When comparing GoPro Karma vs Yuneec Breeze, the Slant community recommends Yuneec Breeze for most people. In the question“What are the best drones capable of shooting 4K video?” Yuneec Breeze is ranked 3rd while GoPro Karma is ranked 6th. The most important reason people chose Yuneec Breeze is:
Overall, the Breeze's camera offers better image quality and color reproduction than most budget drones. It can shoot in 4K at 30 fps, but it can also shoot in lower resolutions, up to 120 fps. Photos are shot in 13 megapixels, and have roughly the image quality of a picture taken with a medium-range smartphone. The field of view is wide, covering 117 degrees and it is possible to swivel the camera up or down for great landscape shots. You can also view a live feed of what the drone is capturing.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Great value package
When you buy the drone, you also get a handheld gimbal system with control buttons. The stabilizing gimbal is useful as it can be mounted on other GoPro compatible accessories. The package also includes additional propellers and a backpack with a built-in shoulder mount where you can attach your camera.
Pro Simple to use controller
This drone's controller only has a few intuitively placed buttons, which are easy to learn. There’s no need to attach a smartphone, since the controller comes with a built-in touchscreen. The information layout on the screen is simple and won’t overwhelm you.
Pro Helps beginners to learn how to fly it with a virtual learning mode
The Karma has a virtual learning mode for beginners, allowing them to fly this drone virtually, with the remote, while learning the basics.
Pro Decent camera quality, better than most budget drones
Overall, the Breeze's camera offers better image quality and color reproduction than most budget drones. It can shoot in 4K at 30 fps, but it can also shoot in lower resolutions, up to 120 fps. Photos are shot in 13 megapixels, and have roughly the image quality of a picture taken with a medium-range smartphone. The field of view is wide, covering 117 degrees and it is possible to swivel the camera up or down for great landscape shots. You can also view a live feed of what the drone is capturing.
Pro Easy to carry around
Thanks to its foldable propellers, low weight, compact design and clever camera integration, the Yuneec Breeze is very portable and you can take it anywhere with little effort.
Pro Batteries are cheap and easy to charge
Extra batteries for this drone are rather cheap and only take 40 minutes to charge. This is an important point, given that a Con of this is drone is it's short battery life (only 12 minutes).
Pro Easy to share your captures
The app you use to control the drone can also be used to share your moments on social media. Once you have captured a video or photo, you can simply select the social network profile that you want to upload to and you’re done. No PC or video editing software necessary.
Pro Automated takeoff and landing
The drone can take off and land automatically with just a press of a button on the controlling app. It uses GPS to remember the place where it took off from, so you can tell it to land in the same place. Even if connection to the mobile device is lost, the drone can still use those coordinates to safely land.
Pro 4 easy to use and convenient automatic flying modes
Yuneec has equipped the drone with 4 different auto modes: "selfie" mode makes it hover from a specified distance and await a command to take a photo or video; "orbit" makes the drone orbit around the controller; "journey" mode makes the drone to follow a previously set path; and "follow me" mode tells the drone to follow you using the GPS or the camera.
Pro For easier control, first-person view goggles and controller mount are available
For a small price, you can get first-person view goggles and a controller to put your phone in. The controller is easier to use than the in-built controls on the mobile app.
Pro Easy to control on a smartphone or tablet
This drone is easily and conveniently operated via an app on an iOS or Android device (no need for a physical controller). It is very easy to use it, as the controls are very basic. You need to keep in mind that on small devices, the controls will obstruct the video on the screen.
Pro Guards minimize the risk of injuries of damage to the propellers
Beginners can fly the drone indoors with great confidence, since the risk of injury or broken propellers is low, due to propeller guards.
Pro Solid and well built
Despite having a plasticky cheap look and feel, it is actually very well built and can withstand minor crashes without any problems.
Cons
Con No automatic tracking mode
As of July 2017, there is no tracking mode where the drone can follow an object around. This feature would have been useful when you want the drone to follow a subject doing outdoor sports or driving a vehicle. GoPro has promised to add this in a future update.
Con Over-reliance on GPS may lead to random drifting
The Karma doesn’t have any obstacle avoidance or downward sensors, relying solely on its GPS signal. This means it may drift randomly in the air if the GPS signal isn’t strong enough. At worst, it may cause collisions with objects in its path. Fortunately, the controller can somehow compensate this effect.
Con Limitations when filming in 4K
Filming in 4K gives a “fish eye” effect which can be removed later, but it also reduces the maximum resolution down to 2.7K.
Con Lack of an obstacle avoidance system may cause crashes
If the drone loses connection with the remote and takes a straight course home, it can crash somewhere, since it lacks an obstacle avoidance system.
Con Controller's screen is hard to see under direct sunlight
The controller's screen is glossy, making it hard to use under direct sunlight.
Con Rather disappointing battery life
This drone’s flight time, due to the small battery size, is not great: it can only stay in the air for about 12 minutes (if there are no strong winds), before it force-lands. On the plus side, it ships with two batteries, so you can quickly swap them. It takes about 40 minutes to charge a battery.
Con Can’t automatically avoid obstacles
There are no additional sensors that monitor the surroundings around the drone, so you need to be careful while operating it not to crash it against anything. This is true even when the drone is set to any of the automated modes: it can crash while following or orbiting you.
Con Videos may look shaky
Unfortunately, there’s no gimbal stabilization, so the videos may look shaky, due to strong winds or sudden maneuvers. It does make up for it with electronic image stabilization, but this doesn’t work when shooting in native 4K.
Con Almost no hardware upgrades available
The Breeze is basic and, excluding the prop guards, there are no options for any sort of upgrades on the drone.
Con Memory can't be expanded
You can’t expand this drone's memory, as there is no memory card slot. It has a built-in 14 GB memory that can store about 40 minutes of 4K video.
Con If users want a physical controller, they need to buy it separately
While the mobile app is easy to use, some may find it a bit frustrating and would prefer a physical controller, which is only available if bought separately.
Con Can't control the camera's focus settings
You cannot control the camera’s focus settings, even though you can adjust other settings, like white balance and shutter speed.
Con Unable to keep up with fast moving objects
This drone's top speeds are enough for following a walking/running person, but insufficient to keep up with anything that moves faster. In fact, this drone tops at around 11 mph, with an ascent rate of 1 m/s.
Con Flight range is insufficient for advanced users
By default, the drone can fly up to a maximum height of 30 feet and a maximum distance of 300 feet from you. While this is enough for most casual uses, professionals and film-makers will definitely be left wanting more.
