Ruko F11PRO Drones with Camera for Adults 4K UHD Camera 60 Mins Flight Time with GPS Auto Return Home Brushless Motor-Black（with Carrying Case）

It can be daunting but the easy launch instructions give you the basics to get it in the air.

I recently became interested in buying a drone as a complement to photo/video work I enjoy doing when I go out to different places. I was looking for something at a reasonable price with some decent features, and the Ruko F11 came to my attention as a generally low-cost intro-level drone with some options that go beyond the very basics. A little more digging found the F11 Pro, which comes with a second battery and a few more features for a very similar price to the base version along with buying an extra battery separately, so I went with the Pro and bought a micro-SD card to use in the unit for recording video/photo.

Out of the box, the drone is essentially ready to fly once you do a bit of initial setup. You can install an app that allows you to see through your phone what the drone sees, and the remote has a convenient clip that will hold the phone in place. I took the case off my Galaxy S10+ because it fit a little better without it.

It is very important to go through the full setup process for calibration. If you skip any steps or don’t let them complete, you will run the risk of the drone trying to fly off on you as soon as you direct it into the air, and fighting with the controls can be a difficult experience especially for a novice. I had this happen to me twice and the second time, it came close to veering into the side of a hill before I got it close enough to cut the motors for a semi-rough landing, but the drone itself was undamaged and it was a lesson learned. Do not just assume everything is good to go just because you calibrated it in a different place half an hour ago.

That said, setup is relatively easy and the instructions walk you through it step by step, whether with the booklet, a separate card that comes with the drone, or through the phone app. When you’ve set it up properly and connected to the drone’s own wifi, you will be able to see remaining battery power in the drone and the remote, through the app. If you’re flying the drone close to you and there are some obstacles such as tree limbs or power lines nearby, you might find it easier to steer it while watching it yourself, but once you’re used to flying it further and higher away (and if you turn off Beginner limits in the app), this is where viewing it through the app comes in very handy. This will help with positioning, direction, and so on, and adjusting the camera’s angle can be done through the remote as well.

Be aware that there are limitations to the distance in which the wifi signal comes clearly back to the phone, so you can fly beyond that and get a choppy visual image. The range of the remote itself extends beyond this, but as a novice drone pilot this was something I found I had to be aware of. It is also important to keep an eye on your battery’s charge. Each one lasts nearly half an hour from a full charge, and when it gets low the lights on the drone will start to turn red and it will try to return to its launch point. If there are obstacles in the way, it is not high-end enough to have a feature such as collision detection, so pay attention to that.

As for flying it, I found it to be easy to control and very responsive to my input. As a first-timer, I went to an open park and just got used to how it flies, and of course I had moments where I jerked it too far one way or another, but it held its position very steadily when I brought it close to a fence by a baseball field, elevated it above it, flew over it, then lowered it and repeated the other way. On my second try, I flew it close by some trees and power lines, and it was responsive with a little bit of adjusting needed to account for a mild breeze. I’m not sure yet how much wind I’d risk sending it up in, though.

The primary reason I got it, and the third time I flew it, was to take it down to Shasta Lake in California to view some places left behind when Shasta Dam was built, such as old roads, bridges, and rail locations that are normally underwater except during drought conditions. The drone performed very well here, and I recorded about 35 minutes worth of video that I split between the two batteries I had. This is where I had a near-miss when I didn’t go through the proper calibration steps all the way, but that is a lesson learned. You can see some still images I took from videos I captured.

The drone flew steadily and I while I think I would prefer a non-fisheye lens to the one the F11 Pro comes with, along with a gimbal, which the F11 Pro also does not have, I found the video quality to be adequate for what I paid for. If I want better features, I would need to spend a bit more and Ruko offers a newer version of this drone that has a gimbal with a non-fisheye lens, but based on some reviews I’ve seen the jury may be out as to which one actually flies better.

Anyway, I’ve found so far that keeping the lens facing straight ahead gives me better color quality to what I’m seeing, and based on the angle of the drone as it’s flying I can still see the majority of what I want to. You do get a little bit of the propellers in the shot, but that’s not too bad. The fisheye distortion shows a bit more as you’re turning or straightening things out. If you don’t like the fisheye effect and want more image stabilization, consider a different model, whether one by Ruko or another manufacturer.

Batteries take a few hours to charge, and there are specs listed as to what kind of power adapter you should use. Basically, a phone charger will do fine and you want to make sure it’s about 1-3A. This model comes with a nice little carrying case that can house the drone, one battery, the remote, and the documentation that comes with it. It is recommended to keep the battery disconnected from the drone when you are not using it.

The drone software comes with additional features I have not yet had the chance to explore, such as a ‘follow you’ function, the ability to circle an object for a 360 view of it, and a point-to-point ability you can ‘draw’ on a map of the place you’re in. These are not important features for me, but they are there for those who want to make use of them. The app will also provide you with a flight record and keep what you recorded, but you can use the micro-SD card to transfer higher-quality videos to your computer later.

I think as a first-time user of a drone, this was a good entry point for me. I’ve found actually flying it to be easy to pick up as a beginner, and with more experience I will get more steady with it. Do be sure to download an app like ‘B4UFLY’ to check for any restrictions in the area you live in or go to. I live close enough to a small airport that there are height limitations to be aware of, for example. It has some good features and options for a ~$300 price point, and while you might not get everything you want in a drone for that price, this one gives you a good amount of stuff to try if you want to go beyond just flying it around.

