Looking for a small, lightweight FPV transmitter that plugs right into your GoPro and has an integrated cloverleaf antenna? This $60 video transmitter for the 5.8GHz band may fit the bill – but is it any good? Find out in our review after the break.
FPV shopping time! In this new segment we’ll take a look at various new products that came out recently, in the hope that there’s something interesting for you. As always, if you have any hints or suggestions for new gear, please let us know!
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The Pixhawk flight controller is now shipping. Yours for $280 (sans GPS and telemetry), it can be ordered from the 3DR store. Designed for the new QGroundControl software, this open source flight controller is ready for fleet operations where one ground station controls multiple UAVs in flight, with tons of connectivity options. Warning: SBUS or CPPM receiver output signal required, or you need to order an extra PPM Encoder board! |
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This dual 5.8GHz transmitter allows you to send two video signals on two different channels. This can be used for diversity sending on the aircraft side, or to transmit two different viewpoints at the same time. It’s a bit pricy at $120 over at GLB. Allegedly it’s 500mW, but it does support audio transmission (for antenna trackers) |
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A BEC for $9? That’s not bad by itself, but this is an integrated power distribution board with dual BECs specifically for multicopters. Up to 6S LiPos are supported, though each BEC can only drive up to 2A. Oh and one BEC output can be adjusted between 5 and 20V – which is awesome if you need 12V on a 4S multicopter but don’t want extra weight. |
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Helical antenna are great. Most builds suffer from poor construction however. This one is just $30 and features a solid guided construction that prevents the springy bit from compressing and thus detuning. It comes with a flex cable, and is available only in right handed circular polarization. If your transmitter antenna is left-circular, this is not what you want. On the plus side, you can order SMA and RP-SMA versions depending on your connector. |
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Got a great camera for FPV that unfortunately only outputs HDMI? This little converter board will take your HDMI signal and output analog video for a little over $28. It supports a whole range of HDMI resolutions and runs off the 5V of your typical BEC. |
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Got a Canon 5D Mark III? Gimbals for this beast can cost a pretty penny. Here’s a cost effective carbon fiber gimbal, available in a two axis version for $222, as well as a three axis version for $269. No gimbal controller included, so you have to spend another $100-$150 depending on your setup. You can’t reasonably expect DJI level build quality here. However judging from our experiences with the Zenmuse H3-2D (the gimbal switches OFF if you bang against the endpoint), better build quality does not always mean less problems. Ultimately the 5D is an expensive camera, so the question is whether you want to entrust it to a budget gimbal. |
GLB has a set of neat little FPV video transmitters on sale. It’s a 220mW 5.8GHz TX with integrated cloverleaf antenna, weighing only 10 grams. You can choose between a version with servo connector or one that fits right into your GoPro. Both cost around USD $58.- which is not a bad deal. Keep in mind that you will need a compatible left-hand circular polarized antenna on the receiver side as well.
Supported frequencies are 5.705, 5.685, 5.665, 5.645, 5.885, 5.905, 5.925 and 5.945 GHz, which means this won’t work with your ImmersionRC/FatShark receiver. But then again, there are better (higher selectivity, diversity etc.) receiver modules available that do work with these frequencies.
GLB is offering the D58-4 four-channel FPV receiver that features both four independent receivers + individual outputs as well as one additional diversified output. The idea is that you tune all four receivers to the same channel, then use the diversity output for your FPV goggles/DVR/etc. – this device will switch between the four receivers and take the one with the best video signal.
Serious FPV pilots can use this to achieve 360 degree coverage, or just additional safety by combining four antennae with different characteristics.
Note that this will not solve multipathing issues, which account for most of the close-range image distortions. You’ll want a circular polarizing antenna for that, like these Cloverleaf Antennae. That said, diversity is a good thing to have and a setup with several types of circular polarizing antennae, for example 3 x patch + 1 x cloverleaf, will give you pretty much the best wireless video link you can get.
Don’t want diversity? This receiver also has four independent outputs in case you tune those receivers onto different channels and record them all at the same time.
Price at Goodluckbuy.com is a less-than-stellar $258.85, whereas the same receiver can be picked up at fpvmodel.com for $209 and at Foxtech for a mere $199. Depending on where you live however, GLB may or may not end up being cheaper due to shipping being included in that price.
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