Cheap toy drones suitable for kids

Last year I went on a quest to find some cheap and easy to use toy drones for 4-8 year old kids in my family. Kids can get very excited about drones but even a tiny whoop in an angle mode is a bit too much as a first drone. I tried a few and I’d like to share which ones were the best hit.

The best for most: Eachine E017

This tiny drone goes for around $30 and produced more excitement than the more expensive options. It has an altitude control which makes it easier to fly and it’s surprisingly durable when kids eventually hit something. This drone is also very small and lightweight so even when it hits things inside the house it doesn’t do a lot of damage. Eachine E017 doesn’t have a FPV camera but I found it to be a better option to start with. I’ve seen 4 year olds mastering this drone in a couple hours. One drawback is that you have to fly it inside: it can’t handle even a little breeze outside. I was also surprised with the battery life. More advanced 65mm tiny whoops get only 2-3 minutes of flight time and this toy can do around 5 minutes. Although it makes sense since there’s nothing acrobatic when flying this toy. I think Eachine E017 can be a great Christmas gift for kids who never had a drone to get a feel for it and eventually grow into true FPV drones. You can grab one at Banggood or AliExpress.

Next step: BetaFPV Cetus Pro

BetaFPV Cetus Pro is essentially a tiny whoop with training wheels. It has an easy to fly altitude controlled mode with multiple speed levels for kids to progress through while they learn to fly it. It even has a full manual mode you can switch to once you are comfortable flying it. BetaFPV Cetus Pro is a true FPV drone that you fly using goggles. However, I found FPV part to make it a bit too much for smaller kids and I would suggest to flying it line of sight first. This drone is definetely more capable than Eachine E017 and will take kids further into FPV journey. It comes in a kit with everything you need: drone, controller, goggles and batteries. You can later even get a different drone and re-use controller and the goggles. However, those are beginner level and eventually you will need to upgrade. I would recommend this for early teens who will appreciate the advanced features of this drone compared to Eachine E017. Probably the best place to get one is directly from BetaFPV but it’s also available on AliExpress and GetFPV.

Next step: Eachine E110

Eachine E110 is a helicopter drone with FPV feed. It was one of the easiest to fly for the kids. Perhaps because you typically fly it outdoors where there’s more open space. Although beware it can’t handle even a small wind and will drift with it. The battery life was unexpectedly good. You would get around 10 minutes of flight time out of it. Eachine E110 has a camera that you can get the feed from on your smartphone but the latency is pretty terrible and we would only fly it line of sight. Due to its open propeller it requires adult supervision with small children but it’s so easy to fly that even 8 year olds mastered it quickly. You can get it on Banggood or AliExpress.