I actually preferred the Firefly20, and on the identical product web page Flywoo additionally gives the Firefly25 variant, which is mainly the identical quad however with a barely greater body and a pair of.5-inch props. After flying each, it actually makes me query the existence of the Firefly20, as a result of the Firefly25 simply appears to do all the pieces higher. Let me clarify on this assessment.
Take a look at my unique assessment of the Firefly 20 Professional: https://oscarliang.com/flywoo-firefly-20-pro/
The place to Purchase
Get the Firefly 25 Mini from:
Within the field it comes with these equipment.
Specs
- Designed for DJI O4 Professional Air Unit
- FC / ESC Board: GOKU F405 SE 20A AIO
- Gyroscope: ICM-42688-P
- Flash Reminiscence for Blackbox: 8MB
- Receiver: Flywoo EL24E ExpressLRS 2.4GHz
- Motors: ROBO 1303 6000KV
- Propellers: Gemfan 2520-3 3 Blade 1.5mm shaft
- Battery Connector: XT30
- Advisable Battery: 3S 550mAh / 750mAh / 1000mAh LiHV
- Claimed Flight Occasions
- 3S 1000mAh: 12 min 30 sec
- 3S 750mAh: 9 min 30 sec
- 3S 550mAh: 8 min
- Claimed Max Pace: 95km/h
- Weight (excluding battery): 113.5g claimed, 114.8g measured
Design and Construct High quality
From the skin, the Firefly 25 Mini appears so just like the Firefly 20 Professional that it’s simple to mistake one for the opposite. One makes use of 2.5-inch propellers, whereas the opposite makes use of 2-inch props, however the distinction in general dimension isn’t that huge.
Left: Firefly 20; Proper: Firefly 25
The Firefly 25 Mini additionally makes use of precisely the identical parts because the Firefly 20 Professional. The one variations are the marginally greater body and bigger propellers.
Regardless of the small distinction in prop dimension, the result’s a giant distinction in flight efficiency and general management really feel. The Firefly25 is considerably extra environment friendly and gives for much longer flight time — virtually 50% extra.
There’s a catch although. Not like the Firefly20, Flywoo solely recommends 3S batteries for the Firefly25, as 4S is likely to be a bit an excessive amount of.
On 3S, the Firefly25 feels noticeably much less agile and slower, which makes it extra suited to easy cinematic cruising and long-endurance flying. That stated, it could nonetheless do loads of freestyle strikes similar to its smaller brother, simply with a much less aggressive and fewer nimble really feel general.
No GPS
The dearth of GPS on the Firefly 25 Mini means it turns into riskier the farther you fly, particularly when it’s carrying an costly DJI O4 Professional. So it’s higher suited to close-range or indoor flying, the place you may nonetheless simply retrieve the drone after a crash.
That stated, the flight controller has a devoted port for a GPS module, so set up is straightforward in order for you options like Rescue Mode or Place Maintain.
I just lately examined fairly a couple of GPS modules, and for a micro drone just like the Firefly25, these are some good choices:
NewBeeDrone M10Q Micro
FlyFishRC M10 Mini:
Cyclone M10:
Beeper
It’s good to know the Firefly 25 Professional has a bodily buzzer positioned beneath the flight controller (built-in into the FC itself). It makes a giant distinction if you crash and lose your drone in tall grass. Micro quads this small don’t generally include a correct beeper, so you’d usually need to depend on the motors beeping by DShot Beacon. However that’s normally very quiet, which makes it a lot tougher to search out your quad. With an actual buzzer, it’s a lot simpler to find the Firefly 25 Mini.
Utilizing 4S Battery?
As talked about, the Firefly 20 and 25 use virtually the identical parts, so how come the 20 runs 4S whereas the 25 can solely runs 3S? That comes right down to prop dimension. The bigger 2.5-inch props draw rather more energy.
For reference, with 2.5-inch props on 4S, max present draw is round 55A. On 2-inch props, it’s only round 40A, so the distinction is sort of vital.
That’s the reason Flywoo recommends 3S, to keep away from overheating and placing an excessive amount of stress on the ESC and motors.
With that stated, it’s totally potential to run 4S on the Firefly25 by decreasing Motor Output Restrict to one thing like 75% or 80%. With out making this adjustment, the motors would possibly get scorching, which may result in lowered energy and effectivity. Within the worst case, it might even burn out the motors.
