Eachine E58: airs of mini Mavic Pro

Presentation

The promise is beautiful, Eachine highlights on its official website the shooting capabilities of its E58 quadrotor. With its air of mini Mavic Pro, one can easily be seduced by the proposal. Except that at less than 100 € - when the DJI camera drone costs ten times more -, we can still suspect that there is eel under rock. Suspicions that are accentuated when we take a closer look at the technical sheet of the device which announces the presence of a modest 720p non-stabilized camera and a range of between 7 and 9 minutes. The device weighing less than 100 g, we suspect that it does not box in the same category as a Mavic Pro, but still we must be well aware. So let's see what this E58 really has in store for us.

Note that the manufacturer is currently offering a 15% discount on its E58 pack sold with 3 batteries at Amazon, with the code D6878FOJ to be applied in the basket before validation of the order. Be careful however, other merchants also seem to regularly offer promotions on this model. Better to take a close look at our pricing table below.

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Getting started

It looks like a Mavic Pro, folds out like a Mavic Pro, but actually doesn't have much of a Mavic Pro. The small E58 quadrotor measures only 12.5 x 7 x 5 cm when folded. It is a compact device that can easily be slipped into a bag or a large pocket, for example.

Once unfolded, it enters a rectangle of 18 x 15.5 cm (26 x 23.5 cm counting the propellers) and finally occupies a larger volume than the DJI Spark. We will however compare it more readily to a mini-drone in terms of uses, such as the Parrot Mambo which measures about fifteen centimeters on its side; in this case, the Eachine E58 immediately seems more imposing.

The Mavic Pro, for its part, measures rather 24 cm in side when unfolded. Above all, we realize that the E58 is ultimately just a toy when we look at its manufacturing quality. The plastics are fine, flexible and the finishes rather sketchy. The device, however, keeps a nice look and resisted the inevitable crashes rather well during our tests. On the other hand, the small plastic supports simply clipped under the front engines come off too easily and will soon disappear in nature.

Optional hulls are supplied with the quad and are also clipped under the engines. They protect the propellers, especially if you are flying indoors. Protection is effective, but watch out for furniture, plants and accessories, since the device remains much more cumbersome and heavier than a Tiny Whoop quadrotor and can do damage. We also avoid having fun flying near people or animals, the propellers can injure.

The E58 is controlled with a small radio control imitating, as you can imagine, the one supplied with the Mavic Pro. Even more than for the drone, we are really talking about a simple resemblance here as the manufacturing quality is a thousand miles from that offered by DJI devices. Again no surprise, this is a toy. The rough plastic is really low-end, but the assembly is correct and there is no fear of breaking the radio control. The smartphone support, on the other hand, still seems fragile and you have to be tricky so that the edge buttons of the mobile are not pressed, due to the lack of space provided in the lower edge of the radio. In general, this support is not very practical and does not inspire confidence.

The pairing between drone and radio is simple, just turn on the first and then the second and quickly move the left stick up and down. You can then use the automatic takeoff and landing, automatic return, emergency stop, flight speed selection or automatic barrel buttons.

It is also possible to control this quadrotor via the touch interface offered by the Eachine FPV application, but the connection then operates via Wi-Fi and not via the 2.4 GHz radio module integrated into the drone. The latency is then higher. The radio control can nevertheless be used in conjunction with the smartphone, the latter being essential for viewing the video captured by the drone's 720p camera.

As far as the application is concerned, we note that it is very similar to others used for first-price drones, such as PNJ devices. It does not shine by its clarity, just having the icons at the top right of the screen, without us really knowing what they can be used for if we haven't read the d mode. 'employment.

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Flight

Takeoff of the Eachine E58 is done by simply pressing the dedicated button on the remote control and the touch interface. The device then automatically positions itself about 1 m above its starting point. Since it does not incorporate specific sensors, unfortunately it cannot remain in a fixed position, especially if there is a little wind. You must remain ready to control it and adjust its position with the trimmers of the radio control if it drifts. Only the height does not vary too much, reflecting its mode of operation. Indeed, the left stick does not act directly on the gases, but allows to raise or lower the drone; as soon as it is released, it returns to its central position as on a joystick and the drone remains at the desired height. Steering is thus simplified, especially as its movements are fairly gentle with the first speed mode. For more nervous driving with a larger angle and maximum speed, you must switch to 2nd or 3rd mode with the right button at the top of the upper edge.

