I had great hopes for this little drone, easy fly, got a few flights in, great video, then all of a sudden it stop responding, which wouldn't have been an issue if it wasn't, 50 feet in the air.

I've always wanted a remote control airplane, but was frightened I'd destroy it within seconds before I'd even learnt how to fly it properly. After owning a Rolling Spider, I decided to try something a little larger.

nicedrone for beginners

It's hard to single-handedly kickstart an industry, only to watch competitors soar past. Back in 2010, Parrot's AR.Drone quad-copters all but owned the skies. Today, smarter, faster fliers from the likes of DJI and 3DRobotics have clipped Parrot's wings.

WIRED: Gorgeous race car design; Nose-cam captures high-def footage; Feels very sturdy compared with previous Parrots; Control app provides an abundance of flight-tweak options; Blade guards clip on and off with ease; Comes with two batteries

Requires a smartphone or tablet; Nose-cam footage has white-balance issues; Flight controls imprecise unless you add pricey joystick controller-and it's not sold separately; Short flight times; No follow-me or flight-plan options

It has done its job, although it also has had some minor issues due to software updates. But one day, all of a sudden it shows a motor broken message after perfect flights the day before. I don't get it, and will be sending it in for repairs.

There are more and more consumer-friendly drones hitting the market, giving anyone with a credit card the ability to fly a camera through the air while recording HD footage. The Parrot Bebop ($899.99 with remote control) is a relatively small drone, but one that's priced like larger, more capable models. It has an integrated camera that records 1080p video and still images, and aerial footage is steady. It's easy to fly via the huge Skycontroller remote, even if it does raise the price tag significantly (on its own, the drone costs $499.99). For $100 more, you can pre-order the new DJI Phantom 3 Advanced, which is set to hit store shelves this month. And if immediate gratification is desired, you can opt for our Editors' Choice, the DJI Phantom 2 Vision+ ( at Amazon) . If you're just looking for a toy copter, consider the more budget-friendly Parrot AR.Drone 2.0 . Design and Flight ExperienceThe Bebop ($269.00 at Amazon)  is a relatively small quadcopter, measuring about 1.4 by 11...

The small Parrot Bebop doesn't climb as high as competing drones, and its flight time is limited, but it's easy to fly and records stable video.

Stable 1080p video; Safe to fly indoors; Capable of performing aerial rolls and flips; Can be flown via dedicated remote or smart device; Raw and JPG image capture

Very limited flight time; Expensive; Skycontroller is huge; Not the most stable drone in the air; Indoor video footage is noisy

Parrot was one of the first companies to make a splash in the consumer UAV space when it released its AR 2.0 drone back in 2010. Now, just a few years later, it’s back with the Bebop — a smaller, smarter, more camera-focused drone. Priced at just $500, the Bebop promises many of the same features as drones that cost twice as much money, including GPS and streaming video. But can it really compare to more expensive UAVs? We took it for a spin to find out. You’d never know it just from looking at it, but Bebop is a pretty feature-packed little drone. Under the hood it boasts four brushless outrunner motors, a 1,200mAH lithium-polymer battery, an HD camera, 3-axis gimbal stabilization, GNSS location tracking (GPS and GLONASS), and a boatload of other sensors. Flight time is pegged at around 11 minutes, and it ships with two batteries, giving you about 22 minutes of airtime total. If other drones are oak trees, the Bebop is a reed. It’s got brains too. Dig deeper and you’ll find Parrot’s P...

Highly portable; Durable design; Simple controls; Excellent autonomous features; Affordable price;

Imprecise tablet controls; Limited battery life; Limited range;

The Parrot Bebop Drone gets points for being a compact, durable, easy-to-use quadcopter for capturing good video and photos. Battery life, performance and overall value make it tough to flat-out recommend, though.

The Parrot Bebop Drone is small and lightweight for its capabilities; It's relatively tough, but also user repairable if it breaks; It can be piloted with a smartphone or tablet as well as the optional Skycontroller

The large Skycontroller adds $400 if purchased with the Bebop or runs $500 when purchased separately; While its size and weight make it nice to travel with, it doesn't handle wind well, and its small batteries tap out in less than 11 minutes

Drones are hot right now, but they're also quite expensive-even the entry-level DJI Phantom 3 Standard will set you back a pretty penny. The Parrot Bebop ($499.99) doesn't fly as high or far as a Phantom, but backyard drone pilots looking for a GPS-stabilized quadcopter to tool around with shouldn't...

Stable 1080p video; Safe to fly indoors; Capable of performing aerial rolls and flips; Controllable via tablet or phone; Optional remote control available for purchase; Supports Raw and JPG image capture

Limited flight time; Not the most stable drone in the air; Indoor video footage is noisy; Remote control is expensive

Portable, durable, and incredibly simple to fly; Parrot's Bebop drone is probably the best quadcopter you can get for under $500.

Highly portable; Durable design; Simple controls; Excellent autonomous features; Affordable price

Imprecise tablet controls; Limited battery life; Limited range