EXO Blackhawk 2 Pro - A True DJI Competitor?
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- čas přidán 11. 06. 2022
- EXO Drones has been investing in advertising and marketing lately, but are their drones legitimate camera drones for serious aerial photographers? In this video we take an in-depth look at the Blackhawk 2 Pro from EXO Drones. It's a small, foldable drone with some impressive specs. But does it live up to the advertising hype? Check out this video to learn if you can truly get beautiful video and photos from the EXO Blackhawk 2 Pro. And also what compromises you might expect for the lower price tag.
Specs and Pricing for Blackhawk 2 Pro: blackhawk.exodrones.com/
Interview with CEO of EXO Drones: • CEO of EXO Drones & th...
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Kelly Shores is a FAA Part 107 certified drone pilot. He enjoys flying toy drones, camera drones, RC airplanes, and FPV quads. When he's not flying drones, Kelly enjoys photography, biking, travel and hanging out with his family! - Věda a technologie
A very thorough, unbiased review. You put a lot of thought and work into this and it shows. 👍👍
Glad you liked it!
The deal breaker for me is the lack of integrated screen on the remotes on these DJI competitors. Not sure why they don't offer remotes with built in screens, I would gladly pay more for one. Sticking with DJI until these other companies figure it out
Nicely done friend, you have some beautiful scenery there for sure! Thanks for the callout on the EXO interview, it was very enlightening for me as well. Also surprised at the battery pricing, hoping they are just testing the market and will adjust to a fairer price down the road. Nice job with the video, a pleasure to watch... Good Flying! 🤙
Sure thing. I really enjoyed and learned from your interview! Take care!
Great review of the Exo Pro, Kelly. It’s good to see some competition with DJI. Thx for posting.
Thanks for watching!
Great review as always Kelly . Love your honesty brother. It’s definitely great to see other companies innovate a decent drone. Never fly alone 👊🏻
Well said!
hello, you can see a direct comparrison between this and the dji air 2s here czcams.com/video/T0toMEtzCqo/video.html&ab_channel=HubCityDrones%26Gadgets
Great review Kelly ! It look pretty good drone there love the detail on that wow
Great footage!
Thanks for this review. Very helpful. The more I read about Exo (and others) vs DJI, the more I conclude that DJI offers better controller to drone communications than the other brands. By better, I mean hardened against interference to improve distance, stop fly aways, jerky realtime video, and control lag.
Hi, a rose by any other name is still a Hubsan. Rebranding just adds to the base Hubsan price.
Thanks for sharing with us and let’s keep on Droning stay safe Cheers 🍻😎👍🍻✊
Another great review. Intriguing little drone
Nice review Kelly. 👍🏾
Nice..video,.
Thank you for sharing 🤞🙏
Hey thank you for your review on this drone I have been looking into it to purchase!!! I will say as a brand new company it's not a bad drone and yes they got work to do but after watching that interview I believe they're working their way to making a good drone!!! You got some beautiful footage and the did a really good job!!! Even though you didn't like that you can adjust the gimbal yourself to be level I actually liked it!!! To some of them other drone manufacturers that you were talking about some of their prices are just way more than I'm wanting to pay for just as an amateur not a professional!!! And before I close if that was your house I must say you have a gorgeous place!!! That view is spectacular!!! You have a great day thank you for your video!!!
Excellent review Kelly, you were very thorough. I can tell you really took your time and put this drone through all it paces. And for most part it did seem to perform very well, but it did have somes cons that you pointed out. I wish EXO drones well, I hope they can make these rebranded Hubsan drones more viable to the US customer. But they do seem to be a bit overpriced, especially the batteries . I guess it come down to how much are you willing to pay for the peace of mind of good customer service. Thanks for sharing.
Nice review, well done, we just subscribed!
Thanks very much!
Very thorough review. Thank you.
Thanks for watching! Another one coming soon.
Nice review my friend, Thanks.
Thanks, Robert!
Great review,I love my Hubsan ACE se solid little drone amazing.
Great balanced review !
Thanks!
Well done review! I am now interested in the Pro version.
Glad to hear it. Thanks for watching!
