current status and working features

[jpg75]

Hi,
I would just like to ask you something and not to point out a sw issue.
I am going to decide between an ar-drone2 or a bebop(1) as my first drone. I want to play with autonomous behavior based on image recognition.
Of course, I am more towards the bebop, but software is everything and I want to stay with python (no nodejs). Thus, I would need some practical info about your sw status in order to decide about the hardware.

How is the current state of katarina? Basically, what is working and what is not?
Can you compare the features available in Heidi (AR-d2) to the ones in Katarina?
Can you make also any comparison to the PS-Drone module (AR-d2)?

Essentially, the previous questions ca be condensed as: can you do more with an Ar-Drone2 rather than with a Bebop using python? And if the answer is yes, which features are missing for the bebop?

Any info is very welcome!
Thanks in advance.

[m3d]

Hi,
the hardware of Bebop/ARDrone3 is superior to ARDrone2, especially if you want to use GPS and fly outdoor. On the other hand the API of old ARDrone2 is much better - it is fully opened, you can read raw sensor status etc. For example for me it was impossible to fly 1m above the ground ... simply becase Bebop does not send such a info :(.

For the first project I would probably recommend ARDrone2, get some experience = break it, and then maybe buy more expensive Bebop. Maybe the important question is what would you need the drone to do?

[jpg75]

m3d, thanks for your comment, very appreciated.
The idea is using the drone for (1) pure fun, such as FPV flight in the countryside with laptop-ps3controller and outdoor wifi antenna and (2) geek fun. In particular, I would like to use it in a sort of "autonomous interceptor": flight over the property, possibly avoiding obstacles or using a pre-built route, looking for people (or other objects). When people is detected, the drone can go closer trying to identify faces.

I agree, the bebop hw rocks, but I guess most of its power is devoted to manage the fisheye camera. Its video quality is much better, but the streamed video for FPV is standard def for both bebop and AR2, as far as I know.
Since the AR2 can mount the GPS module I hope its flight performance to be similar to the bebop in this case. For playing (2) I really need the full SDK2 API. It is a pity that the SDK3 is so bad and obscure.
My only real concern is the weaker radio.