Propel Star Wars Battle Drones review

If you grew up watching Star Wars — and let’s face it, if you’re 50-years-old or younger, you almost certainly did — at just one occasion or another you probably fantasized about how calm would be to fly an X-Wing, or a TIE Fighter, or perhaps the Millennium Falcon. These fictional vehicles are so ingrained in our collective Western culture , it’s no wonder they’ve been delivered to life again (and again) as models, action figures, video games, and LEGO. Oh the LEGO!

But none of those incarnations have managed to mix an authentic appearance with the power to truly fly. Spin Master came closest, but Propel’s new Star Wars Battle Drones have set the bar so high, it's going to be years before somebody else even tries. The question is, did they are doing enough to please both Star Wars fans and drone enthusiasts, or are these just another set of mediocre Star Wars products? Read our Propel Star Wars Battle Drones review to seek out out if these are the drones you’re trying to find .

Down is up

Propel’s high-flying lineup consists of three Star Wars Battle Drones, which sell for $179 each. Buyers can choose between the Star Wars 74-Z Speeder Bike, the Star Wars TIE Advanced X1, and therefore the Star Wars T-65 X-Wing Starfighter. Originally there was alleged to be a Millennium Falcon too, but currently it’s on hold (apparently it’s a temperamental ship in real world also because the movies).

The drones themselves are tiny, featherweight models that are controlled via an included 2.4Ghz remote . This remote also pairs together with your smartphone over Bluetooth, supplying you with control via the free Propel Star Wars Battle Drones app (iOS/Android), which runs both training simulations and live battle tracking. you'll fly them indoors or outdoors — at accelerates to 35 MPH, consistent with Propel — up to many hundred feet away, and that they pack both infrared and visual light emitters and receivers, to be used when battling.

But what’s special about these drones is that they’re inverted. Their props face down, not up, which suggests they’re pushed into the air instead of pulled. We don’t know if there’s any control or flight advantages to the present layout, but we will say this: It’s the right system for preserving the design of those iconic Star Wars vehicles.

With no propellers visible above, and only a small set of transparent props below, it’s tons easier to take care of the fantasy that you’re controlling a true Star Wars ship, rather than a Star Wars model that somebody has wrapped round the frame of a quadcopter. Plus, bumping one among these drones into the ceiling isn’t a drag — they're going to happily keep pushing thereon barrier until you bring them backtrack or the battery dies.

Be warned though: those transparent props look great until you’re trying to seek out one that came off after a crash… Good thing Propel not only includes six replacements of every prop type, but also offers free replacement parts for the primary year.

Sweating the tiny stuff

The other standout aspect to those drones is that the incredible attention to detail that Propel has achieved. Our two review units, a TIE Advanced X1, and a T-65 X-Wing Starfighter, appear as if perfect miniature versions of the movie machines. the size of their features, the matte finish of the paint, the small patterns and details worked into the plastic… it’s hard to believe this stuff also can fly, and may interact with one another .

The inverted design is ideal for preserving the design of those iconic Star Wars vehicles

Most RC vehicles, no matter size or budget, use a typical rechargeable battery, but Propel has customized the batteries for these vehicles by wrapping them in cases that become a part of the vehicle’s body when inserted. This approach eliminates separate battery compartments and covers, and helps to take care of each vehicle’s proportions. The downside is that the batteries and chargers are unique to every model — you won’t be ready to use the X-Wing’s battery on the TIE Fighter or the other way around .

Our one criticism is that the X-Wing’s forward motors and struts are painted to match the fuselage, which changes the long-lasting lines of the famously dart-shaped ship. we expect these parts should are painted a special color — perhaps a dark grey — to take care of the design of the X-Wing. Fans who agree could probably take matters into their own hands with the judicious application of model paint, while being careful to not touch the motors.

Propel’s commitment to detail goes way beyond the particular drones. For Star Wars fans, the whole experience of unboxing and using these drones may be a feast for the senses. Each drone is boxed in what can only be described as collector’s grade material.