No question this is a Hubsan rebadged product. I'm very familiar with that app. The video looked quite good. Great review Kelly!
Thank you Marcus! I've got a package heading your way this week!
Look forward to getting ANOTHER zino mini (pull your hair out) Pro Marcus that looks like it was designed by Georgio Armarni 😂😂😂😂😂
looks like a nice little drone outside of a few issues. It's great to see other drones trying to get on the market.
Thanks Jenna! I was just up in New York - it was great - 75 degrees! It's 105 here in Austin! I hope you are having a good summer!
@@readysetdrone Thank you Kelly and you and the family are enjoying the 'hot' summer and look forward to see you again at the next 'Spinup'.
Thanks for reviewing, DJI customer service was TRASH. Got my magic back with issues which lead to failure. Been waiting for a good review of exo!
What do you mean trash? I crashed my Mini 2 in the water and DJI Gave me a replacement for free
You definitely did a thorough review on it. I wish EXO well.
Time will tell I guess.
Thank you Kelly
I hope so too!
Great review and information was nice. Like your opinions and being honest. Thanks for sharing. God bless 🙏 stay safe hugs ❤️
Thanks for watching, Susan. DJI has certainly set the bar high.
Thank you for the great review. I just received my Blackhawk 2 Pro on Monday. It is my first drone and I knew little to nothing before I got it. So far I have 1 1/2 hours of flight time in. I'm happy with the drone other than the price of the batteries. I ordered it with 1 and then a day after I got it ordered another 2. The obstacle avoidance does not work on this drone. When I try to turn it on I get a message that say OA needs to be calibrated and gives the option to cancel or force open. If I force open I get a continuous beeping and can't fly forward or backward, it goes about a foot and stops. Tech support had me check a couple things and then offered to have me send it in to get calibrated or wait about 2 weeks for a firmware upgrade that will automate OA calibration. I opted to wait. I'm fairly happy with the picture and video quality but it looks to me like your videos are sharper and clearer but that might just be that you are shooting much more interesting scenery.
Thanks for commenting, Steve. Let me know if your obstacle avoidance issue gets resolved after the update.
Having great scenery definitely makes any camera seem better!
It's juat a rebranded Hubsan Ace.
Quick Economical good backup bird. Nice Kelly
Hi Kelly Great video on the EXO Blackhawk pro 2, I guess it's because of I'm not a camera drone flyer that I'm familiar with pricing, but it seems a little high price, but that could be a normal price. I like how most everything works how it's supposed to be doing. Thanks again for the video and information.
Thanks for watching!
Looks like a really great drone I hope some day I will be able to buy one
No more big brother drone to phone connections. Not sure I heard the distance/ranging capabilities. Thanks for doing this writeup.
I've only used it a couple of times now, but as a first time camera Drone flyer, this was easy to set up, register with the FAA, and get it flying. I'm really happy with it. Running the gimbal test/stability check at the begging fixed the being slightly off on the first flight, and it did say to do so, as it probably gets tossed around during shipping quite a bit.
I like EXO Drones. All their drones are built good.
Something to consider: I have the DJI Mavic Air. During the Corvid 19 Pandemic the batteries became very hard to get if you needed to replace them. So, when I needed to replace all three, I couldn't find them. DJI wasn't even producing them. I had a great drone but it was like a brick. Because the batteries are smart batteries you cant just replace the cells. This EXO drone looks like the Mavic Air, sounds like the Mavic Air and would have been a good replacement. However, Now there are a lot of used Mavic Air one's coming out of china with lots of batteries. So for the time being, I'll stick with my Mavic Air 1 but if a time comes that I can no longer find batteries for it, or a way to modify the batteries, I might buy the Blackhawk as a backup.
why not buy a mini 2 or mini 3, or even a mavic air 2
Awesome footage of those house on the water.. where is it? Keep up the great work
Thanks! St. Lawrence River in upstate New York.
