Best Drone Landing Pads (To Bring It Home Safely)
Taking off and landing a drone from the pavement or a road is easy. But we all know that such smooth terrain is not always available when you are out taking those epic drone videos.
Sure, you can always look for a nice flat rock to take off from, or even use the smooth sand on the beach, but it’s not the best option and landing can often be a big issue.
That is where drone landing pads save the day. They give you a largely smooth and flat surface to take off from and land on as well as a nice target for the drone to find when it comes time to land. And they are pretty darn cheap too, which leaves you with almost no excuse, right?
But there are so many landing pads out there, which ones are worth buying?
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Best Drone Landing Pads
30 Inch Landing Pads FSLabs 30 Inch Landing Pad
FSLabs have produced a solid landing pad in two easy-to-see colors: orange and blue.
It comes with all the features you need:
- 30-inch width suitable for most drones
- Waterproof
- Collapsable with a carry bag (12 inches)
- Stakes for windy conditions
- Reflective strips for night flying
Pros
- Bright and easy to see for the precise return home
- Easy to collapse and carry at only 12 inches
- Heavy enough on its own to avoid wind, but also comes with stakes in the case
- Optional reflective tape for those wanting to fly at night
Cons
- Stakes are a little too long and might cause issues with hitting the propeller (can buy smaller ones in outdoor/camping store)
Product Information
- Product Weight: 12 ounces
- Landing Pad Width: 30 inches
- Collapsed Width: 12 inches
- Material: Nylon
KINBON 30 Inch Landing Pad
The KINBON landing pad is again quite similar to the other 30 inch pads in this review, except for two things:
The design: it is quite colorful.
It comes with reflective strips that are really great for night flying.
Otherwise, most of the features are standard, but also well made
- 30-inch width
- Waterproof Nylon material
- Collapsable with a carry bag
- Pegs down windy conditions
- Light strip for night flying
Pros
- Well made and sits well even with strong down-draft from drone
- Collapse and carry in own bag
- Easy to peg down when windy
- Great light strip for night flying
Cons
- Difficult to collapse without a little practice
Product Information
- Product Weight: 12.3 oz
- Landing Pad Width: 30 inches
- Collapsed Width: 11' '/ 28cm.
- Material: Nylon
SYMIK LP500E Drone Landing Pad
SYMIK LP500E Drone Landing Pad is a very light and simple pad that is super visible with its bright red design.
It does not seem to be as high a quality as the other pads in this review. It is very light and can easily blow away. The manufacturer has not provided stakes, so although it will sit on the ground in light winds, if you live in very windy areas it is not going to stay put for long.
It comes with only some of the standard features you would expect:
- Size: 20 inch x 20 inch
- Storage pouch included
- Folds down quite small
Pros
- Bright and easy to see
- Reasonably lightweight
- Decent size at 20"
Cons
- No stakes for windy conditions
- Not round
Product Information
- Product Weight: 11.9 oz / 339g
- Landing Pad Width: 20 inches
Hoodman 60 inch Landing Pad
This is more of a pro-level landing pad for those that want a large landing surface and high visibility. It is also one of the most high-quality (and price) pads you will find.
This baby is 5ft wide (1.5m) and only collapses down to 20 inches, so it will definitely not squeeze into a backpack :>
It comes with all the standard features:
- 5ft width (collapses to 20″)
- Collapsable with a carry bag (20 inches)
- Weighted rim keeps it down in high winds (weighs 11lb in total)
Pros
- Highly visible
- Heavy enough on its own to not need pegs
- Perfect for pro drone flyers wanting to highlight their landing zone
Cons
- A bit cumbersome and difficult to collapse (video available from the manufacturer to help)
- Heavy and large to transport
- A bit pricey
Product Information
- Product Weight: 10.3 lb
- Landing Pad Width: 5 ft
- Collapsed Width: 20 inches
Clover Hand Landing Pad
I wanted to share this one as it is quite a new idea and not often seen on the market. A Hand landing pad.
Since a few of the latest Selfie-style drones have hand landing, this is not a bad idea. Hand catching scares a lot of people due to the blades, and this might help.
It slides onto your fingers and provides a bright and easily visible pad for your drone to take off and land on.
