FIFISH P3 Underwater Drone Review

QYSEA

FIFISH P3 UNDERWATER DRONE REVIEW

FEATURE AND PHOTOGRAPHY CHRISTOPHE CHELLAPERMAL

In this age of technology, drones have become part of our daily lives. We might not realise it, but aerial drones are used for a wide range of applications. For us divers, we are familiar with seeing drones used to get some incredible aerial shots of dive locations. On some liveaboards, they are sometimes used to locate wildlife. In the Philippines for example, they spot whale sharks with the use of drones so we can get dropped in right next to them.

When people mention drones, most of us think of flying machines, but some brands have recently released underwater versions. One such example is the FIFISH P3 by QYSEA. Grand Stores Digital – the distributor in the UAE – kindly lent us one so that we could test it and review it for you. For this review we took the FIFISH P3 to Fujairah, to take a dip in the water with Freestyle Divers.

The drone has 3 main rotors, one located in the middle of the drone which permits the drone to ascend or descend. There are two additional rotors placed on each side of the drone which are the most powerful rotors on the machine and allow for the drone to turn left or right. It is important to note that the rotors are not made of plastic, but rather are built for durability as they are single machined aluminium pieces.

On the front of the drone, we find the camera that allows us to shoot in 4k. The lens is a 6.55mm with a focal of 2.8. The lens offers a sharp image for photography or video, however regrettably, there is no thread to add a red filter. The drone is equipped with two LED video lights that are crucial when at depth to restore the lost colours.

There is no on or off button on the drone itself, the drone turns on automatically when it is wired, the connection is a Fischer connection and there is an O-ring to prevent a short circuit or water leak.

It is important to ensure that the instructions to lift the drone are followed. There is an attachment that can hold up to 18 kg of lift. Ensuring that the attachment is fitted correctly prevents any damage to the wire connections when the drone is lifted.

The wire around the reel is 100m long, and it has two connections: one with a jack for the remote, and the other is the connector plug for the drone. The reel is almost too basic, we at least wish that there was a handle on the reel since it takes two people to get the wire rolled without one. Had there been a handle on the reel, and a guide, it would have prevented any line mix-up while the drone was in use.

The remote control is an essential part of the drone as it allows you to access its various functions. The left stick allows you to go forwards or backwards, and to turn right and left. The right stick controls the drone’s depth for it to ascend or descend. We must admit that it is very easy to take control of the FIFISH and to start filming with no previous underwater drone experience. We rapidly became quite confident.

One of the features we really liked on the remote control, is the possibility to smoothly attach a phone or a tablet to it as the attachment is adjustable. There are two speeds to select on the controller which can be flipped very easily. You can also find a record button as well as a photo button. The connection between the phone and the controller is via Wi-Fi, which is very simple to set up using the free downloadable app developed by QYSEA for the FIFISH P3. The interface on the app is straight forward and there is even the possibility to review the footage post shooting on your phone and via the app. A hood could be a good addition around the phone / tablet, particularly if you plan to shoot in a bright environment – despite setting the brightness at full power, we struggled to view the screen in the daylight.

We had a great time doing this review, it was a lot of fun to operate the FIFISH P3 and you never know what you could stumble across! In just one day, we managed to get shots of an eagle ray and three turtles that were sitting on the reef. There are many other reasons than to just take the FIFISH out for a spin. It goes down to a maximum depth of 100m, so it could also be used to search for wrecks and to make overall marine inspections. The fact that it is so easy to handle is definitely its strong point.

The unit is well built with excellent quality materials – this is not just a big boy’s toy, it can be considered for multiple tasks.

The FIFISH P3 can be purchased from any Grand Stores Digital outlet throughout the UAE for a price of AED 12,999.

We would like to thank Freestyle Divers for welcoming us to their incredible location for the review.

www.grandstores.com