Best Underwater Drones with Camera

The main function of an underwater drone is to have an eye underwater. Just like with our human eyes, an underwater drone’s camera needs to be crisp, clear, free of debris, and able to adjust to changes in light and color. These factors combine to create quality footage and pictures from your expeditions underwater.

In this article, we’ll discuss what drones are the best for underwater photography and videography and how the camera of each drone lines up when compared to the others.

One thing to keep in mind is that underwater drones range drastically in price, and similar to the aerial drone industry, there is one player that stands out from the rest.

Titan #

The possibilities of this agile underwater drone are limitless when paired with a 4K camera that can capture 1080p at 30 frames per second and 4K at 30 frames per second. With a minimum 8 MP still photo, the 4K Titan camera can capture both video and photos.

Titan’s camera comes with a 160º wide-angle lens. This allows Titan to create cinematic 4K videos as well as stunning 8MP photos.

Titan is a professional 4K camera with a 1/2.5-inch image sensor and 32/64G storage. It allows you to capture high-quality images and videos and share them anytime.

You can pilot your underwater drone through a smartphone app. The app that Titan uses to communicate with its physical controller is available for both Android devices and iOS. 

You have the option to choose which filters you want to use. The F2.5 160-degree lens can be used with photos that aren’t artificially lit from green or other colors.

Wireless communication with the drone can be achieved at depths up to 50m (or 164 feet) using a WiFi module that plugs into the topside of the cable reel. You can stream videos at 30 frames per second to dry land using the cable as your control and communication.

Gladius Mini #

Next in our review of underwater drones with the best cameras, we’ll look at a middle-of-the-line prosumer drone, the Gladius Mini, made by Chasing Innovations.

The Gladius Mini is an excellent underwater drone overall, with its angled mobility and speed. However, focusing on the camera specs itself is an entirely new discussion.

The Gladius Mini is an interesting drone because it falls somewhere between a consumer and a prosumer drone. Professionals in the industry would absolutely benefit from using this drone. However, its price point isn’t so high that consumers may not want to buy it.

The reason why this drone is ranked among the best is because of its mobility, but also its supreme camera. It can capture stunning underwater photos and videos with a crisp 4K quality.

The Gladius Mini’s sensor consists of a 1/2.3 sensor. The aperture of the Gladius Mini is set at 3, the field of view of the Gladius Mini comes in at an impressive 95, the iso of the Gladius Mini can go up to 3,200, the Gladius Mini boasts a 12-megapixel rating.

It shoots at 120 frames per second, and the 2,400-lumen lights attached to the front will give you plenty of visibility on your dive to retrieve quality photos and videos.

The hardware on this camera is excellent, and so are the options and settings for viewing the footage as you are recording it.

This underwater drone camera allows the user to adjust the red color, the green color and the blue color, the contrast, the brightness, and more. You can toggle between these options to get the absolute best footage possible.

When you are on the sea floor, the light may look completely different from the surface. That is why this drone comes with auto adjust or manual. In the manual mode, you’ll be able to toggle between shutter speeds as well as ISO.

Shown below are some examples of the Gladius Mini’s prosumer camera capabilities.

PowerVision PRW10 Powerray Wizard #

A drone that falls slightly behind the Gladius Mini is the PowerVision PRW10 Powerray Wizard Underwater Drone.

This sea creature-looking drone has a camera that you might find delivering the same quality as a cell phone from the early 2010s. The quality of this camera is below professional grade, which is why it’s often used by hobbyists only.

That isn’t to say that it is the worst camera on the market, nor is it the best. However it ranks among the best for beginners, ****which is why we’ve included it in this article.

You have to understand that underwater drone cameras have to be able to filter between the water sediment, color, and light.

While this drone may not be the best on our list, it is certainly a good start, and for beginners, it may be their best option.

Below is a video showing the quality of the footage from this camera.

Qysea Fifish VI6 #

The Qysea Fifish VI6 underwater drone captures 4K HD footage at a staggering 30 frames per second. This underwater drone delivers stunning cinematic clarity. The Qysea drone can create smooth slow-motion footage at 120 frames per second in full 1080p HD. 

This video coding technology ensures that videos are stored with greater efficiency and can be seen in incredible detail. This underwater drone features a 166deg FOV FOV lens and other remarkable features. This unique lens display allows you to see a larger picture and widens the field of view (FOV).

You can also choose from different levels of brightness. This will come in handy when you cruise between different ocean depths. With the Fifish V6’s 5500K color temperature, you can capture the true beauty of the ocean and recreate the natural image.

The disadvantage of cheaper drones is that they can’t transmit videos at visible wavelengths. This means that the colors in the videos might look different from what you see in reality. 

The Qysea Fifish V6 has an auto-color-enhancing algorithm that captures the ocean’s vibrancy using the most accurate colors. This enhances the mood and feel of the footage. 

This underwater drone also comes with a hyperlight-specific lens that is specifically designed for low light conditions.

You can rely on the Qysea Fifish V6 underwater drone to prevent blurry shots or blurry footage when diving through the water. Motion stabilization ensures smoothening and motion tracking are both accurate. This feature is especially useful in strong currents where the underwater drone is more susceptible to shaking.

Chasing M2 Pro MAX #

Returning to Chasing Innovations, we have our clear winner. The Chasing M2 Pro Max is beyond consumer and beyond prosumer. This drone not only has a higher quality camera, but it has a higher quality build as well.

The camera on the Chasing M2 Pro Max is designed to inspect infrastructures such as dams, nuclear facilities, and pipelines. For this, the camera has to be beyond clear.

Most of the drones we’ve covered in this article have an issue with spotting white flakes or pieces of sediment floating around in the water. This issue has been alleviated for the Chasing M2 Pro Max thanks to the camera sensors and the complimentary floodlight attached to the drone.

Offering crisp 4K photos and videos, the pilot of the Chasing M2 Pro Max will be able to descend to depths never thought possible and retrieve clear photos and videos.

Honorable Mention: CCROV #

While this is an older model, its camera actually still holds up.

Thanks to the Sony IMX 206 1/2.3 inch CMOS sensor with 16 megapixels, the resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 pixels should make deep blue clearer than ever. The lens is a 20mm (35mm equivalent) wide-angle with a FOV of 94 degrees and an aperture of f/2.8.

It can record in 4K at 25fps and 30fps. If you need smaller files but with less detail, it can also record 1080p Full HD or 720p HD.

Honorable Mention: BW Space #

The BS Space underwater drone is very useful for observations and filming. This drone is ideal for photo/video-focused tasks due to its fairly powerful camera and intelligent application combination.

It features a 1/1.7″ CMOS sensor, a 130-degree wide-angle lens, an F1.4 aperture, and a 1/1.7″ CMOS sensor for HD-quality images. 

It is a great choice for those with low budgets. Its 7-hour battery life and compatibility with many screens (mobile, tabs, and laptops) are a huge plus.