I’ve been trying ahead to testing the DeepSpace Seeker35 for some time. I’ve genuinely beloved the Seeker3, and I used to be curious to see how this barely bigger platform would carry out. However I didn’t anticipate this compact 3.5-inch FPV drone can rival 5inch by way of pace! It additionally has all the fashionable options like DJI O4 Professional assist and GPS Rescue / Return-to-Residence. On this evaluation, I’ll break down its strengths, weaknesses, and who this drone is admittedly for.
Try my evaluation of the smaller DeepSpace Seeker3: https://oscarliang.com/deepspace-seeker3/
The place to Purchase
You will get the DeepSpace Seeker35 from:
Right here’s what within the field:
- Two units of Gemfan Hurricane 3630 tri-blade propellers (8 whole)
- 2 battery straps (similar size)
- USB-C cable
- Stickers and primary directions
- Further black aspect panels (orange panels come pre-installed)
- Digital camera mounting {hardware} (DJI O4, DJI O3, and analog digicam choices)
- Further screws and a GoPro-style mount
Specs
- Body Wheelbase: 167mm
- Flight Controller: HAKRC F722 (ICM42688-P gyro, 16MB Blackbox, barometer)
- ESC: 40A 4-in-1 BLHeli_32
- Motors: Aether 2006 2550KV
- Propellers: Gemfan 3630 triblade
- Appropriate FPV Programs: Analog / DJI O4 Professional / DJI O3
- Battery Connector: XT60
- Enter Voltage: 6S LiPo
- Beneficial Battery Vary: 6S 1050–1400mAh
- Arm Thickness: 4mm
- Weight (with DJI O4 Professional, no battery): 280g
- Weight (with 6S 1100mAh LiPo): 473g
Body Choices: Deadcat vs True-X
The Seeker35 is out there in two body variants:
- Deadcat (examined right here): The entrance arms are swept again to maintain propellers out of the digicam view—particularly helpful for broad FOV cameras just like the DJI O4 Professional.
- True-X: Sometimes most popular by hardcore freestyle pilots.
For many pilots, I like to recommend the Deadcat model. It’s merely extra versatile—nice for cinematic pictures whereas nonetheless performing very nicely for freestyle. In real-world flying, most individuals gained’t discover a significant distinction in dealing with between the 2.
Study extra about body right here: https://oscarliang.com/fpv-drone-frames/
Design and Construct High quality
The construct high quality is great—premium with out feeling delicate. A number of design decisions stood out instantly.
Aluminum Entrance Digital camera Cage
The entrance aluminum digicam cage design feels much like the Seeker3, additionally helps DJI O4 Professional, O3, and analog digicam mounting choices, so that you’re not locked right into a single FPV possibility. The digicam angle adjustment vary may be very broad (roughly 5° to 45°), which is good should you swap between relaxed cinematic cruising and quick freestyle flying.
Facet Panels
The injection-molded plastic aspect plates do extra than simply look good—they successfully protect the electronics from grime and particles. Usually, I’m not a fan of aspect panels on small quads as a result of added weight. Nonetheless, the Seeker35 has a lot energy that a couple of further grams don’t actually matter, and the added safety is helpful should you’re flying in moist or muddy situations.
DeepSpace additionally consists of two shade choices within the field, which is a pleasant contact.
Carbon Fibre Body
The carbon fibre body feels strong and robust:
- 2mm high and backside plates
- 4mm arms
The development may be very stiff and reveals no flex when twisted by hand, which is strictly what you need for each flight efficiency and sturdiness.
TPU Mounts
The antenna and GPS mounts are constructed from 3D-printed TPU and look nicely completed.
Weight
Though the Seeker35 is a 3.5-inch micro drone, it’s clearly not designed to be sub-250g. With the DJI O4 Professional put in, the quad weighs round 270g and not using a battery, and with a 6S 1100mAh LiPo, the whole weight is available in at roughly 472g.
Digital Elements
I took the quad aside to see what’s inside, there are 10 screws on the highest plate you should take away, which feels a bit extreme.
