Being a drone photographer is fun until drone geofencing stops you from getting that perfect shot.
Imagine being on an island with beautiful scenery, but you can’t fly to certain areas and take pictures and videos for memories because the drone won’t take off!
Luckily, not all drones have geofencing, but which are the best drones without geofencing?
The winner, Autel Evo II, is famous for excellent camera quality, extended flight range and time, and potent sensors. Still, models like GDU 02, DEERC D20, Yuneec Typhoon Q500, and Holy Stone HS700E are worth it because of the low-cost, great design, and fantastic performance.
Geofencing is not always a good thing. Drones should access any area if you observe the provided laws.
Keep reading this guide on no-limit drones for an informed choice.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Flying without Geofencing
In simple terms, geofences are invisible fences placed around physical zones that keep drones from accessing these “fenced” areas. When breached, these fences will activate several actions. Geofencing is the application of geofences.
How does it work?
Geofencing signals constantly communicate with the drone’s software using location technologies. However, geofencing doesn’t only work with GPS systems but also with WIFI, RFID, Bluetooth, and mobile data because of their signals.
Some restricted zones may apply two geofences, with one acting as a warning when a drone breaches the restricted zone, giving the pilot a chance to turn back immediately.
The second bringing down the drone automatically without the pilot’s control whenever breached.
Advantages
- Freedom of flying works best, especially for pilots who want to explore and take incredible images and videos.
- Delayed response time: You can use your drone for search and rescue missions. Waiting for authorization to access restricted areas when there’s an emergency can take forever. But drones without flight restrictions can easily breach the perimeters and save lives.
- Access to random areas: Sometimes, consumers feel geofencing drones violates their rights. They argue that a drone flying below 10ft high is not a risk to anything. So, without geofencing, they can fly drones in their backyards or even the park adhering to necessary laws.
Disadvantages
- Risk of collisions: When drones access FAA-restricted areas like airports, collisions, and crashes will likely occur with aircraft.
- Risk of damages: Once the military spots an unauthorized drone in their airspace, they will likely shoot it down. That’s how you could lose your thousand-dollar drone!
- Legal issues: Flying your drone in restricted zones without geofencing could attract legal issues. For example, flying a drone filming other people is a breach of privacy and risks a lawsuit against the pilot.
- Risk of hacking: Without individual geofences, hackers can easily hack and fly away your drone.
Types of Geofencing Zone
There are many different levels of geofencing zones, with some only giving a warning like mentioned above, and others fully disabling your drone.
Such zones include:
- Restricted zone: This is an entirely red zone. The red color shows on your drone’s screen, warning you to turn back immediately or risk a shootdown or severe damage. However, this zone halts the drone immediately outside the perimeters.
- Altitude zone: This is a grey zone where you can only fly up to a certain altitude. The grey color starts indicating when your drone is at a restricted altitude. It works mainly in airports and is subject to frequent changes.
- Authorization zone: Also called the blue zone, you can only pass this zone with a permit. It’s also a restricted zone that shows blue on the screen if you fly there.
- Warning zone: This zone shows yellow on your drone’s screen map. Here, the pilot gets a warning that they are entering a restricted zone. Thus, the pilot must confirm they have the authorization to proceed or turn back to prevent dangers.
- Enhanced warning zone: It’s indicated orange and asks the pilot to unlock the zone or be responsible for whatever outcome of the proceeding. The unlocking process differs from getting authorization because you don’t need a verified account or internet connection.
- Regulatory restricted zone: Usually, this zone has no specific color. But, it shows restrictions on access to local areas by local authorities. These law authorities limit flying drones in areas like schools and prisons.
- Recommended flight zone: The green zone on the map allows you to fly freely within the zone. So when choosing zones, the green zones are available for flight arrangements.
Luckily, with your drone’s geofencing software, you’ll receive different indicators when you get near or through these zones so you know where they are located.
5 Best Drones without Geofencing
1. DEERC D20
Since kids are natural explorers, a drone would be a great way to help them have fun outdoors.