Man,,, you got a bad ass home!!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Seems like a greatly great drone. I would love to see a direct comparison with Autel and DJI drones. 👍🏾
I might try that. Thanks!
hello, you can see a direct comparrison between this and the dji air 2s here czcams.com/video/T0toMEtzCqo/video.html&ab_channel=HubCityDrones%26Gadgets
I'm glad to see that Exo is getting better and better...Hubsan has always been a disappointment, so letting Exo run the software on these, might actually make this a competitor in the hobby! Great review Kelly
Totally agree
I completely agree with you on this Matty
You say Hubsan is the cheaper on ; I disagree, as a Ranger Plus Owner, POS STAMPED AFTER 10 Mins of Flying!!! - Customer Care and Yes Battery Pricing is Ridiculous!!!
Hello, does this drone has flying testrictions? bought a DI MINI 2SE and I am returning it because I cant fly it anywere, it is less than 250 g so I thought it will be ok to fly since no registration is needed. Is this one the same? thanks
EXO is Hubsan. They will be successful if they don’t launch products until they are ready for market. ie. work out all the issues and make sure the firmware is right.
PS. The EXO Blackhawk 2 Pro is Hubsan Ace Pro
I believe the firmware is different, so hopefully Exo can prove themselves as being a worthy contender. In the meantime, I'll keep telling it like it is, and give my honest feedback and experience with their drones.
Does the camera accept filters ??
Pro & regular look to have different camera faces; do both or either take filters- if yes, do they fit dji style or a different style
I would like to see a signal strength video. How strong the signal is at a distance. Also there are many potential buyers that are concerned about the price. Very close to the higher end drones like the DJI Air 2s
Enjoyed! Is there another drone company that you consider better than Exo besides DJI and Autel?
Thanks for the thoughts. Having a hard time believing this is priced almost the same as the Nano+. Isn't this an old Hubsan design that was a knock-off of the original Mavic Air? Seems like they are leasing the Chinese Hubsan product, making it black and giving it an aggressive name. The price is way overboard but I guess they have to cover their slick marketing somehow. If this was $500 for the 3-battery combo then maybe...
Thanks. What would you recommend for about the sane price drone
The DJI Mini 2 is a fantastic option. It's reliable, affordable, and the camera is great. There is no obstacle avoidance, so if that's important to you, the higher end Mini 3 Pro or Air 2s might be an upgrade to consider.
Great job. Thank you. Not sure if you did any correction, but the images seem very blue shifted with generally unflattering color despite appearing very sharp. I think I'll wait on this brand.
Everything was set to auto, for this video. Thanks for the comment.
Kelly great review. You nailed it on all aspects. I have had a couple of Hubsan's and they are notorious for "toilet bowling", being overpriced, and inconsistent results. Just a rebranded Hubsan in my opinion.
I hope Exo can prove themselves as being better. We will see.
Mas não é o Mesmo drone Hubsan ACE PRO?
Kelly, does this drone have Geo-fencing? Great review and your honesty is appreciated.
Yes, I believe it does have geofencing. I haven't tested it or compared with DJI. Thanks, John.
It looks like a nice little drone with alot of good features..And the video and pictures
look really nice....But i'm going to stick with my Dji Air 2:)....But GREAT Video!!! Mr Kelly
I appreciate your comment. Thanks for watching.
Great review, beautiful area…where is this?
This is in Upstate NY. Thanks for watching.
can the firmware update fix the shaky from hyperlapse? I was thinking to get one right now
We interviewed the CEO a few days ago, and he mentioned that the hyperlapse can be fixed. I'm hoping they will do that soon!
I have one and having problems with SD cards. when I format in the drone then record video then try to put the video on my iMac and it says this computer can't read it? don't know what to do???
Are you using a USB card reader or another kind of adapter to plug it into your Mac?
You forgot to mention that not so long ago the U.S. Military was paying $5000 apiece for these EXO drones.
So they are well worth it now. D'Oh!
Lmao 🤣
Value appears to be there. Post purchase service is a concern for any semi-premium RTF RC.
I think after watching this, EXO is a better drone buy than Holystone products. But that's about all.
Only 1 problem it’s a Hubsan lol, save your money, same issues gimbal tilt, video is blown out, over saturated, poor app, functions don’t work as intended, you can buy the Mini 3 with the Flymore for not a lot more.