Alternatively, you may merely swap the two.5inch props for 2-inch when operating a 4S battery, whereas maintaining Motor Output Restrict at 100%.
Battery Decisions
These are the batteries I examined. You should purchase them right here:
Firefly25 vs Firefly20
Frankly, the dimensions and weight variations between these two fashions are so small that it actually makes me query the purpose of the Firefly20.
Though the Firefly20 flies nice and I actually prefer it, the Firefly25 is simply a lot extra versatile.
As an example, in order for you an environment friendly long-range cruiser, simply use the two.5-inch props with a big 3S battery. And in order for you a quick and aggressive freestyle ripper, simply put a 4S battery on it and cut back Motor Output Restrict in Betaflight to 75% or 80%. Or just swap to 2-inch props, which successfully turns the Firefly25 right into a Firefly20. 🙂
Flight Efficiency
Respectable PID Tune, however Lacks Refinement
Each Firefly25 and Firefly20 share the very same PID and filter tune. Whereas it does work and flies fairly nicely and easily out of the field, I might anticipate a extra personalised tune for the Firefly25, as a result of it’s designed for a somewhat completely different flight model.
Extraordinary Flight Time
Flywoo’s formidable declare of 12.5 minutes of flight time on a 3S 1000mAh battery turned out to be actual.
That could be very spectacular for a micro drone this small. Even with this huge battery, the drone nonetheless feels comparatively nimble.
With a smaller 3S 750mAh, I used to be getting round 8 minutes of flight time (cruising).
The Firefly25 additionally handles wind higher than the Firefly20. I used to be flying it once more in 16 mph wind, and it felt extra steady and smoother. The larger props actually do make a distinction.
Nevertheless, on 3S, cruising pace is sort of gradual. Management feels a bit of sloppy and lazy. But when your purpose is environment friendly, relaxed cruising, it’s nonetheless completely flyable.
This is sensible, actually. All of it comes right down to the speed of RPM change. Bigger props are tougher to spin up and decelerate (for a similar motor), in order that they really feel much less responsive. Then again, smaller props spin at greater RPM, which provides you a higher-pitched noise, however they’re additionally much less environment friendly. These are the trade-offs.
With 3S, high pace is round 100–110 km/h primarily based on my estimate.
Not Superb for Lengthy Vary
Though the product web page states the Firefly25 is for “lengthy vary”, I don’t assume it’s your best option for long-range flying, no less than not in its unique type.
Positive, it has lengthy flight time, however the actual bottleneck is the best way the RX antenna is mounted. It sits behind the body and battery, so if you fly again towards your self, the sign might get blocked.
See the screenshots under: the RSSI_dBm worth is excessive when the quad is flying away, as a result of the antenna has line of sight to the transmitter, nevertheless it all of a sudden drops considerably when the quad turns round and the antenna turns into blocked.
I’ve not examined most vary since this quad doesn’t have GPS, however primarily based on my estimate, you may anticipate as much as round 1.5 km of most vary at 250Hz packet charge. It might go farther in the event you use a decrease packet charge.
For most individuals flying micro quads in native parks, although, I suppose that’s greater than sufficient vary.
In case your purpose is lengthy vary on a micro quad, it’s best to actually take a look at the Flywoo Explorer: https://oscarliang.com/flywoo-explorer-lr4-o4-pro/
How Does It Deal with on 4S?
It’s completely AWESOME on 4S! The quad actually comes alive. It appears like a completely completely different machine — so punchy and agile. Throttle is extremely responsive, simply very enjoyable to fly.
As talked about, Flywoo doesn’t advocate utilizing 4S on the Firefly25. Should you resolve to make use of 4S, achieve this at your personal threat.
The primary time I examined 4S on this quad with out making any changes (inventory tune and a pair of.5-inch props), I observed some trilling oscillation. That precipitated the motors to get heat after a flight, despite the fact that the ambient temperature was solely 10°C, which suggests it could be reaching its restrict. Tuning didn’t actually assist both.
To keep away from burning the motors, I might strongly advocate decreasing Motor Output Restrict to 80% no less than, if you wish to attempt 4S. In truth, that additionally eradicated trilling oscillation for me, which is one other bonus. It does barely cut back efficiency and responsiveness, nevertheless it nonetheless feels snappier than 3S.
4S with 2-Inch Props
With out altering any Betaflight settings, you may run 4S just by utilizing 2-inch props — the identical props that include the Firefly20 (Gemfan 2023-3, 3-blade, 1.5mm shaft).