GPS Module
The GPS module is mounted beneath the entrance GoPro-style digicam mount, properly hidden away. Some folks may fear about GPS sign with a plastic cowl above it, however in my testing, GPS efficiency was completely acceptable, so it doesn’t appear to be a difficulty in follow.
That stated, I do suppose inserting the GPS beneath the GoPro mount is a nasty concept. Whereas it’s good that the GPS is positioned on the entrance, far-off from VTX antenna interference, it does introduce a possible drawback should you determine to mount an motion digicam on the entrance. Though most customers in all probability gained’t hassle with an motion cam because the DJI O4 Professional is already very succesful, including one may bodily block the GPS or introduce interference from the digicam throughout flight.
Motors
The motors are 2006 2550KV, that are in all probability the most important motors I’ve seen on a 3.5-inch drone.
Flight Controller and ESC
The Seeker35 makes use of the identical 20×20mm FC/ESC stack because the Seeker3: an F722 flight controller paired with a 40A BLHeli_32 4-in-1 ESC.
Nonetheless, on this mannequin the FC is rotated 90 levels, and I’m not a fan of this design resolution. This was possible performed to accommodate the aspect panels, which block direct entry to the USB port.
To work round this, DeepSpace added a USB extension cable, which in flip requires the FC to be rotated.
This feels a bit pointless and will trigger confusion down the road, particularly for learners who have to reconfigure the drone after flashing Betaflight firmware in a while.
One other disadvantage is the boot button, which is buried deep contained in the body behind the capacitor. Realistically, if you should press it—one thing that often is required when flashing firmware—you’ll need to partially disassemble the drone.
Total, the FC structure and accessibility aren’t as refined as on another micro BNF drones from manufacturers like SpeedyBee or GEPRC.
Energy and FPV {Hardware}
The battery connector is an XT60 (not XT30) and is mounted on to the highest plate. This can be a good design selection—there’s no dangling battery result in danger prop strikes.
The DJI O4 Professional Air Unit is mounted on the rear with quick access to each the SD card slot and USB port.
There’s additionally a buzzer built-in beneath the body, neatly tucked away, which is a intelligent and clear implementation.
The receiver is mounted inside an injection-molded plastic protector beneath the drone. This not solely protects the electronics but additionally provides to the general premium really feel of the construct.
ESC Firmware
The ESC comes preloaded with an older BLHeli_32 firmware (v32.8). In my testing, it labored high-quality and didn’t trigger any points. Nonetheless, it’s value noting that BLHeli_32 growth has formally ended, which means no future updates will likely be obtainable. You possibly can learn extra about that right here: https://oscarliang.com/end-of-blheli_32/
Solder Joints
All of the soldering work appears to be strong: motor wires on ESC, XT60 and so forth.. However I simply want they put some liquid electrical tape or glue on the XT60 joints to keep away from unintentional brief circuit.
Putting in DJI O4 Professional
The quad I obtained didn’t include FPV system, so I needed to set up the DJI O4 Professional air unit myself — however the course of is simple, right here’s a fast overview.
Take aside the drone, and take away the left aspect panel, the connector for the DJI O4 Air unit is positioned on the left aspect of the FC.
The cable for the O4 is included within the field. You possibly can depart the SBUS wire related. It’s wired to UART3 (RX3) on the FC, which isn’t used, so it shouldn’t trigger any issues. Nonetheless, should you plan to make use of UART3 for one more peripheral, make sure that to take away the SBUS wire from the harness or it may trigger conflicts.
Notice that the O4 Professional Air Unit connects to UART4, nevertheless it’s NOT configured in Betaflight. To configure it, comply with directions on this information: https://oscarliang.com/how-to-setup-dji-o4-pro/#Setup-OSD-in-Betaflight
Steps:
- Go to Presets tab, seek for “osd for dji”, choose the preset that comes up.
- Within the choices, choose “map to displayport”, “set HDOSD”, and UART4. Click on Save and Reboot button.
- Lastly, go to the OSD tab in Betaflight Configurator. Underneath Video Format, guarantee HD is chosen.
That’s it.
