Park flying basic FPV

[JasonEricAnderson]

I wanted to dabble with FPV and do it on the cheap so I got a 'Crazepony FPV Micro AIO Camera 5.8G 48CH 25mW' and an 'OTG receiver' with an early Father's Day Amazon card. I know it's really for micros like the Inductrix but I figured I could slap it on my Bugs3 and fly around the park 'small park' to see what FPV is like.

It 'Works' and I know it would be more immersive with goggles ($$) but I think I might want to bump it up a bit on the AIO camera hardware and I get confused about what the real impact/differentiators are with these all in one package setups.

Two asks:
1) Worth switching this setup to cloverleaf?

2) What would be the next bump up in all in one style cameras?

It seems like everything is 5.8G with 40+ channels. Would I be looking at 100mW? I'm not looking to start quad racing, I just want to putter around the park.

Thanks.

 

[sprzout]

Most of the 5.8Ghz cameras with 40 channels are the standard "Raceband" style, where they'll run 5 different bands with 8 channels a piece - A, B, C, D, and F (Fatshark) or R (Raceband), which the last two are pretty much interchangeable names (although, I could be wrong; my memory for the radio frequencies is not great for "off the top of my head" reference). The higher powered transmitters will get you a better picture, to a point, since it's pushing more power; however, keep in mind that it also means you'll have less run time because you're taking up 4 times the power of your current camera to transmit. Is that a significant amount? Ehh...Maybe, maybe not. At this size, it may cut your flight time by 30 seconds, depending on battery size, C rating, and number of cells.

Cloverleaf antennas will help a bit more, because of the way that they broadcast, being more of a rounded, mushroom style signal, as opposed to the more linear, flat broadcast that goes out from the dipole antenna that you currently have. Is it necessary? Honestly, that depends. I've found "like" antennas tend to get better broadcast and reception than two different types of antennas - two RHCP mushroom style antennas work better together FOR ME, AT MY FLYING AREAS, than the dipole or pagoda style antennas I see some guys run.

Notice that I emphasized what works for me, at my flying areas. In some places, in some conditions, other antenna styles may work better for you for broadcast, and certain environmental issues (i.e., overhead power lines, powered light poles at baseball fields, radio towers, etc.) may play into that.

 

[ElectriSean]

The Fatshark (IRC) band and Raceband are actually different, just created by the same company. Here is more info than you probably want - https://oscarliang.com/5-8ghz-frequency-bands-b-e-f-different-brand/

My experience with the AIO style setups has been pretty bad, as they are very fragile. I wouldn't bother upgrading to a cloverleaf as they are even more fragile. There are some that go up to 200mW, but I'm pretty sure they all use the same crappy camera. The only real upgrade is to get a decent camera like a Runcam Micro Swift (or eagle or sparrow) and the TX25 VTx that bolts on the back. More expensive, and a little bigger, but so much better you probably won't believe it