Honestly, when the Eachine 3D X4 was announced, I was not interested at all in this model, I thought it was just a toy for kids.
A month ago, I was contacted by Jacky from Banggood to review this model. Initially, I hesitated, but after I found out more about this mini quadcopter’s flight performances, I finally accepted his offer mainly because I was curious about the inverted flight mode (up-side-down flight). When I say “mini,” I take into consideration the size and weight of the aircraft, which is around 17.5×17.5 centimeters and 32 grams with a battery.
As usual for shipments from China, I had to wait 3 weeks to get the Eachine 3D X4 and make my review. Finally, I got the quad with the red-white cockpit, but if you prefer orange-white, the cockpit can be easily replaced and it costs just $2.
Most of the quadcopter’s spare parts keep a friendly low price, for example, the mainframe is only $3.2, and for a complete set of new motors, you have to pay $10.
Eachine 3D X4 Review
Inside the box, besides the quadcopter and remote controller, you will find a small bag with one set of spare propellers and a USB battery charging cable. The package also includes the Eachine 3D X4’s user manual.
At first impression, the Eachine 3D X4 has an obvious resemblance with an insect, but more of a spider family than a ladybug as others wrote. The arms look exactly like an insect’s and the body makes me think of a red and black colored spider. Regarding the propellers, putting the white ones in front in contrast with the black ones in the back was a very smart decision for the producer, in my opinion. This way it is much easier to fly this agile and surprisingly challenging mini quad.
The construction of the aircraft is simple, based on a unibody frame – not removable landing skids or prop guards. The propellers are mounted directly on the motor’s shafts, this way the Eachine 3D X4 has a faster reaction and is much quieter than other geared models.
Eachine 3D X4: First use
Powering ON the quadcopter can be performed by connecting the LI-Po battery to the receiver board; there is no ON/OFF button.
After the battery is plugged, I recommend placing the drone immediately in a horizontal and stable position and not disturbing the startup calibrating process.
If someone needs a longer flight time, there is enough room to install higher-capacity batteries. I successfully installed a 500mAh LI-Po, and the flight time was significantly improved.
The flight speed can be adjusted between 20%, 60%, and full speed (100%). For indoor use and beginner pilots, I recommend flying the Eachine 3D X4 at the lowest flight speeds (20%).
Frankly, my first light movements were imprecise, like I had control only over the throttle. After a few failed attempts to fly it, I thought it was a faulty one. Luckily, I thought to perform a gyro reset and set the speed to 20%. Even so, the Eachine 3D X4 remained harder to control than my other multi-rotors, but now at least flies in the direction I want :).
In inverted flight mode, the throttle, forward/backward, is working the same, but left and right are reversed, this can easily trick your mind.
After more tries, I found that I actually love the flying characteristics of this Eachine quad, it is very fast and agile. I will probably learn to make some awesome acrobatic tricks with it with more practice.