The outer box may be a smooth black surface with color prints for every vehicle and therefore the obligatory Star Wars branding, but it only exists to guard the inner box: a silver-finished enclosure with a plastic relief rendering of the ship contained inside, and sealed on two sides with either Imperial or Rebellion plastic insignia. this type of box is generally reserved for thousand-dollar wristwatches, not toys. Sadly, If you would like to ever use the products within, you’ll need to damage this gorgeous packaging — the plastic insignias are glued to both the highest and bottom box shells.

We normally wouldn’t discuss a product’s packaging, but during this case, it’s just too outstanding to gloss over.

Sound and lightweight 

Once you’ve made the heart-wrenching decision to open the box, you'll want to darken the space a touch and confirm there’s no music or TV on within the background. That’s because removing the highest shell of the box will reveal the Star Wars model, sitting astride an angled display platform that automatically lights up and begins to play Star Wars-themed music and sound effects from its tiny built-in speaker.


We feel a touch bad including this information as it’s a complete spoiler, but we were just blown away by the experience, and it caught us totally off guard. Of course, you'll always shut the box, and wait a moment — doing so will reset the sensor and trigger a replacement sound and lightweight show once you lift it again. It’s an impact that never gets old (that little speaker does a powerful job!) so it’s an honest thing that you simply can recharge the display’s battery using an equivalent charger that’s provided for the drone’s batteries.

THX for the audio

Propel hasn’t just used Star Wars audio tracks for its display cases, it’s also embedded them into the drone’s remote . Flip the controller the wrong way up and you’ll see alittle speaker grille, and a typical headphone jack. Whether flying these drones solo, or during a dogfight, you'll surround yourself with Star Wars music, sound effects, and voices, either aloud or simply for you to listen to . It’s another surprisingly delightful detail that pushes the experience into that of an immersive computer game , not just flying a drone.

Speaking of the controllers, they’re each themed to match their vehicle, complete with Imperial or Rebel insignias that also function power buttons. They’ve got rumble packs, which activate on start-up and pack up — also as when your ship gets “hit” during battle — while the four shoulder buttons further blur the road between flying a drone and playing a computer game .

Admittedly, we were a touch concerned that Propel may need perform on the components for the remotes to stay costs down, but were pleasantly surprised to get that the sticks feel solid, with just the proper amount of spring tension, providing good feel and smooth transitions between directions. They’ve got some serious heft too, therefore the decision to incorporate a lanyard loop may be a thoughtful touch, as is that the hidden screwdriver which does double duty — letting you access the battery compartment of the controller, and swap out components on the vehicles. Our only concern — and it’s alittle one — is that the extendable phone holder feels a touch fragile, so just confirm you don’t catch on caught on anything.

Smart simulation

As of the publication of this review, Propel hasn’t released one YouTube tutorial video on the way to fly or battle these drones, which we expect may be a huge missed opportunity. But perhaps the corporate assumed new pilots wouldn’t need them because the app contains a training section. We could certainly be persuaded. It’s an outstanding little bit of programming, which allows you to use the remote to regulate an identical virtual drone on-screen and work your high the ranks as you gain experience and mastery over the control scheme.

The virtual drone responds to your commands instantly, because of the Bluetooth connection, making us wish we could use Propel controller for other apps too. The app even maintains a forced perspective, with the virtual drone flying faraway from you, becoming smaller because the distance increases, even as it might in real-life. It are often a touch tough to guage these virtual distances (hey Propel, how about Daydream compatible version?) but this just means if you'll handle the sim, you’ll be far better in real world .

Finicky flight

The one thing the simulation doesn’t get right is that the drone’s tendency to drift and alter its altitude on its own. When it comes right down to actually flying these drones, you’re finally reminded that these are still toys in any case . with none GPS, or visual positioning, or maybe ultrasonic sensors like Parrot uses on its bottom-of-the-line AR.Drone, these Star Wars drones behave unpredictably once airborne, requiring almost constant input on the sticks to stay them during a stable hover.

The remote has both calibration and trim functions, but we found these only corrected for enormous problems with flight stability, rather than offering an honest , clean hover. it'll likely take novices dozens of flights to feel a real sense of control, so expect to crash often. The included prop guard will help, but we still managed to interrupt it. Thankfully, the drones themselves are way tougher than their hand-painted shells look.