Pros
- Highly visible
- Safer to land on your hand
- Small and portable
Cons
- Makes hand landing a little more complex
- Another thing you have to carry around.
Choosing The Perfect Landing Pad
Not all landing pads are created equal and you want to be sure you don’t waste your money on a bad one.
The following are things you want to look out for:
Overall Size / Foldable Size
Depending on what kind of drone you are using, a 30 inch is usually more than large enough a target for any drone to land on. But, there are far larger pads for those that need them.
Don’t forget a lot of the smarter drones take a snapshot of the ground so they will be super accurate in any case. That is why a landing pad helps (it stands out from the background).
Also, have a think about how you are going to carry this thing. Do you have a case or bag for your drone? Will it fit in.
Some of them are as small as 12 inches when collapsed, while others will have to be carried separately.
Wind Resistance
Your lightweight landing pad can always blow away so having a way to secure it to the ground is key. Most are heavy enough to stay put in light wind conditions, but if you fly in more windy places this is key. (The Hoodman is an exception as it is quite heavy and stays in place on its own).
- Springs Automatically into Shape
- Prevents Dust and Debris Being Kicked Up, High-Visibility Orange
This usually involves a simple stake and tie system like with a tent, so consider the ground you might have to push the stakes into as well.
Water Resistance
I know you are not going to take off or land from the ocean :> But seriously, water is an issue.
The ground can often be wet – wet sand on beaches, morning dew on the grass, flying after rain. And you don’t want your drone to get wet (unless you have an awesome waterproof one!)
Night Flying
Some of the landing pads come with reflective strips which might help with night landing (provided you have lights) but the FlatHat also comes with a light strip you can add to the perimeter of the landing pad which is quite a cool idea.
- 【Waterproof Premium Material】Made of high quality waterproof Nylon material with lightweight, Open Size: 30''/75cm, Fold Size: 11''/28cm. Double sided high-precision printing, and sun protection, not easy to fade. Very waterproof and durable for use, easy to fold and fast-fold.
- 【Universal Drone Landing Pad】The 30" universal drone landing pad with double sided, which is perfectly fit for RC Drones Helicopter, PVB Drones, DJI Mavic Pro Phantom 2/3/4/ Pro, DJI Inspire 2/1, 3DR Solo drone, Gopro Kama, Antel Robotic X-star, Parrot drone, and more.
Which Is The Best Landing Pad?
The biggest choice upfront is how big do you need. If you are flying as a hobbyist, the 30-inch options are perfect, while a pro will definitely go for the Hoodman and a smaller drone owner (like the Spark) might want to try the Clover palm landing pad.
- Springs Automatically into Shape
- Prevents Dust and Debris Being Kicked Up, High-Visibility Orange
- Palm Landing Pad for SPARK
- [ Mini size ] Convenient to take ; Very suitable for SPARK taking off or landing
As far as the rest of the options go, there are only a few other things I want to mention:
Wind resistance – the Hoodman kick’s ass here as it is super heavy and you don’t need to stake it down. But it’s big and heavy to carry around for anyone wanting to be portable or travel.
Most of the 30 inches are light and easy to collapse (once you learn how) so will be ok in light winds (except the Big D – which I don’t think I will recommend). However, the majority of them need staking down in wind.
And for those that are considering night flying, I would go for the KINBON 30 Inch as it is the only one with the cool light strip to help highlight your landing pad even in the dark.
- 【Waterproof Premium Material】Made of high quality waterproof Nylon material with lightweight, Open Size: 30''/75cm, Fold Size: 11''/28cm. Double sided high-precision printing, and sun protection, not easy to fade. Very waterproof and durable for use, easy to fold and fast-fold.
- 【Universal Drone Landing Pad】The 30" universal drone landing pad with double sided, which is perfectly fit for RC Drones Helicopter, PVB Drones, DJI Mavic Pro Phantom 2/3/4/ Pro, DJI Inspire 2/1, 3DR Solo drone, Gopro Kama, Antel Robotic X-star, Parrot drone, and more.
For the rest, you can’t go wrong with a landing pad that simply helps you land and take off in less than ideal terrain and locate your landing spot with ease :>