I am interested in this drone, Blackhawk 2 Pro, but concerned about the hovering instability and gimbal tilt that you pointed out. Even the EXO video on their website shows a considerable amount of drift in their time lapse "Stationary" example where the camera appears to drift sideways by several feet at the end of the video. Doesn't seem "rock solid" like some other competing drones. I contacted EXO about this and they assured me that they make continuous updates to their firmware - but can these things be improved via post-purchase software updates or are they hardware limitations (sensors, etc.) of the current design that will not improve beyond what it is?
Would greatly appreciate your thoughts/experience on this! Thank you.
These things can possibly be fixed with firmware, but for the money, a DJI Mini 2 is a better deal and a solid drone.
Thanks for the info. I figure if you are going to pay DJI prices why would you buy a drone that doesn't work as well?
Fair point.
So I was thinking, I know you have shown videos with the DJI Mavic Air and in this video, you have the EXO Blackhawk. So if you still have both, I am wondering if you can do a side by side comparison. I have 3 Mavic Air one drones because though it is enhanced WiFi, it is still one of my favorite drones. I also have the DJI Mavic Air 2 and the Mini 2 as well, but the Mavic Air was my first and most favorite drone. To me, the Balckhawk is a copycat. I think it would be a very interesting video as there are a lot of people who still own the Mavic Air one. However, DJI doesn't make them anymore and replacement batteries can be hard to find. I think the Blackhawk might be a suitable replacement. What do you think?
It is as simple as comparing the Hubsan Zino Mini Pro and the Hubsan Ace Pro with DJI Mini drones... Because basically EXO has rebranded and changed the color of these drones and raised the prices about 30%
... And are actually calling it something "new" ,when in fact...it is not.
But we will see.
To compete with the largest drone Juggernaut on the planet you have to give a better product and a better price it's as simple as that and EXO along with many other companies are not going to be able to do that 🤷🏻♂️
Looks like Dr Jekyll (Hubsan) and Mr Hyde (EXO) kind of product, I doubt that it'll make an impact with that pricing tough
Do you feel that future updates will improve on the cons you identified?
I would hope for improvements via software updates, but I have not seen any yet.
Wow, four years after the launch of the Mavic Air 1, we have another clone that is even close to the original in terms of functionality, but the old Mavic Air 1 still has nothing to be ashamed of 😋
It really does look like the Mavic Air 1!
just released a few days ago and you have been flying it for a few weeks?
I had a prerelease model.
This thing acts and sounds like angry bee. Just like the Mavic Air one. Very interesting.
Dji competitor should come up with their own designes rather then copying Mavic drone.
See the interview with Alien Drone with Exo. It is very enlightening how the design process works.
I love the design of the Quad! But, the prices are bit higher than I expected.
Agreed!
Great video. I am in the market for a drone. I have been disappointed with DJI as I had their gimbals and their support for Android 12+ has been terrible. I am looking for a "beginner" drone that shoots decent video and Exo came up.
Are you using Android and how is their app if you are?
I'm using iPhone. If I were you, I'd check the DJI Mini 2 SE. It takes good 2.7k video and sports Android very well, although you'll need to download the APK file for the DJI fly app directly from DJI's website.
@@readysetdrone Thank you for the recommendation...very much appreciated!
Thank you for the video Kelly. TBH though, It's seems a bit dated in the drone world today 🙂
Very true!
Do you know the biggest phone it will hold? Well it hold a galaxy ultra 22?
I don't know for sure, but I believe your s22 ultra is about the same width as the iPhone I was using here, so I'd say you'd have no issues fitting your phone in.
Exo should take a look at the prices. For Father’s Day, the Autel EVP Nano+ drone Standard bundle is being made available at a sale price of $879, instead of the usual $949. The Premium package, meanwhile, can be picked up at a discounted rate of $999, instead of $1,099. The Premium Bundle comes with two additional flight batteries, a battery charging hub, a propeller holder, two additional propeller pairs, and a shoulder bag.
For sure!
I have the mavic 3 and Autel evo lite plus. Love them. EXO doesn't impress me. Looks cheap. Love your videos. I have been flying for a year.
