How to Fly Holy Stone HS720E (Explained for Beginners)

The Holy Stone HS720E is a drone designed to withstand rude usage common in users who don’t know how to fly a drone.

• The HS720E is easy to fly, as it always hovers, even when you don’t move the throttle joystick.
• You only need to control the front, up, down, and side motions.
• Thanks to intelligent flight modes, it can perform automatic flying, only needing you to tap commands on the mobile app.

In this article, we’ll explain critical steps to consider when flying, such as how to set up the HS720E before flying it and the taking off and landing phases.

So stay tuned!

Setting up my Holy Stone HS720E (Step by step) #

Before flying the HS720E, you must download the Ophelia GO app.

Your phone will serve as the camera view, so you must pair your mobile device with the remote controller and drone.

Finally, complete a step-by-step process to calibrate the drone compass.

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Ophelia GO app #

Downloading it is easy but depends on your device’s operating system.

The first method is through the HS720E user manual section 9.1: 

1. Scan the QR code for iOS or Android. 
2. Once the link pops up on your device screen, click it. 
3. It will automatically link you to the mobile app store. There, click download.

You can also look for the Ophelia GO app on the App Store or Play Store.

» MORE: Holy Stone App – All You Need to Know

Device pairing #

To pair your devices, proceed as follows:

1. Unfold your HS720E arms, as the props can rotate slightly during pairing.
2. Insert a fully charged battery into the drone battery compartment.
3. Grab your remote controller. Then, hold down the lock/unlock button with your left thumb while you move the power switch to the right with your other thumb.
4. Now, press the power button on your drone.
5. Finally, go to your phone’s Wi-Fi network and search for HolyStoneEIS-**. Select it and wait until the binding is successful.
6. Once the binding process is complete, you can open the Ophelia GO app.

Now, you will see what the HS720E camera sees.

» MORE: How to Connect Holy Stone Drone to Phone (Step By Step Guide)

Drone calibration #

Another critical step for a safe flight is compass calibration.

A calibrated compass helps the HS720E understand its location to hold its position accurately and avoid undesired drifting and taking off or landing issues.

Calibrating your drone compass is quite easy and takes 10 seconds to complete. Just follow the steps below:

1. Grab your remote controller. Move both joysticks to the lower right corner simultaneously. This action activates the calibration procedure.
2. Hold your HS720E parallel to the ground and rotate it to the same side three times. You know the calibration is complete when the power button lights steadily green.
3. Hold your HS720E vertically to the ground and rotate it to the same side three times.

 We attached a quick YouTube video from Holy Stone of the setup process to summarize these steps.

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Flying my Holy Stone HS720E (Step by step) #

You can now press a button on the remote controller for your HS720E to take off.

Then, by moving the joysticks, you’ll be flying. Is as simple as that.

However, aviation entities regulate airspace, so the flight mission starts before your drone takes off.

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Pre-flight checklist #

The first consideration is whether your drone can fly safely.

The way to ensure that is to install a fully charged battery, know if the drone requires an update, and calibrate its compass.

Another critical step is to understand your drone’s condition. 

How strong do the arm hinges feel? Do the propellers have excessive chips and cuts? Do the engines sound like a regular electrical motor? Or do they hum or make an odd noise?

Knowing your drone’s condition before flying is key to maintaining an acceptable level of safety when flying.

Finally, check the batteries’ condition. Do they have any swelling, leaking, discoloration, or odor? 

If you spot any of these issues, please avoid using the battery, as it can be faulty.

A damaged battery can make your drone explode or lose control in flight due to lack of power, causing damage to you or other people and property.

» MORE: Holy Stone HS720E Vs. DJI Mini 2 (Here’s My Choice)

Safety #

You must know where to fly your HS720E safely without worrying about damaging it.

This drone is beginner-friendly thanks to its flying aids, such as auto-hovering and maintaining a fixed position in the air.

However, it’s fast for a newbie, even in normal mode.

Pricier drones with these characteristics have collision avoidance sensors to stop before or bypass obstacles.

The HS720E lacks these sensors, so if you aren’t completely aware of your environment, you will surely crash it.

