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Ruko F11 Pro is a GPS-based camera drone that is an excellent choice for the beginners. Thanks to its reliable GPS connection, it eliminates drifting in hover mode and is extremely easy to control. In addition, the Ruko F11 Pro is a very rugged quadcopter that has no problem handling light to moderate winds.
That’s why GPS, drones are awesome for beginners. And of course, GPS, drones have a range of prices. I always recommend low cost drones like this, for starters. And then when you get really good at these type of beginner GPS drones, then move up to the the Parrot Anafi, or the Autel Evo 2, are the DJI drones like Mavic Pro 2 or Mavic Air which are still beginner drones, but in a much more professional package so that you get a professional camera with them.
Ruko F11 and Ruko F11 Pro are in essence the same drone with only a slight difference in the position of their camera – nothing else. There are also other copies of this drone under different brands and they all carry a common name in this F11 label.
Don’t expect much from this drone in terms of its camera quality but it will positively surprise you with its flying abilities.
Without further ado, let’s dive into the Ruko F11 Pro drone review.
Ruko F11 at a glance
This Ruko quadcopter will attract your attention with its compact and durable design. But you’ll be in for a big surprise as you explore it further as you discover the number of advanced features squeezed into its tiny frame.
There are no sensors on the bottom, nothing the bottom has no sensors whatsoever. It’s using GPS for everything. You can fly it indoors, but you have no positioning sensors, you press this button to turn the GPS on and off.
Ruko F11 Pro drone specs
The drone offers a maximum 1.2-km control range when using a transmitter, however, with the live video transmission, the range drops to just under 500 meters, enough for you to record far to reach landscapes.
Thanks to a microSD card slot on the camera, you can slip in a 128GB SD card to create more storage space for your files.
Key Specs | |
| Maximum Speed | 26.8 mph |
| Flight Time | 30 minutes |
| Control Range | 1.2km |
| Battery | 2500mAh Intelligent Battery |
| Camera | 4K UHD Camera 120° FOV |
Ruko F11/F11 Pro app
The app is called the SJ GPS Pro. So they’ve updated it to the word Pro.
It is pretty much the same app that we’re all used to.
Flight time
The Ruko F11 quadcopter offers 30 minutes of playing time. However, this is what you get on paper; if you test it in practice it turns out that the drone will fly for about 26 minutes, which is still fairly decent.
A spare battery is included with the purchase of the drone, giving you an unprecedented flying time of 1 hour. This is much more than any other drone in this price range and that’s why the Ruko F11 is a popular beginner drone.
The long flying time can be attributed to the 2500mAh intelligent batteries it uses. The modular battery also has a built-in charge level indicator that keeps you informed of the remaining charge.
Battery
With the standard package you get two high capacity batteries, each with a capacity of 2500mAh. These are intelligent batteries that warn you when the batteries are low. Each battery gives you about 30 minutes flying time (depending on the environment and your flying style), so you get 60 minutes flying time top. The recharging time for each battery is 210 minutes.
Camera
The F11 Pro is built with a 4K camera with no gimbal. You can adjust the camera angle with the remote control 90 degrees up or down. This can even be done in the middle of the flight. The overall ultra HD quality of the photos and videos are very good. The videos are good contrast because the color is captured down to the smallest detail. With a field of view of 120 degrees, you can capture a wide range with the camera.
This drone also has 5GHz FPV capabilities, but for that you need to download the Ruko app on your 5G capable phone. The range for the FPV live broadcast is 500 meters.
Features
- GPS module
The Ruko F11 Pro is equipped with a GPS module to expand its smart support functions and deliver stable and consistent flight performance during operation. This allows the drone to communicate with different satellites to accurately triangulate its location on the map. As a result, drift is virtually non-existent, as the drone is able to adjust its position in real time to correct any errors.
In addition, the GPS Hold function is similar to the Altitude Hold of most advanced drones today, where the GPS literally holds its position and altitude, making it easier to take videos and photos with the stability it offers.
- One Key take-off / landing
Even beginners can enjoy flying the Ruko F11 Pro with its One Key Takeoff and Landing feature that allows the pilot to forego the annoying maneuvers required for initialization or retrieval, as most novices tend to crash the drone just by trying to fly it. Plus, lazy pilots can also rejoice, with the automated function that does the hard work, so you don’t have to.
- Headless mode
Another beginner-friendly escape function is the Headless Mode. In Headless Mode, the drone can ignore its own front-end orientation and instead rely on the front-end orientation of its own pilot to fly. This makes flying the plane a simple matter, because you don’t have to keep an eye on the 3D position of the drone.
If you push the directional lever to the left, the drone will turn to the left. The same happens with the other directions, making flying a simple and easy task.
- Point of interest
This is the Orbit function of the Ruko F11 Pro. It allows the drone to select a subject of its choice and perform a 360° sweep around it, training the camera towards the subject at all times. This is useful if you want a cinematic pan around your subject – and you don’t even have to do anything except activate the mode and wait for the shot to finish.
Point of Interest has a radius of 100 meters, which is incredible because it allows you to take panoramic photos of larger subjects such as buildings and other structures.
- Return home
Even most entry-level drones nowadays feature Return to Home, but it’s good to see that the basic functions are not overlooked. The Return to Home function protects against signal loss, low battery levels and other unavoidable flight errors that can jeopardize the safety of the drone.
The way it works is simple: the drone records the initial start location and repeats it via GPS when the mode is active or started.
For solo travelers or people who just want a hands-free movie experience, without having to sacrifice anything of their shot composition. Simply set the desired subject via the smartphone app and the Ruko F11 Pro follows it at a constant distance and speed, while the subject remains in the picture. This ensures great dramatic shots, especially with a huge expanse of nature to fill the background.
Flight performance
Getting to know how well a drone performs is just about the most important part of the assessment. Since we have already briefly explained the performance of Ruko F11 Pro in the previous section. We will elaborate further on why this foldable camera drone has one of the best performances in its price range.
Ruko F11 vs F11 Pro
F11 Pro looks like the F11. Well, it is the F11. It’s the same drone with same everything. The only thing they changed was the camera in the front. It’s got a big ball up front and the camera is like a nice 2k.
Ruko F11 vs Mavic Mini
This question pops up quite often since there is only around $100 difference in price between these two drones. However, when we compare overall quality, both in terms of videography and flight performance – these two do not belong in the same sentence as Mavic Mini is far ahead of Ruko F11.
Mavic Mini has far better video and photo quality, it has gimbal stabilization and a better camera angle view. Ruko F11 can keep up with the Mini when it comes to flying performance, even though it does fall short a bit in this category as well. It has a shorter flying time, lower highest speed and shorter range.
Final verdict
This is an excellent bird for the money you pay. Most complain about no gimbal, I am ok with it. Some also complain about the 120 degree FOV, I can live with it. No software updates, no geo fencing.
Great starter drone. Once you master smooth flying videos with this drone you’ll be a pro when you upgrade to one with a gimbal.
On the flip side, it flies really nicely but the video is a bit fish eyed and it loses transmission signal quite often.
Ruko has no sensors hence you got to be that much more careful when flying. Ruko does not have a gimbal, camera is fixed on the drone. You can still move it up and down vertically. No lateral movement though. Which means, unless you turn the drone onto the side you want to picture you cannot get that angle. Video is extremely shaky.
It’s also not too fast, even on the highest speed setting. Overall, great flyer. I highly recommend it as a starter drone and if all you want to do is get in the air then this is a drone for you. If you’re looking for quality footage and stability I’d save your money for something better like Mavic Mini, Hubsan Zino 2 or SG906 2 Pro.
