Tello FPV – Control the Ryze Tello drone FPV + RTH

About Tello FPV – Control the Ryze Tello drone FPV + RTH

I bought a Ryze Tello drone for my grandson’s birthday but wanted to test it out myself first before handing it over. My neighbor Tom has been flying his for months and he told me this app was the way to go. He said the official app was okay but this one let you actually see what the drone sees on your phone screen. That sounded neat so I downloaded it. I’m not good with complicated technology but I can follow simple instructions. This app lets you control the drone while watching a live video feed from its camera. It also has a button that makes the drone fly back to where it started called Return to Home. That feature gave me confidence because I was terrified of losing the little thing in the trees behind my house. I’ve been using it for about two weeks now and I’m starting to get the hang of it.

Core Features

The main thing this app does is show you what the drone sees in real time on your phone. When I first tried it last Tuesday afternoon I was amazed that I could watch my backyard from up above while standing on my deck. The video isn’t perfect quality but it’s good enough to see where you’re going. There’s also the Return to Home button which I’ve used twice when I got disoriented. I just pressed it and the drone came back and landed near where it took off. That’s a lifesaver for someone like me who gets confused easily. The app also has one-touch takeoff and landing which is great because I don’t have to fiddle with joysticks to get it off the ground. You can adjust the speed settings too which I appreciate. I keep it on slow mode because I’m still learning. There’s something called gesture control but I haven’t tried that yet. It sounds complicated. The app lets you record video and take photos which my grandson will love when I finally give him this drone.

Real-World Use

Last Thursday morning I took the drone out to the park near my house. I set my phone in a holder I bought on Amazon and launched the app. It took me about five minutes to get everything connected. The app has you connect to the drone’s own Wi-Fi network which was a little confusing at first. Once I figured that out the flying part was actually pretty straightforward. I flew it around the playground and got some nice video of the empty swings. The FPV view is really something. It feels like you’re up there yourself. I did have one issue where the video feed froze for about ten seconds. I panicked and hit the Return to Home button. The drone came back fine but that was scary. The battery on the drone only lasts about ten minutes so you have to be quick. I’ve started timing my flights on my watch. The app does show a battery indicator though which helps.

Pricing & Value

This app cost me a few dollars which seemed reasonable. I mean you get what you pay for. Compared to other apps my friend Tom has tried this one does the main things you need. The Return to Home feature alone is worth the price in my opinion. I would have been very upset if I lost that drone because I spent good money on it. The app doesn’t have ads which I appreciate because I hate those pop-ups that get in the way. Some people might complain about paying for an app but for me it’s a fair deal. You’re getting the ability to see through the drone’s eyes and control it from your phone. That’s pretty amazing technology for a few bucks. I’ve spent more on a sandwich.

Updates & Support

So here’s where I get a little frustrated. Last week I had an issue where the app kept crashing right after I connected to the drone. I sent a message to the developer through the app store. I waited three days before I heard anything back. The response was just a short message telling me to restart my phone and try again. That didn’t fix it. I wrote back and haven’t heard anything since. It’s been almost a week now. I finally figured out on my own that I had to close all my other apps first before opening this one. That seemed to work. But I felt like I was on my own figuring that out. For an app that costs money I expect a little better support. Maybe they’re a small team. I don’t know. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

Data & Privacy

I don’t really understand all the privacy stuff these days but I can tell you this app asked for permission to access my phone’s storage and camera. I said yes because it needs to save videos I guess. It also asked for my location which I gave. I suppose the app uses that for the Return to Home feature so it knows where you are. I haven’t noticed any weird ads or spammy stuff. The app doesn’t ask you to create an account or give your email. That’s a relief because I don’t need another login to forget. I feel like it’s pretty straightforward. The app just does its job without snooping around.