Yuneec Typhoon H with 4K camera

Yuneec Typhoon H with collision avoidance

When Yuneec reveled its incredibly Typhoon H hexa-copter at CES 2016, everyone was amazed by its capability to avoid obstacles. Contrary, I was more impressed by the capability of Yuneec Typhoon H to land even if one motor fails. Typhoon H’s six-rotor design automatically switches to five rotor mode in case one motor fails allowing to remain in air and have a safely land. I’m curios if this mode is also activated when one ESC fails or one of the propellers is lost in the air. In my opinion, this awesome feature is more important than the obstacle avoidance which was mainly designed to prevent accidents caused by the pilot errors.

Certainly, the “obstacle avoidance” is also important due to the fully autonomous flights. For example, if the aircraft is set to “Follow me” mode or is engaged “Return to Home” and meets an obstacle in front of, this feature will allow the aircraft to change the flight course by itself in order to prevent collision.

Typhoon H comes with an upgraded 16 channel transmitter. The ST16 personal ground station has an integrated 7″ FPV screen which allows to display the camera’s real-time video feed (720P). A HDMI output allows to connect even larger external monitors or FPV goggles.

My only disappointment regarding its predecessor, the Yuneec Q500 4K which I reviewed here on FirstQuadcopter.com, was the short control range. It seems that the manufacturer has managed to almost triple the flight range of this new model.

The 4s 5400 mAh flight battery allows about 25 minutes flight time, which is slightly less than its contender, the DJI Phantom 4, has.

Featuring six different autonomous flight modes, the Typhoon H allows taking amazing aerial footage without worry of permanently control the drone’s position.

• Orbit mode – flies a circular path around you, keeping the camera oriented on you;
• Point of interest – very similar with the above mode, instead of the pilot the aircraft will orbit a subject autonomously;
• Journey mode – in order to take the perfect selfie, the Typhoon H will go up and out, as far as 150ft;
• Curve cable cam – the pilot can set an invisible route for the aircraft to fly along;
• Follow me and Watch me;
• Dynamic return to home – by activating this mode the Typhoon H will return and land within 8 meters of you.

Yu Tian, chief executive officer of Yuneec International said about this new hexa-copter “We’re excited to bring our game-changing Typhoon H to market, opening access to creative possibilities previously only available in expensive professional platforms. Now, anyone can capture incredible aerial footage like never before…It’s our most advanced consumer drone ever, setting a new standard in capability and value, while being ready, easy and safe to fly”. Must admit that compared to other consumer drones, the Typhoon H is a piece of art. I especially love the foldable arms and retractable landing gears, which are usually offered by more expensive model.

As I remember at the time when this Typhoon H was announced at CES, its predicted price was about $1799. Now, B&H and other retailers started to promote on a more friendly price of $1299. Unfortunately, it looks that Yunnec gave up to include for free in the package their SteadyGrip handle which allows to use the CGO3+ as handheld camera.

Yuneec Typhoon H highlights

• Failsafe six motor design;
• Retractable landing skids;
• Space saving foldable arms;
• Easy ‘Twist and Lock’ blade installation;
• Ultrasonic proximity detection;
• No fly zones;
• Automatic and one return to home;
• Multiple flight modes;
• Pont-of-interest (POI) and waypoint navigation;
• 3-axis anti-vibration CGO3+ gimbal with 360º heading;
• Up to 4K@30fps video recording;
• 720p digital video down link.

Yuneec Typhoon H official promo video

Typhoon H hexa-copter specs

• Up to 22 minutes flight autonomy;
• 4s 5400 mAh flight battery;
• Max. climb speed: 5 m/s;
• Max. descent rate: 2.5 m/s;
• Max. flight speed: 10 m/s;
• Video resolution: 4k@30fps and 1080p with up to 120fps;
• Photo resolution: 12MP;
• 7″ FPV display;
• Video transmission range: up to 1.6Km in open field;
• Takeoff weight: 1800g;
• Folded size: 350 x 300 x 245 mm;
• Ready to fly size: 711 x 711 x 294 mm.

Yuneec Typhoon H package includes

• 16Ch transmitter (ST16 personal ground station );
• 5400mAh 4S Li-Po Flight Battery;
• Battery charger with car adapter (Sc4000-4);
• USB data and charging cable;
• Neck strap and sun shade for ST16 transmitter;
• 2 set of propellers (12 pieces);
• 16GB microSD memory with SD Adapter;
• ST16 quick guide;
• Typhon H starter guide.

Image credits to Yuneec Electric Aviation