No question of transforming the E58 into a racing drone however, it is not its vocation and its small engines are not powerful enough for that. This quadrotor remains playful, but to really have fun driving, it is better to turn to a more compact and nervous model, like Tiny Whoop. Eachine also offers several in its catalog: QX65, UK / US65, Trashcan ... Devices that are less easy to handle, but much more fun. So let's hope that the manufacturer will decide to market devices in this category more widely, as it does with this E58 which can easily be found in French online stores and especially at Amazon.

As far as flight modes are concerned, only stabilized control is authorized here. You can also take advantage of a touch control mode where you simply draw the desired path on the screen, as well as a headless mode (headless) which allows you to steer the device without having to worry about its orientation: whether his back is towards us or not, a stroke of the stick to the right direct him to the right, for example. However, this mode only works correctly if you stay on the same axis during handling. An automatic return mode allows otherwise to return the drone near its remote control, but it lacks precision and will only be used in extreme cases. Beware also not to fly too far from the radio control, because this drone is not able to return alone to its starting point and there is a risk of losing control. The announced range is 80 to 100 m in free field (without obstacles) with the radio control, but it is better to stay below this limit, especially since we lose the video feedback well before and therefore any vision of the position and orientation of the drone very quickly. The two small white LEDs at the front and the red LED at the back are not enough to spot it in a bright sky.

Small gadget, a button on the radio control is used to trigger a small automated aerial figure: the drone can roll over to the right or to the left. We have fun with it the time of discovery, little more.

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Image quality

We did not expect much from the 720p camera of the Eachine E58 despite the commercial arguments advanced on the official website of the manufacturer and we were right. The image quality is poor and is barely equivalent to that of a basic webcam. In the absence of stabilization, only the youngest may find it possible to have a little fun with it to take a picture - and still be reminded that a drone should not be used to spy on others. Note that the camera can be manually oriented downwards.

We could have hoped for a sufficiently reactive video return to fly in immersion, but that was without taking into account the poor quality of the transmission via Wi-Fi. The latency is high and the cuts too frequent to reasonably hope to control this quad with the image retransmits on smartphone. An interesting solution would have been to equip this device with another camera with 5.8 GHz radio transmission module, in order to obtain a stable and reactive video feedback to control comfortably. This would have made it possible to keep some memories of our flights recorded on the microSD card that can be inserted into the device. The E58 is not however as agile as a racer-type mini-drone, however, the interest would also have been limited.

The image quality in video is unfortunately even worse than in photo, as you can see with the capture below.

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Autonomy

With its 500 mAh LiPo battery, the Eachine E58 is capable of hovering for approximately 8 min 30 s. The red LED on the back begins to flash approximately one minute before the aircraft initiates a forced landing. It takes less time of course when you start to spin it and with speed mode 3, but this is quite correct for a fun drone.

Some resellers also offer it with several batteries, so they can enjoy it longer. As with mini-drones, it is better to acquire at least 2 or 3 batteries, especially since the charge takes approximately 1 h 30 min via a computer USB port (500 mA for USB 2). Better to avoid using a fast charger with such batteries, especially since LiPo batteries already wear out fairly quickly under normal conditions of use. The autonomy drops accordingly over the recharges.

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Conclusion

Despite its aesthetic resemblance to the Mavic Pro, the Eachine E58 has nothing comparable with this model. It is indeed a toy intended for fun and not a flying camera which would be capable of taking quality shots. Its non-stabilized 720p camera cannot do wonders and will therefore be used above all for selfies and piloting the drone via the image it reports on the smartphone screen. Once you are aware of these limits, you can count on a device that is pleasant to fly and quite playful, even if this is not a mini-drone designed for immersion piloting.

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