Potensic Atom SE review

Drones are always enhancing, with annually’s choices offering extra superior options and performance. The best drones obtainable are, in lots of circumstances, unbelievable by way of options and picture high quality. However as extra superior fashions enhance, cheaper choices inevitably observe go well with, the record of best beginner drones is rising. 

The Potensic Atom SE is the most recent flagship mannequin from the Chinese language drone firm that was based in 2014. And the place earlier flagship fashions have adopted design cues from DJI’s Phantom vary for what you would possibly name a standard drone, the Atom SE is extremely small and light-weight with a folding design that appears just like the DJI Mavic Mini 2.

Extremely moveable sub 250g drones are extremely standard and an affordable newbie mannequin such because the Atom SE undoubtedly fills a niche available in the market. The Customary package prices $250 (opens in new tab) / £279 (opens in new tab) whereas the Fly Extra Bundle with a shoulder bag and extra battery prices $300 (opens in new tab) / £329 (opens in new tab), so getting began with drone images and video utilizing a small and light-weight mannequin doesn’t have to interrupt the financial institution.

The drone is well-built and presents a variety of fundamental options that may maintain many freshmen completely satisfied. There’s no collision avoidance which is to be anticipated on the worth, and digicam management is restricted for each images and video. However for the previous, not like many competitor fashions at this worth, you’ll be able to shoot in each JPEG and Uncooked so there’s way more scope for modifying images. So, let’s take a more in-depth have a look at what the Potensic Atom SE has to supply…

Potensic Atom SE assessment: Design

• Small folding design 
• Weighs simply 8.64oz / 245g
• Distinctive controller design

The Potensic Atom SE incorporates a folding design the place the entrance and rear propeller arms fold out for flight, making it extraordinarily small for transportation. Folded, the drone is simply 88x143x58mm with unfolded dimensions of 210x152x58 excluding propellers. The load is available in at 8.64oz / 245g together with a battery and a microSD card. This places the drone within the regulator-friendly sub 250g class the place it may be flown nearer to built-up areas and folks than bigger and heavier drones, however verify native rules to make certain of what you’ll be able to and may’t do.

Total construct high quality is spectacular contemplating the price of the Atom SE. And the sunshine gray airframe and general design resemble the DJI Mavic Mini 2. The 103g 2500mAh batteries are marketed to offer a flight time of as much as 31 minutes, which when examined in near 0°C temperatures supplied flight occasions round a good 20 minutes with a combination of hovering, flight and video seize.

The controller is comfy to make use of and incorporates a distinctive design that helps to maintain it pretty small when not in use. The antennas fold out from the central space between two handgrips and it’s right here the place the smartphone is held to entry settings and management the digicam. 

The 2 handgrips lengthen outwards to carry telephones of varied sizes, and there’s a cavity to accommodate the tip of the cable that connects the controller to the smartphone. The management sticks are screwed onto the controller gimbals, and when not in use they are often stowed away neatly on the backside of the controller.

Potensic Atom SE assessment: Performance

• Three flight modes can be found
• GPS positioning
• Fundamental automated flight patterns

Being an affordable newbie mannequin, the Atom SE’s options are restricted in comparison with costlier fashions, however that’s no shock. GPS positioning to carry the drone in place when hovering is supplied by each GPS and Glonass satellites. Plus, this supplies a map location for the drone within the PotensicPro app throughout flight making it simpler to return to dwelling manually or by utilizing the drone’s Return to Dwelling function.

Flight modes embody Video, Regular and Sport which offer completely different speeds for flying and taking pictures video in several conditions. And with a prime pace of 35mph in Sport mode that may be reached in 2.8 seconds in keeping with Potensic, it’s definitely a quick drone that belies its small measurement. The flight controls, nonetheless, are a bit of too delicate which makes the Atom SE fairly frisky, regardless of flying nicely general. This will make composing images tough so hopefully, this sensitivity could be diminished in a future firmware replace.

By way of security options, there’s no collision avoidance so you need to take care when flying near obstacles. However regardless of no collision avoidance, there are automated flight modes together with Observe Me, Circle Flight and Factors of Curiosity with the latter permitting you to plot a flight path for the drone to observe mechanically. 