Great review and interested how it performs. I saw an earlier comment stating that DJI customer service was trash. All I can say is that I'm already very disappointed with EXO. The drone hasn't even arrived to my door and customer service... if you can even call it that only shows that they don't care much about their customer. Long story. If you're just not sure, go with DJI.
Exactly. 👍
Sending mine back. EXO did it to me again. Purchased July 5, 2023 and one of the things they sold me on is the free part 107 course with the purchase. My response from EXO is that promotion expired on July 1, 2023 and is not available. It's not July 18th, and they are still advertising it as a promotion with the purchase of the drone. Just wondering how long they will take to give me my money back?
Definitely price….. I think a lot more people would consider purchasing this drone if it was priced lower‼️. As you said pretty much it’s a drone for the entry level hobbyist. And that’s what the drone basically is as well. … An entry level drone that is slight borderline touching on some of the advanced adoptions. I feel if the drone was more economically wise to purchase they would actually crash that side of the market because it would simply only going against the mini 2.
Agreed!
My recent purchase of the exo mini compared to my DJI SE seemed to be equal Iin comparison in flight..only thing was the exo minis camera needs to be out of direct sunlight view when filming but if directed away it's great coverage.i enjoy my exo mini.
sorry is it OEM made by HUBSAN?
Exo has partnered with Hubsan for the USA market. The firmware is made by Exo, as I understand it.
styling reminds me of the old Mavic Air 1.
I agree!
It seems to me that two or three years ago this drone could have been a contender. While it has some nice features and is competitive in many ways, it doesn't offer anything that other brands don't already feature at a better price point. The question is: After conducting due diligence, why would somebody buy this drone over something else? Excellent marketing is one thing. Having the product to back it up is another. Thanks for the review.
Fair points, Barkley. They have an uphill battle for sure! I'm all for competition, but at the end of the day, I'm going to continue to share my honest experiences, as always. If the price could come down, especially on those batteries, the hyperlapse had more features and stability, and the gimbal was always level, Exo might turn some more heads. I'm sure they will continue to refine the experience over the next several months. I'm hoping DJI can get some real competition besides Autel, who have always come close. Thanks for watching and commenting.
What brands offer these features at a better price? Please enlighten me
@@joseanmolina8060 It's a moot point now anyway since EXO has been sold.
@@107drones what do you mean?
@@joseanmolina8060 I'm an older guy with some life experience. IMHO When a company sells, you don't know what the end result will be until it actually happens. Will the EXO improve? I don't know but I hope so. That said Josean, a drone is like a car. You can look at the numbers but that doesn't tell you everything. Such as: What's the build quality like? Is it durable? How's the color science of the camera? How does the drone fly? Is it responsive? How does the controller feel in the hand? Is it sized right? The list is endless. For these reasons and many more, the experienced drone fliers that I know do not like the EXO line. I once bought a car with amazing features at a great price. It ended up being the worst car I ever owned and the manufacturer left the U.S. market and has yet to return. Everybody has their opinions Josean. This is a personal decision you'll have to make. You may love it. Best of luck!
So they took the dead original air and brought it back to 2022 standards. Looks pricey. I'd say the mini3pro would be a better buy at that price point!
This is a really nice drone. I didn't like that he just blew off the drone range and distance saying line of sight is good enough. The LOS of one thing but no drone is a dji competitor unless it can go at lease 4 miles and that just the way it is...
Hello. I own a DJI Mavic Air. Watching your video, I realized that he looks a lot like him. If you do a little research you will find it.
It really does. I liked the design of the original Mavic Air. Thanks for watching.
If not mistaken,, Maine????. Either way great video........ Ty, this helped me decide......
Picking one up..🤙🤙🤙
Close! Upstate NY.
11:30 sounds like a swarm of killer bees 🐝 attacking the microphone
🐝🐝🐝
Looks like a black Hubson at a higher price. I did see a sale get $150 off an EXO, that makes it almost as cheap as a Hubson.
In two of this models you can swap batteries with the HZMSE & the HZMP
Cool!
I disagree on this opinion in some ways.dji is better I believe in Camera slightly on exo mini compared to DJI mini 3 .I've bought a exo mini last week flew out ten minutes and I can say it runs as good as my DJI mini se. Or the same. Exo is good and I believe they will get better in time.