Is it a deal breaker? Hardly. With no onboard cameras, perfectly stable flight isn’t needed, and when it involves dogfighting, it’s downright irrelevant — you won’t be stopping to admire the scenery. Propel’s solution to the difficulty of flight stability is to supply three flight modes, plus a training mode, each of which places different restrictions on vehicle speed, altitude, and stick sensitivity.

In training mode, rookie pilots can get comfortable with the controls and are less likely to careen their ship into a wall accidentally, while the foremost advanced mode enables an exciting degree of speed and maneuverability. We found that when pushed to its limits during this mode, the aircraft couldn’t deal with massive and sudden changes in direction, often tumbling out of the air as its gyros did not catch up on the acute moves.

Rather than annoying, we expect this just adds to the realism of dogfighting, because it requires the pilot to know what their ship can and can’t do, and forces them to regulate their flying accordingly — even as any real pilot would need to do.

Still, regardless of how you shake it, the very fact of the matter is that these drones aren’t simple to fly. you'll absolutely fly the Star Wars Battle Drones indoors in small rooms if you would like — the included safety cage may be a must for these flights — but you’ll only get the complete experience of flying these ships outdoors (on a really calm day) or during a large indoor space, sort of a gymnasium. Propel recommends a minimum 100-foot radius for flight, but bigger is certainly better.

Big-time battles

Propel’s technology adapts to up to 12 Battle Drones within the same flight space, by finding available frequencies automatically as each drone/controller combo is turned on. We only had the chance to check two drones directly , but this was enough to ascertain how larger battles would work. you'll choose from two weapon types — infrared or a clear , laser light. Which one you employ depends on where you’re battling.

In larger, outdoor area, the laser is preferable, since it’s less likely to be suffering from ambient light, but it requires greater precision. Indoors, infrared works well, but in smaller spaces it could bounce off walls and reflective surfaces like windows, mirrors, or maybe TV screens. to urge the complete Star Wars effect, stir up a fog machine in your space, and you’ll actually see the laser lights.

Whichever you weapon you select , battling may be a ton of fun. The app tracks what percentage times each pilot scores hits (or takes hits from opponents) and declares a winner at the top of every round. you'll choose how long each round will last, but you'll only suffer three hits before you’re grounded for the remainder of the round. Getting hit leads to a rumble from your controller, a loss of control and wobble of your ship, sometimes causing a emergency landing if your altitude is just too low.

Experienced pilots will have an enormous edge, because it are often challenging enough to urge these drones to fly within the intended direction, nevermind having them correctly oriented toward an opponent while trying to fireside at them. We were worried once we acknowledged that the batteries are only good for about eight minutes of flight time, which isn’t tons when you’re learning.

But once you’re engaged within the heat of battle, it can desire an eternity — you would possibly even be thankful they don’t last longer. You get two batteries with each drone, and charging fully takes about 45 minutes. there's an 80 percent indicator on the charger, for those that simply can’t wait.

We experienced a couple of frustrating moments when, even after we completed the pre-battle set-up sequence, our ships did not begin , forcing us to shut everything off and check out again. Eventually it worked, but like everything else when it involves flying these drones, patience may be a requirement.

Warranty information

Propel will issue full refunds on unopened products within 30 days, and also offers a 90-day warranty against defects, but that doesn’t include parts that break from crashing. For the primary year after purchase, the corporate will provide free replacement propeller guards, propellers, landing gears, rotor shafts, and canopies.

Verdict

Propel’s Star Wars Battle Drones aren’t just toys; they’re miniature works of art, presented in packaging that might please even the foremost particular collector. the mixture of attention to detail, design, use of sound effects and music provides a unparalleled real-life computer game environment that we doubt are often had elsewhere, at any price.

You may find more detailed Star Wars models, and you'll find drones that are more versatile and more satisfying to fly, but you won’t find these two attributes in one product anywhere. once you add the power to battle other drones, Propel’s Star Wars Battle Drones are during a class by themselves. If you’re a Star Wars enthusiast, they’re a must have .