> ExpressLRS: Open source radio control protocol. Range will exceed your battery.
This is probably a good call for this audience. I expect ELRS will win out in the mid- to long-term for most things. A few people will stick with other protocols like TBS Crossfire or Tracer - I plan to, but honestly they don’t offer anything that ELRS doesn’t as far as I can tell. I just like TBS as a company and some of their products like the TBS SIXTY9.
Generally speaking, choose a protocol and stick with it. Only change (or add more protocols) if you have a good reason to.
Radios come in two broad flavors: protocol-specific and “multi-module”. I’d go with the latter unless you really want a tiny portable controller.
The RadioMaster TX16S is far and away my pick here. It’s bulky, but it supports almost everything out of the box. If you want to add TBS Crossfire/Tracer, ELRS, FrSky ACCESS, etc. you only have to add a small module to the back.
FrSky radios used to be considered top-end, but they’ve moved toward a more closed protocol that limits compatibility for both their radios and their receivers. If you have one already, by all means use it - they’re good radios - but I wouldn’t buy one today.
> HDZero / SharkByte: DJI alternative for HD video. Not as good quality but slightly more open (although not truly open).
This is what I meant earlier when I was talking about digital vs. analog - the “protocol war” here is still in its early stages. For all its warts and drawbacks, analog isn’t going anywhere. If my guess on the outcome is correct, I’ll probably end up with an HDZero setup in about a year.
Note that you can put a (digital) SharkByte receiver on analog goggles, and you can put an analog receiver on (digital) DJI FPV goggles.
> "Sub 250" - Upcoming US FAA regulations put sub 250g drones in a special category, which could have some use.
UAS under 250g that are used only for recreational use don’t require registration ($5, your name in a database, and a sticker). I’m not aware of any upcoming regulations that will impact the hobby.
For non-recreational use, there is a category for UAS <250g with enclosed props that can be flown over people legally. There is currently no off-the-shelf offering that meets those requirements, but it can be done with a slightly modified DJI Mavic Mini or Mini2 using a special battery and guards.
At the end of the day, the RPIC (“remote pilot in command”, the person flying it) must maintain VLOS (“visual line of sight”) to the UAS at all times to be legal. You can have a VO (“visual observer”) to help with that, but there is no legal way to fly FPV at the moment without a second person present.
To be brutally honest, the FPV hobby ignores a lot of the laws and regulations around it. Most of our video transmitters output quite a bit more power than legally allowed with being a HAM, and effectively none of us make sure to have a VO when we fly. Being a 107 pilot I do my best to comply to the extent that it’s practical to do so, but even I don’t bother with the VO stuff. It makes no sense, and serves no purpose with the type of quads I fly. If my video feed dies I’m going to crash, period. I’m pretty good about being able to put it down gently while blinded and I make absolutely sure I’m not putting anyone at risk when I fly.
Otherwise, these quads are far too crude - or more accurately, “stripped down” - to automatically return to home or something. Most of mine are set up to attempt to transition to a hover and descend to land in a semi-controlled way if I turn off my radio, but honestly doing that is more dangerous than just aiming it in the general direction of the safest place to land from memory and hoping for the best. I’ve ditched into water more than once because that was the best way to be sure I wasn’t going to hit anything or anyone. Sometimes that means wading into a creek or puddle to pull it out and letting it dry for a few days, sometimes that means replacing some parts, sometimes that means it’s 15’ underwater and unrecoverable. Such is the nature of this hobby.