Cheerson CX-10C: A tiny drone with onboard camera

Ten years ago, playing with such a small multi-rotor like this Cheerson CX-10C seemed unimaginable. Now, we can purchase nano and micro quadcopters for $10-$20. These small remote-controlled toys became popular quickly because they are extremely affordable, portable, and easy to fly.

When I purchased my first nano quadcopter, one of my colleagues asked me “OK, that is so small but does it have at least a camera?“. Now, when I showed him this Cheerson CX-10C with a camera, his question was “Ok, it has a camera, but does it come with a micros SD card?“. He is a very hard guy to satisfy; I wonder if his wife has this complaint, too :D

Yesterday, a friend visited me, and I showed him my drone collection. He was very impressed with all of them, especially when I explained to him what they could do. He was also surprised by their affordability, he said he never thought you could get so many features in one quad-copter for an affordable price. As he had to attend next week to a 14th years boy’s birthday celebration, he asked me if I could help him order one as a gift. Because he’s a good friend of mine, I asked him to accept from me the Cheerson CX-10C that I got for review.

Cheerson CX-10C review with pros and cons

The box of the Cheerson CX-10C is half-transparent, revealing the size of the aircraft, which is only 42x42mm and 22mm high. On the top of the mini quad is a tiny logo that contours two bat wings and a camera lens. On the bottom part of the box are the rest of the accessories: remote controller, 1 set of spare propellers, USB charging cable, and the CX-10C’s user manual.

Unlike its predecessor, the CX-10C is available only in two colors, orange and black. I opted for orange because is more visible and easy to find when it lands in high grass.

The 2.4GHz transmitter with the size of only 9x6cm may be a little small in my hands but all the controls can be easily accessed even by adults. By pushing the left stick like a button, the flight speed can be switched between 3 values according to the operators’ flight skills (low, medium, and high). The speed rate setting is confirmed with 1,2 or 3 beeps. Under the right stick, there are two buttons, one is for taking photos and one to start/stop recording video.

Powered with a tiny 120mAh battery, the CX-10C has around 2-4 minutes of continuous flight time. Unfortunately, the battery is built-in and is not swappable, so you can rest for about 30 minutes while the battery is recharging. Charging the CX-10C’s battery can be performed either through the USB of your laptop or via a USB phone charger.

For the size of a box that matches, this CX-10C is surprisingly powerful. Those little brushed motors whirl at a terrific rate, and it sounds quite aggressive, of course, in a cute way.

With four LED Lights this drone is just perfect for some nighttime fun. 2 red LEDs in the rear and 2 blue LEDs in front will help to determine the exact position of the aircraft even in the dark.

If this is your first time flying a multi-rotor, you will find, thanks to the 6-gyro stabilization, how easy is to control these little toys. Beginners can accommodate the basic flight movements in just a few minutes. I was surprised, too, regarding the flight capabilities of this CX-10 C, it is very stable and easy to hover with just a little trim adjustment.

The camera has only 0.3MP which allows recording videos at 640×480 resolution. The image quality, of course, is not superb but pretty good, given the size and price of the CX-10C.