Bought drone for my boyfriend. He really loved it. We tried other drones and none really kept his intrest like this one. He’s not into tech really so finding a drone that he liked and was easy to set up and fly was difficult. This drone caught him. Unfortunatly one evening while flying a gust of wind caught it as it was returning home due to low battery and it ended up somewhere in a back field. The last know GPS feature is great so we went to where it said it was last known to be but unfortunately it wasn’t there. We had tonwait till daylight the next day to look for it. It was near a school so we suspect a kid found it and took it. Ingot in touch with customer service and they were happy to replace the drone(just the drone) for free. I couldn’t believe it. I was expecting the run around or a too bad but you can buy another one discounted…something like that. We were both in shock and I just have to show my appreciation by leaving this review. Good customer service is hard to come by but I’m sure glad we found it here since drones aren’t cheap and easy to lose. Thank you Ruko.

I’ve owned five drones and I’m extremely impressed by this drone over all the others.

The pictures I’ve attached are taking off at maybe 30m, view looking straight down from about 100m high during daylight, and skyline at night at about 120m (max height allowable by FAA). Do note it was pretty windy up at 120m the night I took that picture. These are just the ones that were sent to my phone; pictures saved to the SD card are of higher quality.

Pros: Outstanding power – this drone can fight, and win, against light and moderate wind! The app even tells you when the wind conditions are getting dangerous for flight! Well done.
Folding profile and carrying case is extremely well done – over and beyond convenient. Folding arms snap into place, so they aren’t going to jostle out of alignment during flight. Case is soft yet protective; no trouble fitting it in a backpack and hiking along with it.
ABS plastic + reinforced aluminum frame means this thing is durable and built to last.
Using the 5GHz wireless signal and my phone I’ve gotten steady real time video transmission from over 300m away and 120m high, consistently, without losing connection. That’s impressive at this price point!
Return to home/GPS is ALWAYS spot on; you can count on this drone coming back exactly to you! Major plus.
This really does fly for up to 30 minutes as advertised. This will of course depend on wind, speed setting, and how aggressively you’re flying it though, so your flight time will be influenced by your conditions and flight pattern.
Extremely responsive controls, and steady enough flight to get quality pictures and video. Three speed modes; I like to put it on the lowest speed setting once it gets close to the ground for landing, or when I’m steadying it to take a picture relatively close up. Putting it on max speed and racing it around is a blast too.
This drone uses 5GHz band to connect with your phone wirelessly. This is good; better video quality and better signal transmission means you can communicate with it from further distances without being crowded by numerous 2.4GHz signals usually in any given area these days. You want this over 2.4GHz for a wireless connection to your phone. (Of course the pictures and video are saved to the SD card, but for maintaining a good real time image and connectivity you want the 5GHz channel.)
I really can’t recommend this enough; skip the toys and get this – it’s worth every dollar of the price!

Cons:
I have to nit-pick here, and there’s not much to dislike. These are very minor points I include to make this review fair and unbiased.
It is loud; not at all hearing unsafe or offensive, but it is noticeable compared to a toy-grade drone. Any drone with this much power (read: not strictly a toy) is going to make some noise. It is not offensive though; you won’t bother the neighbors.
The camera has a slight fish-eye effect when you’re trying to look straight ahead. You can see that in the first picture I posted and the nighttime picture. Do note the camera is in-flight adjustable, so you can go from straight ahead to straight down, and all points in between, on the fly. So big plus for that. I can’t knock the camera too much because it doesn’t have a stabilizing gimble. That’s a necessary trade to fit the profile. Plus if you’re watching the ground at an angle the fish-eye effect goes away.
It can be just a bit slow to get a GPS lock. Don’t be put off though; it’s not difficult to obtain one, it just takes a couple extra seconds. It never loses the GPS signal once it’s got it. (So you can hold it up high to get a signal quicker, then set it down for takeoff.)
You do have to register it with the FAA (it just barely meets their weight requirement for registration). Don’t be put off: this process takes less than 5 minutes on their website, and there’s zero waiting on paperwork. Just fill out the form and you’re ready to fly immediately (register as a modeler/recreational flyer and you’re good to go with no hassle).

Tips:
Disconnect your phone from any wireless networks it is auto-joining. This will ensure you maintain a video feed to your phone as you fly greater distances away.
Android users: when you connect to this wireless signal, you have to tell Android OS to keep connected even though there is no internet connectivity. This is a quirk of the Android OS, not the drone. Be sure to do this the first time you connect to the drone and you’ll be fine.
To get a GPS signal quickly, calibrate the compass and the gyroscope as per the included instructions then hold the drone up off the ground while it searches for a GPS signal. You’ll get the necessary 3 bars of signal much faster than sitting flat on the ground. (Also note – to unlock the motor to take off you must have 3 bars of GPS signal! If your drone motor is not unlocking for take off, this is why. Do not fly without GPS mode! You’ll be thankful when your drone is auto-returning to the takeoff location from who knows where you’ve flown it – trust me!) Then just set it back down, unlock the motor, and take off.
On the geo-fencing feature, set the auto-return minimum height high enough to clear any trees in your immediate area. That way, when auto-returning, it will climb safely over the height of any trees between the initial location and the drone’s current position. This will avoid crashing into anything on its automated return path.

Overall verdict: this has all of the features of more expensive, professional grade, drones at (if you catch it on sale as I did) an entry level/toy price point. Buy this. Grab an extra battery – you’ll need it to feed your addiction! I can’t imagine how fun this will be using VR glasses in first person view.