Holy Stone HS200D

Drones are devices that fascinate all of us. It is like a racing car for the sky, and who doesn’t like to zoom around a remote-controlled vehicle. However, it is the complexity of drone design, their build, and navigation that deters us from the fun and enjoyment of owning one. Drone manufacturers recognize this hesitation and have developed toy grade drone for hobbyists and drone enthusiasts who want to dip their toe in the proverbial drone pool but are reluctant to invest a heft amount into a complex machine which might confuse them and subsequently lose interest. The is one such toy grade drone or quadcopter. It has all the necessary features which make drone flying fun, without the complexities.

In this article, we will be giving you a detailed review of the Holy Stone HS200D.

Our Verdict

The is a great starter drone, whether for kids or adults. Like we said before, it is like a remote-controlled vehicle for the sky. It has many features that make the navigation simple and easy, such as altitude hold, headless mode, etc. It also has a gravity sensor, which will be just like playing a game on your phone when connected to your smartphone. It also has an FPV or first-person view camera to record and view footage in 720p clarity. The comprehensive user manual solves any and every doubt you might have about the Holy Stone HS200D. The only major deterrent we saw was the price. Other than that, it is a great holiday gift for your kids or your inner child.

Design

The basic design of the Holy Stone HS200D has all the things you need from a toy-grade drone or quadcopter. A drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle for those of you who do not know, whereas a quadcopter is a helicopter with four propellers. So quadcopter is a more specific kind of drone. You can also say that all quadcopters are drones, but not all drones are quadcopters.

The Holy Stone HS200D has 4 brush motors with robust propellers and a 2.4 GHz 6 axis gyroscope. The gyroscope maintains the stability of the drone during flight and while performing flips. It has a compact design, which makes it highly responsive. It is fun to use, especially while performing 360-degree flips. The LED lights increase aesthetic and make it easy to spot the drone, especially during low light conditions. However, due to its lightweight, it is not recommended to be used in windy conditions.

It has a one-button engine start and comes with a comprehensive user manual, a quick start manual, additional batteries, propeller guards, and spare landing gear. It requires some assembly and recalibration of the gyroscope before the initial use. But we do not see it as a disadvantage, as it can be a fun way to teach children the basics of how to fly the drone and the importance of different parts.

The Holy Stone HS200D comes with a controller. It has joystick buttons for moving left and right and another joystick for moving forward and backward. There is also a button on the controller for taking photos and videos. The same button functions for taking photographs as well as videos. A single press of the button will activate the camera and take a photograph, whereas long-pressing the button will activate video recording. It has a one-button engine start, which is great. Toy-grade drones usually have a combination of buttons to press, which might be difficult for some users to press simultaneously. It has buttons for increasing and decreasing speed. The Holy Stone HS200D offers 4-speed adjustments for a smoother and more immersive flying experience.

The also comes with a mount on the controller. This mount can be used to connect your smartphone to your controller. This is a neat little feature because since the controller itself does not have a screen to view the live feed, without the mount, you would have to pay attention to the controller as well as a separate smartphone, in addition to your drone, which can be too much to do. Mounting it on the controller eliminates the need to multitask. Mounting the smartphone also has two other great advantages. The first one is that WiFi enables the mobile application.

Using the mobile application, you can view the live feed of the FPV camera on the Holy Stone HS200D and take photographs and videos. Not only that, but you can also activate or deactivate altitude hold, headless mode, one step return home, etc. the photos and videos you take can be directly saved into your smartphone via the mobile application, or it can be saved in the SD memory card in the drone, or both. Another neat thing is the gravity sensor. Turning on the gravity sensor on the mobile application turns your smartphone into the controller. So you can control the flight, speed, and angle of the drone, or complete navigation, by tilting the phone, as you would on a racing game on your smartphone.

Flight

The Holy Stone HS200D is a great drone for novice flyers with little or no experience. It has altitude control, headless mode, and one key return home function. For beginners who are not aware of these terms, altitude hold is a function that enables the Holy Stone HS200D to maintain altitude unless prompted by the user. This means that once the engine is turned on and the drone is in flight if you do not give any signal to move in any direction, the drone will continue to hover in the air in the same position. This increases the ease of control, which is important for beginners. Now, the headless mode takes care of direction and orientation. How it does is that regardless of the direction the drone is facing, if you press left or right on the controller, it will turn directions based on your sense of direction.

This means that if you press left on the controller, regardless of where the drone is facing or upside down, it will turn left to your sense of right. While some drone enthusiasts think this is not a great feature as you do not learn controlling and navigation but rely more on the drone, we think it is a great feature for beginners. It reduces the responsibility of the user. Besides, once you are confident, you can always turn off the headless mode. Coming to one key return home. If the Holy Stone HS200D goes out of range or loses the controller’s transmission signal, you don’t have to worry about losing the drone. It has a one key return button. Upon pressing that, the drone will come back to its original position by retracing its flight path. This means that you don’t have to ever worry about losing your Holy Stone HS200D.