All modes work, however they’re definitely not as subtle as these supplied by costlier drone fashions. Different security options embody downward imaginative and prescient sensors and a ToF sensor for indoor flight and conditions when the GPS sign is weak or absent, though flying in ATTI mode (no GPS) isn’t advisable for freshmen as a result of the drone can drift within the wind.

Potensic Atom SE assessment: Efficiency

• 12MP Sony CMOS sensor 
• No 3-axis mechanical gimbal
• Video as much as 4K and Uncooked images

The digicam on the Atom SE makes use of a 1/3in 12MP Sony CMOS sensor whereas the lens supplies a 118° subject of view. The digicam is dampened, however with no 3-axis mechanical gimbal, picture stabilization is digital and supplied in-camera to keep away from shake in movies. Which means that the digicam is locked in place so video is captured FPV-style the place drone actions are captured quite than being stabilized by a gimbal. 

One draw back to the locked digicam is that when the digicam is rolling to take care of place in wind, the horizon could be captured at an angle quite than being stage. The digicam does supply some actions and could be tilted vertically between +20° to -90° so it could lookup barely, though it could’t fairly look straight down regardless of the -90° angle.

Picture high quality is sweet by way of sharpness within the heart of the body, however there’s a fall-off in sharpness in the direction of the sides which is typical of most shopper drones to some extent. ISO noise can also be seen at even low settings inside the ISO 100-6400 vary, and there’s a noticeable vignette in images. Movies don’t undergo from vignetting which is probably going as a consequence of much less of the sensor and lens getting used than when taking pictures images.

Video could be shot in 4K at 30fps, 2.7K at 30fps and 1080p at as much as 60fps with a most bitrate of 40Mbps, which is a excessive stage of compression. Pictures could be captured in each JPEG and Uncooked in a 16:9 ratio quite than in 4:3, however this stays welcome as a result of the flexibility to edit Uncooked information supplies larger scope for making picture changes than JPEGs. 

Digicam performance is restricted general, with solely management of publicity compensation supplied for each images and movies; all different digicam settings are computerized. Management over ISO, white steadiness and shutter pace could be extraordinarily helpful and will hopefully be delivered in a firmware replace since these are software program quite than hardware-based.

Potensic Atom SE assessment: Price

The Atom SE is out there in a Customary package and a Fly Extra Bundle with each together with the drone, controller and a battery. The latter additionally features a helpful shoulder bag to hold the package alongside a further battery for elevated flight occasions. The usual package prices $250 (opens in new tab) / £279 (opens in new tab) whereas the Fly Extra Bundle prices $300 (opens in new tab) / £329 (opens in new tab), and since one battery isn’t sufficient it is smart to go for the Fly Extra Bundle.

Along with the shoulder bag and additional battery, the Fly Extra Bundle features a propeller strap, spare propellers, a screwdriver, spare propeller screws, smartphone cables and a USB-C cable for battery charging. On the time of writing, the Atom SE is out there in america, France, Germany, and the UK.

Must you purchase the Potensic Atom SE?

Should you’re a drone newbie on a finances, the Atom SE may very well be the proper drone for you; you’d battle to discover a equally priced different that’s as well-built and may produce the identical stage of picture high quality because the Atom SE. So, for freshmen, it’s a implausible possibility nicely price contemplating and the Fly Extra Bundle has the whole lot it is advisable get began.

For extra superior {and professional} drone pilots searching for a sub 250g drone, the restricted digicam controls shall be a difficulty and also you wouldn’t be capable to constantly produce skilled high quality video with the drone. Plus, with no 3-axis mechanical gimbal, and solely digital picture stabilization to keep away from shake in video, footage is captured FPV-style quite than easily like drones with a mechanical gimbal.

If this product is not for you

The Potensic Atom SE is undoubtedly among the finest cheap newbie drones obtainable, regardless of just a few shortcomings that might principally be remedied with firmware updates. For the value, you’ll battle to discover a drone mannequin that performs as nicely in flight or can produce equal high quality pictures, so the one method to get a greater drone is to spend extra and there are two principal choices obtainable.

The DJI Mavic Mini 3 Pro and the Autel Evo Nano+ are each sub 250g drones providing larger digicam management than the Atom SE alongside higher picture high quality. What’s extra, each drones additionally supply extra superior flight options together with collision avoidance and Quickshots automated flight patterns. Each the Nano+ and Mini 3 Professional price greater than double the Atom SE, however they’re totally featured fashions that may very well be utilized by professionals and lovers alike.