Force1 U49WF Review: A Variety of Features at a Low Price

Technology has seen so many advancements over the past few years that what was only possible on industrial and military applications are now possible to use on a daily basis.

Drones are miniaturized technological wonders have been repurposed for niche applications, with leisure being one of them.

That being said, not every drone out there is equipped with the right mix of features for enjoyment and learning. Such is life when your selection catalog is comprised of many sub-par offerings in the market.

But even if the affordable section of electronic goods doesn’t seem too appealing to those who want a good and enjoyable experience in drone flying, some models stand out from the rest, like the Force1 U49WF.

What value does this model bring to the table, though? Read on and find out in this thorough Force1 U49WF review.

Quick Specs

Weight	Unloaded: 460 grams
Size	Length: 15 in Width: 14 in Height: 5.5 in
Speed	3 speed modes
Signal	Range:~150 meters Operational Frequency: 2.4 GHz
Battery	Flight time: ~13 minutes Capacity: 1000 mAh
Recording	Camera: 720p HD, 120° FoV

Force1 U49WF Features

One Key Takeoff And Landing

For the first cut of features, the Force1 U49WF immediately gets it right by including the One Key Takeoff and Landing function that is often overlooked by manufacturers on their toy-grade drones.

This makes launching and setting the drone down easier, as the dedicated button commands the drone to automatically do a pre-programmed maneuver, whichever is fit for the situation. This rids the need for the pilot to manually move the drone, which may end up ugly for newbie pilots. Talk about shattered aspirations and low self-esteem resulting from this.

Those who have aerial flight skills but are lazy enough to want to rely on more simple operations are also welcome to the party.

Headless Mode

Another feature ticked in our must-have checklist is the inclusion of a Headless Mode. Headless Mode “dumbs down” the control schematic of the drone to allow amateurs to learn the ropes quite easily.

The drone does this by ignoring its current front-end’s orientation completely, and instead gives the pilot full control of its positioning by basing on his/her own’s front-end.

This allows the pilot to fly the drone without taking its position on the 3D axis into account, as it will respond to control inputs in a straightforward manner, regardless of where the drone is facing. Kinda hard to visualize, but once you actually try the mode, you’ll be thankful it’s there.

Altitude Hold

A neat extra flight feature is the included Altitude Hold. Simply put, the drone will hover in place in the push of a button, perfect for selfies or videos if you need a stable platform, or to simply park the drone mid-air without having the need to ground it.

Altitude Hold isn’t all that effective with the drone though, as it slightly drifts even when the mode is on, making it rather unreliable for the aforementioned cinematographic assistance.

3D Flips

Of course, what would a toy drone be without the ever-so-essential 360° flips?

It seems that this feature has been the coveted selling point of hobby-level drones that some manufacturers opt to include it and completely forgo other important functions. Good on Force1 to include those vital flight features on this bird, though.

This mode is activated by another dedicated button and is initiated when you push the control lever towards any direction, the drone following it with a complete acrobatic barrel roll mid-air before returning to its upright orientation.

Battery Life

The Force1 U49WF has a 1000 mAh battery that supplies it with up to 13 minutes of uninterrupted flight time, more or less. This is pretty decent considering the less than $100 price bracket this UAV fits in, as most of its competitors can only brag around 8-10 minutes in the air before saying goodnight.

If this ain’t enough for you, Force1 is kind enough to include a spare in the kit to effectively double your flight time out of the box.

You can also purchase additional packs online if the 2-hour charging time puts you off.

Camera

The Force1 U49WF sports a 720p HD camera with a wide-angle lens that offers up to 120° field of view.

While 1080p seems to be the modern standard in video and photo capture nowadays, the price range that this UAV belongs to doesn’t really permit such design variation to be possible, unless they were going for an unbalanced spec allocation.

That being said, the optics unit on this bird isn’t half bad.

Decent photos and videos can be had for cheap, as the camera captures a great level of detail at this price range.

Of course, you are limited in terms of manual options such as contrast and saturation which impacts the way colors are rendered, but fret not, for as long as you have the right amount of light on your side, your shots are bound to turn out pretty great.

You also have the option to access the live FPV feed with the help of the FlyingSee smartphone app, giving you a better view of things from where you stand. You can even use VR goggles for a more holistic, first-person immersion while piloting the craft.

Controller

The Force1 U49WF has a professional-looking controller that is quite a handful to grab, albeit being very comfortable once held.

It features the same layout as those of its contemporaries, as the remote control unit is probably an OEM rebrand of sorts. Still, it functions quite well for what the drone has to offer in terms of functions.

You can outfit the controller with a smartphone thanks to the built-in holder to give you better access to the FPV feature it offers.

All in all, we really have nothing to say about it except that we appreciate the simple and minimalistic route Force1 went with.

Design and Build Quality

The U49WF goes with a quadcopter design but is aesthetically unique from the usual droves of UAVs as it has an integrated propeller guard around all four blades, making it look a little like a 4-pack case of beers.

Force1 claims that the drone is made from carbon fiber material. We have some doubts around this considering the price, but it is definitely rugged and capable of withstanding a few bumps and crashes.

The drone’s landing gear is also designed to offer an extra space allowance for the camera unit which hangs just below the drone’s belly, keeping it safe from damage when settling on surfaces for landing maneuvers.

Performance

This is a capable flier despite its flimsy outward appearance, giving similarly-priced drones a run for their money with its degree of response to control inputs at a range limit of 150 meters.

Furthermore, the drone offers three speed levels you can choose from, either with the lowest speed setting and sensitivity for a safe flying experience, or the maxed out end of the spectrum for unhinged speeds and top maneuverability.

You can even tweak your control settings even further with the help of the trimming options on the drone. This allows you to tune in the degree of control you have over the drone’s turning abilities, which you can mix and match with your speed level of choice.

Stability is taken care of the drone’s 6-axis gyroscope, which takes the basic balancing capabilities offered by the standard sensor configuration to another level with its redundancy, resulting in a more stable drone as a whole. But we really can’t pinpoint if this is causing the craft to drift while on hover mode, though, as its stability while in flight is generally on the okay side.

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for an affordable drone that can provide you the basic functionalities that you’d typically expect, along with nifty features that can be of benefit to beginner and experienced pilots alike, then the Force1 U49WF could be for you.

As we’ve reviewed a handful of entry-level drones in the past months already, the good and the bad have been revealed from their hiding places and treated with utmost equality, as we only want the best for our readers. And from what we’ve found, some brands just shamelessly stick in almost useless features (see: 3D flips) in lieu of vital user-friendly functions.

A collective sigh of relief was heard when we learned of the U49WF’s arsenal of features, though — proof that some manufacturers still care about their customers getting their well-deserved initiation to drone-flying.

So if you’re in the market for a great flying companion that can give you the time of your life without hurting your pockets like a sucker, the Force1 U49WF definitely gets our seal of approval.

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