Thirteen Years of Drones

Digging through old computer backups is a great time. You get to launch apps you forgot existed, find strange files left over from long-abandoned rabbit holes, and, of course, look at priceless pictures of times past.

While going through my old drone pictures, I realized that almost none of my other hobbies have changed as much as drones have.

My first one (2013)

The backyard, from about twenty feet up

That’s 9-year-old me! This was a few days after I got my Spycat Helicopter. It had already been smashed into every side of the house and most of the trees in the yard, but boy, was that a fun summer.

I caught the tail end of the helicopter hobby. By then, most pilots had already moved on to quadcopters. I was completely oblivious to this and just enjoyed flying whatever I had.

Tiny drones! (2016)

0:03 Attempting to land the drone in my palm

0:09 Notice the two drones and a rocket in the background

By 2016 I had collected a few 5-inch quadcopters, but the hype was all about making them smaller. The prospect of flying indoors was awesome, especially for someone living in a four-season climate.

Mini drone

Mine was the CX-10. I went through at least 200 battery packs on that thing.

The FPV era (2018)

Around 2018, FPV started going mainstream, and the Drone Racing League (DRL) was picking up steam fast. This is where I started flying sims. I, along with many of my friends, suddenly felt like pursuing a career as a drone pilot. I began flying daily in DRLSim, practicing my moves on a track, hoping to one day be able to afford (crashing) the real thing.

The ATOM 2 (2026)

In 2026, I moved to SF to pursue a software internship. Once I got there, I fell in love with California’s nature scenes and SF’s low-rise city life. I needed a drone to capture it all.

I picked the ATOM 2 because it’s sub-250g so no registration, folds into a jacket pocket, shoots DNG, and comes in at $400 USD.