Flight Efficiency
DeepSpace recommends 6S batteries from 1000mAh to 1400mAh, which is basically the identical vary utilized by most 6S 5-inch freestyle drones. I examined the Seeker35 with BetaFPV Lava 6S 1100mAh and GNB 6S 1300mAh LiHV, and each proved to be wonderful choices for this quad.
Acceleration and Velocity
Hover throttle sat at round 20%, and actually, the uncooked energy feels similar to a full-size 5-inch drone. This factor is principally a mini rocket.
In my testing, the Seeker35 reached a high pace of over 170 km/h, which is definitely larger than my GEPRC Vapor 5-inch, which topped out at round 165 km/h utilizing the identical battery. I didn’t imagine it at first and repeated the take a look at 3 times, persistently getting the identical consequence. This makes it the quickest 3.5-inch quad I’ve examined to date.
Acceleration felt virtually prompt—small throttle inputs translate into massive actions. In the event you’ve by no means flown a robust 5-inch earlier than, this quad will completely shock you.
Try some flight footage:
Dealing with and Smoothness
Regardless of being extraordinarily highly effective, the Seeker35 didn’t really feel uncontrolled. It’s extremely agile and nimble, but nonetheless manageable because of a comparatively linear throttle response—till you hit full throttle, at which level it really turns right into a rocket. That stated, it doesn’t really feel fairly as exact as a 5-inch, particularly at excessive speeds.
The quad is sort of vibration-free, and with no props in view, it’s a superb platform for clean cinematic flying. It handles wind noticeably higher than the smaller Seeker3, though a full-size 5-inch nonetheless has the benefit in terms of stability in harsher situations.
Noise
Regardless of being smaller, the Seeker35 is definitely louder than my 5-inch drones. That’s not shocking given how briskly it’s. The sound may be very high-pitched, and other people inside half a mile may in all probability hear you flying.
Effectivity (Lengthy-Vary Potential)
The Seeker35 could be surprisingly environment friendly when flown gently. Nonetheless, as quickly as you begin flying aggressively, present draw ramps up shortly, so flight time relies upon closely in your flying model and throttle administration.
With a 6S 1100mAh LiPo, I used to be getting round 5 minutes of flight time whereas flying laborious and doing freestyle strikes.
I additionally examined it with a 6S 3000mAh Li-ion pack from Auline. With mild cruising, you possibly can anticipate 16-18 minutes of flight time. Cruising at 50 km/h, it needs to be able to overlaying roughly 13-14km of whole distance.
GPS and Rescue Mode
GPS lock is quick—beneath 1 minute to get an preliminary repair (round 8 satellites), with a most of 20 satellites after roughly 10 minutes.
GPS Rescue Mode is a unbelievable characteristic — it’s basically a return-to-home perform that brings your drone again to its takeoff level if you lose sign. It’s particularly worthwhile for learners and long-range pilots who need peace of thoughts in case of a failsafe or lack of orientation.
Out of the field, GPS Rescue is configured because the failsafe motion, which means it’s going to routinely activate should you lose sign. Nonetheless, it isn’t assigned to a swap within the Modes tab, so that you’ll have to set that up if you’d like to have the ability to activate it manually. In my testing, it labored reliably in open fields, however it’s best to at all times fine-tune Rescue Mode settings to fit your flying setting.
Full tutorial right here: https://oscarliang.com/setup-gps-rescue-mode-betaflight/
Present Sensor Calibration
The present sensor isn’t correctly calibrated from the manufacturing unit and considerably overestimates present draw. Setting the amperage meter scale to 275 introduced the readings a lot nearer to actuality.
Higher PID Tune
The inventory PID and filter tune on the Seeker35 is already fairly good, and most pilots will likely be completely blissful flying it straight out of the field.
If I needed to be vital, although, the inventory tune feels barely comfortable and never as snappy or locked-in as I personally favor. It’s a conservative tune, which is sensible—it’s extra forgiving of bent props and minor vibrations. That stated, there’s undoubtedly room to tighten issues up and push the PIDs and filters additional to make the quad extra responsive and higher at dealing with propwash.
