Table of Contents
Overview of BETAFPV Cetus Pro Drone
FPV stands for first-person view. It’s where you use goggles to see what the drone sees as it flies around. I did not try any drone or fpv yet before and I’m always on the lookout for new gadgets to up my game.
I was very lucky to be informed that I am allowed to test Betafpv Cetus pro, so this product review is about the Betafpv Cetus Pro. The first thing I noticed about this fpv was its size. It’s so small and compact, it fits great in my backpack. When you’re flying this machine, it feels like a toy! This quadcopter has an altitude hold function which makes it very easy to fly because any sudden movements will send your quad into an uncontrolled spin, but the altitude hold prevents that from happening.
However, FPV is not that easy to control due to fast speed, it has some learning curve in order to fly stable, I spend some effort to get familiar with control since I am 100% newbie in FPV. Anyway, I will discuss the details of Cetus pro and show you how to control it step by step.
Cetus FPV Kit – Complete Unboxing
It is packed a white box, All the parts are stored in a carry case which provides protection and is easy to carry around. The prop guards and canopy are really tough against crashes.
In the Cetus Pro FPV Kit, it includes the following items in the box:
- 1 x Cetus Pro Brushless Micro FPV Drone
- 1 x LiteRadio 2 SE Radio Transmitter (Frsky Protocol)
- 1 x BETAFPV VR02 FPV Goggle
- 2 x 1S 450mAh Lipo Battery (BT 2.0 connector)
- 1 x Battery Charger (USB-C)
- 1 x USB-C Cable (for charging)
- 1 x USB Adapter for connecting FC to computer
- 1 x Prop Removal Tool
- 4 x 40mm 3-Blade Prop (Replacement)
- 1 x Zipper Storage Bag
Betafpv Cetus Pro
Cetus Pro was designed primarily for people who does not have any experience with flying an FPV drone. Everything just works out of the box, and the drone is already bound to the radio. But again, you still need to learn how to control with a controller.
From the bottom, you can see it has an optical flow camera sensor (P3901 RSN) for determining the aircraft’s ground velocity, and a LiDAR component for detecting altitude. These sensors are only used in “Normal” flight mode, aims to make flying easier for beginners. I will explain all the flight modes later.
Controller
It has 4 switches to modify the drone mode,speed and motor control, and 2 joystick including accelerator and direction to control whole drone.
SA: This is for motor unlocking, once you turn the tab up, the motor will be starting rotating and the Propeller will swing.
SB: You can switch mode from upper to lower, it has 3 mode including normal mode, sport mode and manual mode, I will explain the difference in detail later.
SD: It is used as image transmission point, you can flick up and down to match your drone.
SC: It is speed control tab, BETAFPV has provided some helpful options for the first-timer. You can select SLOW, MID, or FAST by using a Transmitter from upper to lower. The slow mode is a really helpful tool for beginners and will save you from bashing into a vase or something.
Flying Mode
The different flight modes are perhaps the most interesting feature of the Cetus drone.
Normal Mode: Just like Angle Mode, but the drone hovers at certain height, and the throttle stick becomes altitude control. It has sensors to detect the height, and it will stay at the same altitude if you leave your throttle stick at the centre (altitude hold). It is almost like a DJI camera drone.
Sport Mode:Compared to normal mode, the sport mode needs to control the altitude and direction at the same time, suitable for FPV players with certain experience.
Manual Mode:The manual mode completely relies on the player to control the drone through controller, you must have rich experience in FPV, otherwise the machine will be bashed or blow up easily.
Turtle Mode
Sometimes you may encounter all four feet upside down during flying, there’s even a turtle mode switch on the controller. So in the event you have a small crash and your quad flips upside down, you can engage the turtle mode and it should be able to right itself.
Goggle
BETAFPV VR02 goggle specs:
- 4.3 inches 800*480px LCD display
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- FOV: 55°
It’s a very basic box style FPV Goggles and supports 5.8GHz, 5 bands and 40 channels in total. It doesn’t have any other settings apart from choosing channel (no brightness/contrast settings etc).
You can buy this goggles separately here: www.betafpv.com
There’s no focal length adjustment, and no way to use diopter lenses, so if you wear glasses, this goggle might not work for you.
There’s no sign of an antenna on the outside, because the antenna is hidden inside the goggle. It makes it really convenient to use and transport. The range of the video link is quite decent, I have no problem flying it in my house in different rooms. It actually outperforms the radio link, so you are going to get a failsafe before losing videos.
As it’s a basic goggle, it has no DVR feature (video recording).
LiPo Battery and Charger
All the gear in the Cetus Pro FPV kit can be charged via USB-C cable, Charger can be used as a LiPo voltage checker too.
They included battery charger can charge two 1S 450mAh LiPo batteries simultaneously. charging usually takes about 25-30 mins to be fully charged.
Pro of BETAFPV Cetus Drone
- Affordable price with a premium feature
- BETAFPV Cetus Pro kit has brushless motors
- Multi-mode can be switched at any time
- Easy to learn even you are a beginner
- Portable and convenient
Cons of Cetus Pro Drone
- The battery runs out easily
- Can not use eyeglass with goggle
- Can not record video when flying
Specification
Below is specification details that directly from BETAFPV website:
- Positioning system: Optical flow/Barometer/Laser
- Height Positioning: Laser/Barometer
- Angle Locating: Optical flow ( effective height 0.3-3m)
- Accuracy of auto-hover: Horizontal ±0.2m, vertical ±0.3m (under no wind environment)
- Receiver protocol: Frsky D8
- Flight controller: Lite 1S Pro brushed FC
- VTX: 25mW
- Camera tilt degree: 25°
- Camera: C02 FPV Micro Camera
- Transmitter: Literaio2 SE Transmitter
- TX mode: Mode 2 (Left stick throttle)
- Goggles: VR02 Goggles
- Motor: 716-19000KV Brushed motor
- Propeller: 31mm 4-blade 0.8mm shaft hole
- Takeoff weight: 35g(with battery)
- Power system: 1S
- Battery: BT2.0 300mah 1S Battery (external)
- Flight time: 4-5min
- Flight distance: 80m (in wide & undisturbed environment)
Conclusion
We’ve seen the evolution of drones over recent years and it has been astounding. I mean, the N, S, and M modes are wonderful, seriously, that’s all pretty amazing in a package for $229.99, so I believe Cetus Pro will be a great choice if you’re beginner and looking for an affordable FPV.