you should consider as ‘must-haves’ for your drone.

MICRO SD CARD FOR DRONES

Most standard micro SD cards will work in your drone. Some of the fastest and most reliable micro SD cards are the SanDisk Extreme series, which are designed for extremely fast photography. This might be useful if your drone’s camera is high-performance. Given how much drones record these days, this could be the most important buy you make. You can capture all your audio, images and video, then view it on your computer later or your smart phone.

DRONE CASE

Your drone is a real trooper, constantly working and needing to stay functional at all times. Make sure it’s well protected for when you next take it on an epic journey! If you need to hike across terrain, or even just covering a lot of bumps on the way there in your car…get a secure carry case! Your drone will thank you for it. The last place you want to damage your drone is in transit before you even start using it.

FLIGHT RECORDER

Flight recorders are some of the most popular accessories for drones. They record your in-flight footage, take photographs, record audio and more. What kind of quality you can expect depends on how much you are prepared to spend. Some flight recorders even let you control your drone with your phone, and mark out the path for your drone to follow! Once you have all of the video, audio and images you need, you can then view all of it from your computer.

BATTERIES

Drones take up a lot of battery life, and you don’t want to drive out to a remote location only to enjoy your drone for ten minutes. Stocking up on extra batteries and portable chargers would be very handy. Depending on how big your drone is and what the voltage is, battery cost can seriously vary. However, buying one might double your flight time instantly, so could be a very worthwhile investment. They also tend to be very easy to attach to drones, and most carry cases will have space for you to store spare batteries.

CRASH PACK

Nobody wants to have their drone crash, but it’s a necessary risk of owning one. There are many things that can go wrong as drones get more complex. The ability for you to perform on-the-spot repairs is extremely useful, although hopefully you don’t have to do it too often!

Most crash packs you buy will have extra batteries and new propellers. Some shops even let you buy crash kits with a completely new drone body / drone shell. Naturally, this would cost more but could pay off in a big way if you end up in a major crash.

A hidden benefit of this is that you can start to learn where your drone is strong or weak, and also gain the technical skills needed to repair a drone and keep it flying.

PERFORMANCE GEARS

This is where the fun starts for people who enjoy racing their drones. Performance gears can increase the maximum speed of your drone by a lot! You can even buy customised gears to increase the agility and dexterity of your drone while in the air. These are more minor tweaks and generally only recommended for people who race drones.

Alternate gears are not always easy to attach, because of how intricate they are and how they fit onto your drone. Please bear this in mind and conduct your research fully before buying, but the results and payoff can be impressive!

PROPELLER GUARD

These are extremely important, especially for new users starting out. They protect the drone, yourself, and any bystanders from accidents. The drone also has a level of protection as propellers are less likely to get damaged from hitting or brushing against things. If your drone lands on its side as well (or it’s windy during a landing) these can protect your blades taking damage. These accessories are also relatively cheap, so well worth investing in.

LED LIGHT KIT

Whether for purely cosmetic purposes or for flying at night, you can buy an LED light kit for your drone. Custom built lights tend to be more expensive but often well worth it, since cheap sets don’t always fit very well. The less expensive sets can also drain battery faster as well if the materials used are more cheap. Ultimately, though, your drone is both more identifiable and unique when flying at night!

DECAL SET

Decal sets for drones are admittedly a lot more cosmetic and vain, but can be a lot of fun. Some online shops sell full body kits for particular drones. You can use these to make your drones look as crazy or cool as you like!

Just like with a lot of the above accessories, it’s also possible to create your own decal and get it sent to you by mail. Some companies offer a bespoke service where they’ll help design, then print and send it to you as well. The only choice you’ll have to make is what design you like.

TOOL KIT

Different from a crash kit, a tool kit is just a general set of tools to help you take apart your drone. Not all things that go wrong have to be crash related. Rather than going to a third party shop, you can use a specialised tool kit to fix your drone yourself. Standard screwdrivers for drones such as Phillips and Torx should be included with most tool kits, and a circlip tool would also help you get into the navigation board and propellers.