Do you wish to see a customized tune? Let me know. If there’s sufficient curiosity, I’ll make one and share it on my Patreon.
Tips on how to Setup for First Flight
FC / ESC / RX Firmware:
- Flight Controller Board Goal: HAKRCF722V2(preloaded with Betaflight 4.4.3). Unique CLI Diff obtainable right here.
- ESC Firmware: BLHeli32 (Model 32.8)
- Receiver: Generic ESP8285 PA 2.4GHz RX working ExpressLRS v3.5.1
Setup Directions:
Connecting the drone to Betaflight Configurator:
- Setup the Modes Tab: Configure your arm swap, angle mode, and turtle mode. For steering, see this tutorial: https://oscarliang.com/betaflight-modes/#How-to-Setup-Arm-Change
- In Energy tab, set Amperage Meter (present sensor) scale to 275 for extra correct present / mah drawn readings.
- Setup DJI O4 in Betaflight as I discussed in “Putting in DJI O4 Professional” part.
That’s it—your Seeker3 ought to now be prepared for its maiden flight!
Right here’s the included guide, very primary and doesn’t embrace any photos, not very newbie pleasant TBH, however for skilled pilots you in all probability don’t have to learn it in any respect.
FC wiring diagram:
Closing Verdict: Ought to You Purchase the DeepSpace Seeker35?
The DeepSpace Seeker35 is among the strongest 3.5-inch quads I’ve examined to date. Construct high quality is premium, the inventory tune is strong, GPS Rescue works out of the field, and it delivers that uncommon mixture of being wildly quick whereas nonetheless feeling controllable.
In the event you’re prepared for a compact adrenaline machine that appears like a 5-inch drone in a smaller body, the Seeker35 is a simple advice.
Seeker35 vs 5-Inch
From left to proper: GEPRC Vapor 5inch, Seeker35, Seeker3
You possibly can fly the Seeker35 very like a 5-inch. It’s simply as quick—if not quicker—wonderful for aggressive flying, and able to clean cinematic pictures too. Nonetheless, it’s not going to totally change a 5-inch.
In order for you a drone that may really do every part outside, a 5-inch stays the extra versatile selection for most individuals when you’re above the 250g mark. It carries full-size motion cameras effortlessly, is extra succesful for hardcore freestyle, and tends to be extra environment friendly for cruising. With a big Li-ion battery, a 5-inch can even double as a really succesful long-range platform.
By way of noise, the Seeker35 is simply as loud as a 5-inch—if not louder—on account of its higher-pitched sound profile.
The Seeker35’s most important benefit is solely dimension.
Seeker3 vs Seeker35
Regardless of solely a 0.5-inch distinction in prop dimension and using the identical FC/ESC stack, the Seeker3 and Seeker35 belong to fully completely different lessons in terms of uncooked energy.
Left: Seeker35; Proper: Seeker3
The Seeker35 is considerably quicker and extra highly effective, basically on par with a 5-inch. In order for you a quad that’s quick and extra wind-resistant, the Seeker35 is clearly the higher selection.
Nonetheless, the load distinction is substantial. If staying beneath 250g issues to you, the Seeker3 is the apparent possibility. It’s simpler to hold, extra travel-friendly, and higher suited to flying discreetly in smaller parks. It’s additionally a lot quieter, whereas the Seeker35 is as loud as a 5-inch—if not louder.
On the subject of vary, each drones use related {hardware} (DJI O4 Professional and ELRS), so uncooked RF vary is comparable. The true limiting issue is flight time. The Seeker35 has a bonus right here since it may possibly carry bigger batteries, together with Li-ion packs. That stated, neither drone is really designed for long-range flying—if that’s your purpose, a purpose-built platform just like the Flywoo Explorer could be a more sensible choice.
Anyway, you actually can’t go fallacious with both drone actually, each provide wonderful efficiency and top-notch construct high quality—it simply comes down as to if you prioritize uncooked energy, weight or noise.
Try my evaluation of the smaller DeepSpace Seeker3: https://oscarliang.com/deepspace-seeker3/