AirDog

AirDog’s AirDog Quad-Copter is a small, foldable drone designed for aerial video and photo enthusiasts who use GoPro cameras. Ready to go from the box, the AirDog follows you no matter where you go. Rain, waves, sub-zero temperatures, and more extremes are no match for the AirDog. With a wind resistance up to 28 knots, operational ceiling of 9800 feet above sea level, impact and weather resistant design, this is a hardy drone for those looking to capture in more extreme situations.

The AirDog offers a easy to use, precise, waterproof system called AirLeash in order to track your position and follow you from up to 1000 feet away. Easy to use, the AirLeash allows anyone to learn how to operate it and have their AirDog ready for flight in no time. The AirLeash tracking unit is a small, waterproof computerized tracker with software and sensors inside that indicate the exact trajectory of movements. This allows the drone to perform in-flight calculations to correct its flying pattern and point the camera to the user wearing the AirLeash tracker.

The iOS and Android AirDog app allows you to set your AirDog to do what you want it to do easily. There are six basic modes which a user can choose from. In the auto-follow mode, the quad-copter will follow the user while maintaining the position and altitude that the user has set. Relative-position mode will ensure that the drone keeps its position in relation to compass direction from the user and follow-track mode allows the user to run through a certain track and have the drone then repeatedly follow it. Additional camera angles and controls can be set in the follow track mode. Hover and aim mode has the AirDog maintain position while tracking the user with the camera. Circle mode allows for users to set an area and radius that the drone will circle and capture. Look-down mode simply keeps the AirDog over one position with the camera pointing directly down.

Takeoff and landing are completely autonomous with the AirDog, allowing users to just set it up and allow it to go on its own, while getting on with their adventures with little hassle. The drone will either land at the end of your predetermined course or return to the set home base when the battery starts to run too low. The AirLeash contains an alarm that alerts users to when the AirDog’s battery is too low to continue flight. Flight time is estimated to be between 10 and 20 minutes, depending on flight speed used, and the drone can go up to 40 MPH. The AirDog itself weighs 3.08 pounds without the battery, and 3.98 pounds with the battery installed.

Users can also use any TV module that supports PPM mode and has more than 6 channels to fly the AirDog completely manual. The auto-follow feature of the AirDog can be used in conjunction with a manual controller and experience using the drone as you would with a standard radio control drone. The auto-follow tracker can thus be enhanced with RC maneuvers to make circular fly-around moves with a more precise radius and speed than ever before.

The current pre-order price for the AirDog, set to be delivered in quarter 2 of 2015, is $1,295. The kit comes with the one AirDog drone, one AirLeash, iOS or Android App, Gyro Stabilized Gimbal, 1 LiPoly Battery Pack, Charger and Cable, and operation manual. Sadly, the unit only works with GoPro cameras, which are of course sold separately. The AirDog has set out to be a loyal companion for action photography and video for GoPro users and proves to be exactly that. For this reason and more, we have included the AirDog on our lift of iReviews 2015 best drones.

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