The DEERC D20 is a great fit since it’s among the best drones without GPS and a perfect way for them to have fun without any restrictions. Of course, you will need to supervise them to make sure they don’t fly in restricted areas.
It’s an indestructible little drone that’s not just for kids and works best with all beginners and hobbyists who want to view the world from the skies.
The D20 features a 720P HD Wi-Fi camera and FPV transmission. These allow you to take high-quality footage and share it effortlessly as a live video feed using your device app.
Using D20 is excitingly simple – just tap the start key, and fly!
Plus, the altitude hold feature helps you keep your drone at the desired height for steady control. This makes it perfect for kids who may find it difficult to deal with more complex drones.
Other safety features that will help you stay at ease as your kid flies are the emergency stop, low power alarm, and propeller guards that prevent injuries and the drone from flying out of control.
Better still, it uses 2 rechargeable, powerful batteries that enable your child to enjoy up to 20 minutes of flight time and lets you sketch your flight course on your mobile device before take off.
Overall, it’s a simple affordable option for a no-limit drone, however, professional drone photographers will likely benefit from the more heavy-duty options below.
Easy to operate
Advanced features like voice command
Safe and powerful to fly
High-quality camera and transmission
Easy to do flips and maneuvers
Short battery life
2. Autel Evo 2
Aside from being a no-limit AUV, the Autel Evo 2 has top-of-the-class quality and performance.
For an expert drone photographer, this is a fantastic model.
It has an altitude hold feature to allow different maneuvers, 4 resolution types, and 3 camera sizes with 48 megapixels. Rest assured you’ll be capturing fantastic and crystal-clear images and videos.
Still, on the footage, Autel has adequate storage for lengthy videos and images. It features 256 GB external memory and 8GB internal memory.
Autel Evo 2 provides a 35 minutes battery life and up to 9km flight range. This way, you can effortlessly explore the beautiful scenery at a distance for an adequate period in a single charge.
Thanks to a steady transmission system, you can connect Autel to your mobile device for control. This way, you don’t have to carry a bulky and heavy remote controller.
The ‘Follow Me‘ and ‘Return to Home’ are significant features worth mentioning in Autel Evo 2, especially when flying without geofencing. These features make it easy to bring your drone back quickly and efficiently should you sense anything going awry.
There have been reports of dropped connections with this drone, however, as long as you follow the line-of-sight rule you should be able to get those special shots and videos without a problem.
High-quality camera
Long flight range
Long-lasting battery
Adequate storage memory
Easy to navigate
Sturdy structure
Tends to lose signal and connection frequently
3. GDU 02
The GDU 02 is an excellent choice for aspiring aerial photographers and videographers in this list of no-limit drones.
It’s not as stripped back as the DEERC D20, but also not as feature heavy as the Evo 2. A.k.a you’re not paying for features you likely don’t need – yet.
You still get necessary features like follow me, a 3-axis gimbal, and a 4K 13mp camera that can record 4k high-resolution videos.
The portability of this drone is also impressive for anyone who loves to travel with drones. The compact size and 1.56lbs make it easy to fit in a backpack on the go.
However, it only achieves 20 minutes of flight time, a 1-mile flight range, and 33mph.
Still, it’s pretty good to get you where you need to be on time for incredible shots, and the GDU 02 can handle cool maneuvers and tricks, and sharp turns and sudden stops as you require.
Generally, we recommend this for a traveling or aspiring drone photographer/videographer that wants a solid option to get started with.
Compact and portable
Easy to fly on all mobile devices
Great camera quality
Smart features
Lowest flight time compared to other models
4. Yuneec Typhoon Q500
If you plan to buy one of the best drones without geofencing, this is it!
Yuneec Typhoon features incredible video and camera abilities. It has 1080p video resolution and 4k camera resolution, not to mention a slow-motion video feature and a 3-axis gimbal.
This way, you are guaranteed breathtaking, stable, and crisp footage.
This drone allows you also to customize specific settings to your desire. So, you can adjust the white balance, video resolution, and light exposure to achieve your footage’s desired effect.
