Our Rating - 3.5/5
Value For Money Beginner Drone
This is a solid beginner drone. If you are not sure if the drones are really your thing, and you don’t want to spend a lot of money on an experiment, this is perfect for you.
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SHARPER IMAGE RECHARGEABLE DX-3 VIDEO DRONE REVIEW
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This is a middle-sized entry-level drone, very suitable for beginners and mid-level users. It is produced by the US-based Sharper Image Company, which is well-known for products like home electronics and other high-tech products. The Sharper Image Rechargeable DX-3 Video Drone Offers nice flight characteristics with video streaming and recording options, and all that at very affordable price. It seems that this is a definitive recommended buy. Let’s check that out.
| Key Features |
Flight Time | 10 minutes |
Camera | 720p, stabilization |
Control Range | 300 yards |
Battery | 3.7V 800 mAh |
Charge time | 50 minutes |
Special features | one key take off/land, 3 speeds |
SHARPER IMAGE DX-3 – A CLOSER LOOK
DESIGN
It can be said that this is a larger drone since the dimensions are 21 x 14 x 4 inches. Due to the small body and the thin arms that hold the rotors, it is incredibly lightweight, compared to the size. It is not high either. The slimline is maintained thanks to the fact that the camera is built in, so there is no need for weird looking long legs or struts landing gear as the most competitors have. The landing gear function is provided by slightly longer rotor casings. Another interesting design feature is the propeller shield. It goes around the whole drone, and it is made out of flexible material. In case of impact, it will bend, absorb the impact force, and return to the previous position. Better than breaking. This bending will not, however, reach and damage the blades.
The drone has two white LED lights indicating the front and two red ones for the back. On the back, there is a little door to reach the battery compartment. The door is additionally secured by a screw. Above the door is a micro USB charge socket for the battery. So the charging is pretty simple.
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SHARPER IMAGE DX-3 CAMERA
The camera is 720p, HD, 20fps. Pretty decent picture quality for a beginner drone. It can stream the video directly to your smartphone, so it enables the FPV.bThe Wi-Fireach is about 100 yards. The only downside of the camera is the black lines that appear on the video when filming is done on a windy day.
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TRANSMITTER
The 2, 4 GHz transmitter is surprisingly large, but it has good ergonomics and a nice and simple design. The buttons are well placed and visible. Besides the standard two joysticks, there are buttons for auto takeoff and autoland, speed settings, camera, and trim buttons. It has a built in the phone holder, which can accommodate all phone sizes. There are alarms for out of range and sound indicator when autoland function is active. Surprisingly, there is no low battery alarm, so you will have to keep an eye on the drone itself, The LED lights are flashing rapidly when the battery is running empty.
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SHARPER IMAGE DX-3 BATTERY
3.7V lithium polymer battery that has a capacity of 800 mAh. It may not sound much, but for a lightweight drone like this one, it is enough to keep it in the air for up to 10 minutes. Keep in mind that stunts drain the battery and that it is not advised to do them on a half-empty battery. The battery takes about 50 minutes to fully recharge.
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SHARPER IMAGE DX-3 ADDITIONAL FEATURES
ONE KEY TAKE OFF/LAND
Great features, especially for beginners, which are the main audience for this model. It enables you to launch or land the drone with a press of a button.
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SPEED CONTROL
The drone has three-speed settings. That is quite enough to please both beginners and more advanced users and also help with extra power on a windy day.
FPV CONTROL
The streaming video from the drone enables you to see in real time what the drone sees. You can really feel like a pilot.
Read next: Propel Cloud Rider HD 2.0 Review
EMERGENCY STOP AND ALARMS
The alarm will sound if the drone goes out of range and if you turn on autoland or emergency stop button.
STUNTS
The drone can perform the 360-degree flip with a press of a button.
Flying Experience
The drone is light compared to its size, and that makes it more vulnerable to wind. Although it has 6 axis gyro that helps stabilize it, it can still shake on a windy day. In that case, a higher speed setting is recommended so that the extra power to the rotors can help stabilize it. Other than that, the drone is pretty nimble and fast, handles as expected, and there are no unpleasant surprises. Auto take-off and auto-land work perfectly, the drone can land itself even when it reaches the top altitude.
What Do We Like?
- Larger size. The drone measures about 21 x 14 x 4 inches, which makes it an outdoor drone.
- Transmitter. The large ergonomic transmitter has built-in smartphone stand and Wi-Fi antennas, and all the necessary buttons and switches
- HD camera. The 720p camera has decent enough performance.
- FPV mode. Video streaming feature enables the First Person View
- Headless mode. Headless mode is a feature that makes flying easier for beginners
- Adjustable speed. Three-speed settings are available, enough for everyone to find a suitable one.
- Additional. 6 axis gyro
- Price. Very well balanced, compared to what the drone offers.
What Don't We Like?
- Weight. The drone is very lightweight compared to the surface, so it is more affected by wind.
SUMMARY
This is a great beginner drone. If you are not sure if the drones are really your thing, and you don’t want to spend a lot of money on an experiment, this is perfect for you. It has all the features of larger and more expensive drones but at a much lower price.
It may fall a little bit behind them on some of the characteristics, but the fun is not one of them.
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About the Author: Ruan Nelio
When I'm not geeking out over the newest drones, I'm busy flying my DJI Mavic 2 Pro all over Oslo. The coolest part about this job is I get to keep some of the drones I review, which happens to be how I got my Mavic 2!
Last update on 2025-02-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API This article contains affiliate links which for which the owner of the site may receive a commision.