Thanks for commenting.
我手里的是中国hubsan版本的新blackhawk2 可以使用gps通信持续飞行10公里 也可以使用插入电话卡的方式在城市低空飞行 甚至可以坐在家里
Where is this beautifull place with all these houses in the middle of the lake or river? Is this in the states? A true paradise in earth!
St. Lawrence River in upstate New York.
@@readysetdrone Thanks a lot for your fast reply and keep up the excellent work of yours!
quality of the camera is good not great , as pointed out its more suited for beginners but the price is way too much your better off geting the Mini 3 Pro for that price
do not say you would not trust 5 mile range . when you don't test . it does go 5 miles and a great drone
Fair point. I think the 5 mile range was more of a line-of-sight thing for me. But glad to hear it can do it.
Looks just like the original DJI Mavic Air
It really does!
Kelly, Did you request the Blackhawk or did EXO reach out to you? I ask becasue it seems like more and more influencers seem to be getting it in their hands all at aout the same time. Seems like hey are just trying to get free advertising at your expense. I have a bitter attitude towards the brand becasue I contacted them directlt to see if they would support a Disabled Veterans group I created. I was told they couldn't help us becasue they were too short on Inventory, then later the same day I got a text advertising their overstock sale. When I reached out to them again they tried to make me feel like I was trying to scam them. I'd much rather have had them just say "No, go away" than to try and make excuses becasue they didnt want to support a Veterans group. If they can't support Veterans I can't support them. Just venting but Im tired of seing them being touted as "As good as DJI" which they are not. Hopefully as they mature as a company their attitudes will change. Thanks
Hi Joe. I didn't request the Blackhawk. Exo reached out. This is a common thing among reviewers. Whether it's computers, phones, or drones, manufacturers will send out units prior to release, and when the embargo is lifted, the review videos are uploaded publicly.
As mentioned in my review, I was impressed with some features and disappointed with others. It's going to be hard for any company to beat DJI in user experience, but I hope that competition can drive all companies to bring us consumers better products.
Regarding customer service, I haven't had any first-hand experience with them, but maybe you can try DJI or Autel.
Thanks for watching.
My God that thing is loud!!
This cost as much as a DJI mavic Air2. Why would anyone pick this over the DJI? I’m in the market for one
The flight time isn't 40 minutes. It is extremely loud in comparison to other drones in that price range. Legs need to extend out further and it needs larger blades. It flys very slow under normal mode. It has signal transmission problems at around 1500 feet. The Controller needs work, the cable is in the way of your hand and the phone holder is very flimsy. All this needs to be corrected to compete with DJI' Air 2S. The Blackhawk 2 Pro 3 battery pack with discount is is $1114.53 it should be around $850 at most, Just over priced. If in were in that price range I would purchase over the Air 2s. EXO has a lot of work to do
I am impressed by colors. they resemble GoPro colors.
The colors and the video transmission were quite impressive.
Again really good review. You just make my mind up to purchase DJI mini3 Pro. Unfortunately, with $$$$$$$799 for a pro version drone with all those cons. OMG, that multi batteries charging solution. Really 😭!!!. Sorry Exo, you have to do a lot better, please go back to the drawing board. Tough sell.
Have fun with your Mini 3 pro. I have yet to get my hands on one.
I appreciate you watching, David.
Hubsan ace
👍 with Exo firmware.
Blackhawk 2 looks to have exact same specs as the Ace. The Pro is upgraded at bit. But does not likely justify the upgraded price, especially with the hyperlapse being unusable.
The thing you didn't touch on is repair support, I have three of these in from customers with broken cameras and you can't get parts and they won't fix it unless you purchased the additional warranty before hand. At least with Dji you can send it in with no warranty and they will fix it for a fee. These three customers have a $900 bricks because they didn't think to purchase additional coverage. At least tell these people to purchase the coverage before supporting this junk. I repair all types of drones and EXO is the first place to tell me to purchase the part off their site and have someone qualified to repair it but when you go to the website it show out of stock. Buyer beware
Yikes!