This successfully turns the Firefly25 right into a Firefly20. I might say it flies about 90% the identical. It could be a tiny bit much less snappy in sharp turns and through flips and rolls, and a bit extra propwash, most likely because of the barely bigger body (the motors are farther away from the middle of gravity).
That actually made me surprise: what’s even the purpose of the Firefly 20? 🙂 The dimensions distinction is so small anyway.
How Loud Is It?
The Firefly 25 is about as loud because the Firefly 20 when utilizing the identical battery voltage, however the lower-pitched sound profile makes it barely much less annoying.
PID and Filter Tuning
The PID and filter settings are tuned on the manufacturing facility, however in my view the tune is fairly conservative and positively has room for enchancment.
It additionally runs an older model of Betaflight, so earlier than I tuned it, I up to date it to the newest model (2025.12.2). If you’re already proud of the way it flies, I might keep away from updating Betaflight as a result of you would need to set all the pieces up once more from scratch.
I’ll share my customized PID and filter tune on my Patreon shortly, together with screenshots of all of the settings I modified: TBA
My customized tune is for 4S, nevertheless it also needs to work fantastic on 3S in the event you restore Motor Output Restrict to 100%.
Putting in DJI O4 Professional
The quad I’m reviewing doesn’t include the DJI O4 Professional, so I needed to set up my very own.
Though it’s a easy course of, I want it got here with extra detailed directions, or no less than some data on which screws ought to be used for what. I believe that will be particularly helpful for newbies and assist keep away from confusion.
The best way to Setup For First Flight
Firmware
- The flight controller (FC) board goal is FLYWOOF405S_AIO, and it comes preloaded with Betaflight firmware model 4.5.1. For inventory CLI Diff, see right here.
- ESC Firmware: Bluejay G-H-30, 0.19, 48kHz
- ELRS Receiver Firmware Goal: Flywoo EL24E, doesn’t specify what model, nevertheless it binds with radio on V3 firmware
- The quad runs props out (motors reversed).
Steps to Setup
- Bind the ELRS receiver (linked to UART3) – Element tutorial: https://oscarliang.com/bind-expresslrs-receivers/
- In Preset tab, search and cargo the ExpressLRS preset that matches your packet charge – Directions: https://oscarliang.com/rc-link-preset-betaflight/
- In PID Tuning tab, arrange charges in response to your desire – My Charges: https://oscarliang.com/charges/#My-Charges
- In Receiver tab, allow Telemetry. Roll and pitch channels jumps a tiny bit, so setting deadband (each RC and Yaw) to three may help forestall jitters
- In Modes tab, setup arm swap, Angle mode, Turtle mode, Beeper, and so forth.): https://oscarliang.com/betaflight-modes/#How-to-Setup-Arm-Change
- In OSD tab, beneath Video Format, choose HD. Then setup OSD parts, or you may copy my CLI traces: https://oscarliang.com/betaflight-osd/#My-OSD-Setup-CLI-Instructions
- Pair the DJI O4 Air Unit together with your goggles (linked to UART6) – Information: https://oscarliang.com/how-to-setup-dji-o4-pro/#Pairing-DJI-Goggles-3-with-O4-Air-Unit-Professional
- In Energy & Battery tab, I lowered Amperage Meter Scale from 170 to 165.
Conclusion: Ought to You Get the Firefly 25 or 20?
When utilizing 3S, the road between the Firefly25 and Firefly20 is evident: one is designed for aggressive flying, whereas the opposite is designed for long-endurance cruising. However as quickly as you place 4S on the Firefly25, that line begins to blur. It will possibly now do just about all the pieces the 20 can do, and in some methods do it higher.
Get the Firefly 25 Mini from:
I don’t absolutely perceive why Flywoo launched two fashions which are so comparable. Possibly they’re merely making an attempt to throw all the pieces on the wall and see what sticks. For purchasers, which may really be a very good factor as a result of it provides us extra choices. However general, I desire the Firefly25, and it could be the higher alternative for people who find themselves nonetheless deciding between the 2.
Don’t get me fallacious, the Firefly20 is a unbelievable micro drone. Should you merely desire a small 2-inch freestyle ripper, you’ll not be upset. However in order for you a flexible micro quad that may do a little bit of all the pieces simply by altering props or battery, the Firefly25 appears to be the higher possibility. And actually, the dimensions distinction is so small that they’re virtually like twins. I generally even get them blended up and decide up the fallacious one. 🙂