While I feel the “Follow me” mode on the I1 may not really be an appropriate flight mode for such a large semi-professional quad copter, I thought I would give it a try. It happily followed me over a distance of around 800 metres (875 yards) when I changed my direction to a compass heading by around 180 degrees. My venue was a deserted golf course near dusk, with only some kangaroos, ducks and pelicans for company. I was reasonably impressed with the I1’s ability to keep the golf cart locked into a single position, however a short uphill section quickly saw a change in the angle of view (Position 2). As the I1 used the RC as its “aiming point”, I presume the lack of an altimeter in the RC saw this variation. Autopilot, which uses the tablet’s position would possibly do a better job as some iPads and Android devices have an inbuilt altimeter or barometer. I have included a few shots of kangaroos and pelicans which shows how a slow approach, sees them interested in the I1, but not terrified.
The brief (40 second) video is at
The brief (40 second) video is at