5.0 out of 5 stars great little drone for learning

A.C. · February 19, 2023

(function() { P.when('cr-A', 'ready').execute(function(A) { if(typeof A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel === 'function') { A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel('review_text_read_more', 'Read more of this review', 'Read less of this review'); } }); })(); .review-text-read-more-expander:focus-visible { outline: 2px solid #2162a1; outline-offset: 2px; border-radius: 5px; } Initial setup connecting to my phone and wifi was a pain, but once you get it synced and started, it works well.Great little drone for learning the controls before moving onto a more expensive one. It's super light weight so any strong wind outside will blow it away, but light calm winds are ok. Once in while the controls do not respond but they are few and far between. You can use their console or your phone as the controller. They also give an extra battery so you can play for at least 30-40 mins which is really good for an inexpensive thing. Charging the batteries do take a while just like with other drones.I haven't used the camera/video as much with the drone but the little that I did, it's not the best quality but it is steady and usable for general surveilance.

4.0 out of 5 stars Perfect drone for travel

K.p. · April 4, 2025

Perfect drone for traveling, perfect size folds up decent maneuverability decent battery for how long it takes to charge. A little fragile. The only problems I had with it was it was very subtle to the wind. A slight gust would blow it away and the folding breaks if you crash it a little bit too hard. But perfect for beginners especially for the price if you’re a new person for drones and you need a camera this is the perfect pick.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great starting drone for first tryers!

S.H. · August 5, 2023

It's a great drone to start off with just because of how affordable it is compared to all the typical other drones out there that cost hundreds. This drone offers all the basic features of any drone and even more. It may not be as versatile, but it provides more than enough features for the price. The camera is great and easily connects to my phone with no interruptions in the process. It's a little tricky to get to learn how to control the drone properly, but with some practice you'll get the jest of it. It keeps a very good altitude, and the battery lasts for long enough for you to get enough fun out of it. It is also able to do a bunch of fun tricks and stunts and you can easily manipulate the way it flies. It is pretty compact and lightweight so you can take it anywhere on your trip for great pictures!

1.0 out of 5 stars Bad quality, never worked

K.T. · February 6, 2025

Bad quality, I went through two, nothing at all worked on either. Wouldn't even turn on after charging it

3.0 out of 5 stars Its okay, the battery runtime less than expected... and only 1 battery included?

W.J. · January 24, 2023

Got this drone for a beginner, and found out it isn't really a beginner'a drone at all. The optical flow sensor, the, arguably, most coveted function of this drone, gets confused quite often, sending the drone drifting all over the living room, especially over a featureless indoor floor. At that point it is no different than your 19 dollar nano drone. Now, when there are features to hold on to, the optical flow sensor works okay... but do not expect DJI rock solid hovering in a single spot... if you want that kind of hovering performance, then you need to get a DJI or something far more expensive. I feel my Sharper Image DX-2, or the X4 feels like a better beginner drone than this (sans the twitchy altitude control on the DX-2), to be perfectly frank.The prop guards are a joke. If you want them to stay then you'll need to use a small ziptie to get them locked, otherwise, at the first minor bump, they will come off, and if you are unlucky, so will be the propeller...The foldability feature is nice, but the drone is quite small, so for indoor use only, there is little to no need to fold it, but its nice. I think they could've made it non foldable and save a few grams for better flight time.Battery runtime: supposedly to be around 10-12 minutes, but it somehow seems to vary wildly from flight to flight.... from 6 to 9 minutes, and most of them are just hovering the drone in the living room, not doing much anything else. I am not sure if its a problem of the drone, or the charger itself, which seems like it takes a random amount of time to recharge the batteries too, which would lead me to believe the charger might not be putting all the juice back in the pack...? which would explain why a couple of flights were only 6 minutes, and others about 10... etc.Only one battery in the package....? really? This might not sound like a big deal, but the problem is they ask 100 dollars for a pair of batteries!! which btw, can only be purchased from the SIMREX site overseas... at least I was unable to find other sources...At that point you are better off buying two more X500 drones and using the batteries, while keeping the other drones as source for spares, or a dark variant and the light one if you like flying different colors...Charging time ranges from 1 hour or so to almost 2 hours, not sure exactly why it would take a different amount of time for a fully discharged battery... with only battery, and a 2 hour recharge window, you won't be flying this drone very much... so plan accordingly.Flight characteristics are nice, the drone feels very responsive, but its not super quick, I feel the DX-2, X4 and other smaller drones I have are far quicker than this guy... even the DJI Mini 2 is a lot quicker (and faster) too. While flying indoors its greatly affected from the air rushing around, that and the optical flow getting confused over featureless floors might result in some unexpected flight behavior. One down for me is that the drone can't be hovered while in ground effect due to the optical flow sensor, which will oscillate up and down, eventually smashing into the ground. The DJI Mini 2 will automatically fly above ground effect while indoors for rock solid hover in a single spot, again, indoors too.... All other drones I own hover in ground effect just fine (but none have optical flow sensor), which extends battery runtime while hovering in ground effect, and its nice for beginners practicing their orientations so they don't have to worry about their collective (up/down)..Doesn't need a phone to fly, which is nice... I don't know the range, and I haven't used the camera so I don't know how well those are, but probably safe to assume its not a DJI Mavic.... so plan accordingly.All in all, its okay, and I am considering returning it, b/c I still think the Mini 2 with the full prop guards is a better drone for a beginner trying to learn orientations while indoors. Most of the other nano drones I own are just a handful to control for the unskilled, and most likely will get trashed in a couple of flights... b/c they won't stay put in a spot hovering, like the DJI Mini 2.So, my unsolicited advice is: Get a used DJI Mini, buy 4 battery packs, put the full propeller cage guards, and learn with that. You will save a lot of aggravation, and potentially injury or property damage if the x500 decides its not at the "right optical flow position" while indoors

5.0 out of 5 stars Good drone for beginners that won’t break the bank.

R.P. · January 1, 2023

The SIMREX X500 Mini Drone is a good drone for beginners. It works surprisingly well, especially at this price point. The drone is recommended for ages 14+, and I would definitely not buy this drone for kids any younger that that, especially with all the fast moving propellers on this. It does take a little skill and a steady hand on the controls to keeps this under control in flight. I have bumped it on the walls a couple times but it still has not broken on me, so that’s a plus. It folds down into a conveniently compact size, so it is very easy to carry around. The camera resolution at 720p is very good at this price point, but don’t expect the picture to be cinema quality like the much more expensive drones. At a distance the camera picture is ok, but up close the picture can get a little unsteady and blurry. This is a light weight drone, so please do not try to fly this when it’s windy out because you will not be able to keep it steady. Overall for the price this is a pretty good beginners drone, but flying it will take a steady hand and little practice.

5.0 out of 5 stars Tiny, but Powerfull

Y.J.C. · July 2, 2023

First, I wan to start saying this is not for beginners, the drone is very small and affordable ($$), but is VERY powerful, fast and easy to use (read the user manual), it flights very smoothly, we needed to calibrate it so it can do what we want to do with it. We were able to maneuver it while inside our home where the ceiling is not so high, and going from one room to another, meaning that handling is very accurate.I can recommend it, as long as you read the manual on how to use it, it is VERY good.