However, the distortion-free lens allows you to view the world as accurately as it is.
Furthermore, the Yuneec Typhoon Q500 can last up to 30 minutes of flight time with its LiPo battery, giving you plenty of time to explore a new area.
Yuneec also has a ground station for easy operation when taking images and videos. The ground station comprises a receiver and remote control. The 5.5-inch screen on the remote control also enables you to track real-time images.
This is one of those times when it’s worth sacrificing speed for stability. If you’re looking for fast action movements, I’d choose another option on this list, but for those prioritizing crisp, long-term, exploratory footage, this is it.
Excellent video and camera quality
Adjustable camera features
Real-time footage without distortion
Easy to control with a touchscreen
Durable and quick-charging battery
Slow and takes time to gain altitude
5. Holy Stone HS700E
The Holy Stone HS700E drone is for people who want long flights with its 46-minute flight time.
It features a 4K UHD camera with anti-shake, advanced features like RTH and follow me, a brushless motor, and a carrying case.
The 4K camera features Electronic Image Stabilization technology that eliminates all blurring caused by shaking when flying. Plus, it ensures stable 5GHz video transmission for amazing speedy shots.
The camera is also adjustable and provides a wide 130°FOV lens to capture every little detail!
Holy Stone HS700E also has both GPS and GLONASS navigation modules to ensure your drone is stable without getting lost.
In case of signal loss, the drone activates the RTH function which is perfect for flying in geofenced zones where the connection may be shaky.
Flying Holy Stone is exceptionally straightforward, especially for novice pilots.
Advanced features like altitude hold, optical flow, air pressure sensor, and headless mode make the HS700E user-friendly and a great long-flight option.
Portable and easy to store
User-friendly
High-quality adjustable camera
Powerful and silent brushless motor
Anti-shake image technology
Built-in phone carrier has a loose grip
How to Bypass DJI Geofencing
If you already have a DJI drone and aren’t looking to replace it, you can bypass your way out of geofencing.
There are two ways you can bypass geofencing on your drone. Though, before bypassing, you must ensure you have the authorization to access the zone you want to unlock.
Authorization is crucial because it’s what your drone manufacturer uses to approve or permit bypassing.
Custom Unlocking – Red Zone
- Use your verified DJI account to log in and access the custom unlock page.
- Find and select the model of your drone as indicated on the page.
- Determine the exact area you want to enter.
- Tap where you see the red pin because that’s where the custom unlock zone is.
- Provide any proof of authorization that you can fly in the area. Authorizations can differ as requested, but the LAANC authorization is standard.
- After correctly filling in all the necessary information, agree to the ‘submit to terms and conditions.’
- Give DJI some time to assess and give feedback on your submission. The waiting period usually takes an hour after submitting the details. To confirm your approval, DJI sends a confirmation email.
- If you have trouble completing the request or don’t get a response, reach out to the DJI support team. They will provide the necessary assistance.
Self-Unlocking – Blue Zone
- Log in with your verified DJI account and go to the self-unlock page.
- Find your drone model and tap on it.
- Find and use the blue pin on the blue zone to select the location you want to enter.
- Fill in the serial number of your remote controller as requested.
- Enter your phone or the credit card number linked to your drone to help validate your identity. If you choose to enter your phone number, keep it close and wait for an SMS with a verification code.
- After completing all the steps, select the desired date for flying your drone into the blue zone, then ‘submit.’
- The self-unlock will begin precisely at midnight on the day you want to fly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Final Word
Geofencing is an advanced drone technology that generally means well.
It features unseen perimeters that mark where drones shouldn’t pass or enter. This technology sends warnings to pilots to keep off the marked zones.
So if you don’t want restrictions, choose one of the above best drones without geofencing. Still, be well informed on the risks of flying in restricted zones to avoid endangering people, property, and your drone.
Flying no-limit drones can be manageable if you observe the FAA and local laws and regulations. Have fun, stay safe and explore!
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