The gyroscope and 4 gear-driven brush motor propellers provide ease of operation and stability, allowing the Holy Stone HS200D to perform 360-degree flips, which can be a great attraction for kids and adults. It also has 4-speed adjustments, and being lightweight; it is highly responsive. However, it is not recommended to be used in windy conditions, as a strong wind can push the drone, causing it to collide against an obstruction and damage itself. Also, being a toy grade drone, the Holy Stone HS200D does not have a sensor to detect any obstruction. Hence, it is the user’s responsibility to take care and not cause damage to the device.

Camera Quality

The   has a 2-megapixel first-person view or FPV camera. What FPV means is that you will be able to view the footage from the drone’s point of view. It can take photos and videos in 1280*720P. The camera is Wi-Fi enabled, and the footage can be viewed on your smartphone using a mobile application. It has a video transmission range is about 50 meters. Beyond that, you might experience a lag in the feed, causing navigation issues through the FPV camera.

Build Quality

The has 4 brush motors with robust propellers and a 2.4 GHz 6 axis gyroscope. The gyroscope maintains the stability of the drone during flight and while performing flips. It has a compact design, which makes it highly responsive.  However, due to its lightweight, it is not recommended to be used in windy conditions. It has a one-button engine start and comes with a comprehensive user manual, a quick start manual, additional batteries, propeller guards, and spare landing gear. It requires some assembly and recalibration of the gyroscope before the initial use. The Holy Stone HS200D comes with a controller. It has joystick buttons for moving left and right and another joystick for moving forward and backward. There is also a button on the controller for taking photos and videos. The Holy Stone HS200D also comes with a mount on the controller. This mount can be used to connect your smartphone to your controller.

It has dimensions of 12.6 x 12.6 x 3.15 inches and weighs a little over 2 pounds. The neat thing about it being lightweight is that it does not have to be registered with FAA or Federal Aerial Administration if you are from the USA. It comes with a semi proprietary battery pack and has a flight time of about 10 minutes. The transmission operation range is about 100 meters, and the video transmission range is about 50 meters. Beyond that, you might experience a lag in the feed, causing navigation issues through the FPV camera.

Battery

The Holy Stone HS200D comes with a 3.7-volt rechargeable Lithium-ion battery with 1000mAh capacity in the form of a semi proprietary battery pack. This gives the drone a flight time of about 10 minutes. The charging time for the battery is about an hour. Given that it is a toy grade drone, the battery capacity and the charging time is better than its competition. The battery can be recharged via a USB cord, which comes in the box. Connect the USB cord to either a computer or a wall adaptor with 0.5 volts and 0.5 to 1-ampere capacity. We observed a disadvantage that the battery pack’s chagrin port is not on the battery pack itself but the drone. So to recharge the battery, you have to charge the drone. In other models of Holy Stone, the battery pack’s charging port is provided on the battery pack itself, so you can charge the battery by disengaging it from the drone and using the drone using the spare set of batteries.

Storage

The does not have its storage but has an SD memory card slot. You can insert an SD memory card into the drone and capture videos and photos using either the controller or your smartphone via the mobile application. The footage and images can also be directly stored on your smartphone using the mobile application.

It is recommended to format the SD memory card before using it as it can interfere with the drone’s working if a blank SD memory card is not used.

Pros And Cons

Final Thoughts

Aside from the price, the is a great toy grade drone. It has a camera which will take video and photos. It can be connected to your smartphone and mounted on the controller to unlock even more features through the mobile application, such as altitude hold, gravity sensor. It has an SD memory card slot to store the files or be stored directly into the smartphone. The flight time could have been higher, but given that it is a toy grade drone, a flight time of eight to ten minutes is a standard time frame for most drones. It has a higher battery capacity, which increases flight time and allows users to use various features. Being lightweight, it is quick to respond, but it becomes difficult to fly it in windy weather conditions. With the 360 degree flips, it is a fun and interactive toy for anyone above the age of eight.

The spare accessories it provides works wonders, as you do not have to keep purchasing them. However, the best feature we thought was the gravity sensor, which turns your smartphone into the controller, so you can fly the Holy Stone HS200D as though playing a game on your smartphone. In case of any doubts, the comprehensive user manual and the quick start manual is always there to solve them. If nothing else, the Holy Stone after-sale service comes highly recommended.

We strongly advise readers to use the Holy Stone HS200D only for its intended use. We do not recommend the drone for any illicit surveillance, illegal photography or videography, or any other related activities. It is recommended to keep a ten-minute break between flight times to prolong the life and durability of the Holy Stone HS200D.