The best scenario to fly is at a safe altitude above obstacles.

Plan to fly your drone in a football court or in a park where you have plenty of space to maneuver.

» MORE: Drone Safety Features (All You Need to Know)

Regulations #

By regulation, you must avoid flying a drone over people.

Don’t fly low on private property. Owners can take it as espionage or an attack on their privacy.

The HS720E is only suitable for recreational flying, so you must register and take a TRUST test before flying.

» MORE: Drone Laws in the United States

Weather #

This drone has a good weight for its size and comes with a double GPS module.

These are factors that improve its stability against windy conditions.

However, the drone is only suitable for flying in breezy conditions, making it very hard to fly in winds of more than 15 mph.

» MORE: Flying a Drone in Hot Weather (Things You Should Know)

Taking off #

You have ensured your aircraft is safe to fly. The next step is to take off. It’s a very easy process that only involves pressing one button.

1. Turn on the GPS by sliding the GPS switch down. It’s on the right side of your transmitter.
2. Unlock the engines by pressing the lock button below the left joystick with your thumb.
3. Press the button above the left joystick for the HS720E to take off automatically.

Why is it important to turn on the GPS module?

Although the HS720E isn’t lightweight, strong winds move it relatively easily.

You can lose your drone, making it impossible to find it just by sight. 

Having the GPS module on guarantees you have its position on the map.

It also gives you a path on the flight logs to figure out the landing point. 

» MORE: Drone Won’t Take Off? Here’s How to Fix it

Flying my HS720E #

Now, let’s dig into the fun part.

The HS720E is relatively easy to fly, thanks to its auto-hovering capabilities.

Whether you release the transmitter and leave it on a chair, the drone will continue to hover in a fixed position until its battery drains.

Then it will land automatically.

However, understanding how to move the joysticks is the tricky part.

By default, your controller comes in Mode 2, meaning the left stick controls the ascending/descending and roll movements, and the right stick controls the yaw and forward/backward motion.

The first step is to move the left stick up so the HS720E ascends to a safe altitude above obstacles. Then, move the right joystick up so the drone starts flying forward.

In the beginning, the most challenging movement is turning. The most accurate advice we can give you is to turn before moving forward.

Once you feel comfortable turning, you can do it while flying forward.

We don’t advise flying backward unless necessary, as you can lose awareness of the drone’s position and hit something.

» MORE: Holy Stone HS720 Camera Not Working (And How to Fix It)

Headless mode #

Another difficulty when starting is understanding the north of the drone.

The north is always where the camera points. It sounds obvious, but if your drone is looking at you and you press the left stick up, it will fly backward instead of forward.

In this case, we recommend you start with headless mode. When you enable this feature, the drone will always go forward when you move the left joystick up.

To enable this function, proceed as follows:

1. Tap the four squares icon on the left side of the camera view screen.
2. Then, select the icon that shows a compass rose.

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Follow me #

There are other ways to fly the HS720E, such as automatically.

The first and most famous feature is follow-me. Your HS720E follows you in this mode from a safe distance and altitude.

Let’s say you want to film yourself while riding a bicycle or simply walking. In those scenarios, you can lose awareness of the environment, so controlling the drone is dangerous.

With the follow-me feature, you avoid those inconveniences, letting the drone do all the work.

To enable this function, proceed as follows:

3. Tap the four squares on the left side of the camera view screen.
4. Then, select the icon that shows a drone following a person.

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Landing my HS720E #

Landing your HS720E is as easy as taking off.

1. Press the button above the left joystick for the HS720E to land automatically.
2. The engines shut down after landing. However, we always recommend you lock them by pressing the lock button. Otherwise, the propellers can start spinning without notice, and you can get injured.

After landing my HS720E #

The final step after landing your HS720E and locking its engines is to secure the drone.

• Battery removal: Leaving the battery installed can damage the circuits on the drone, or the battery can drain. Remove the battery 10 to 15 minutes after your flight.
• Charging the battery: Once you remove the batteries from the drone and they’re at ambient temperature, you must consider your next flight. If the next flight is within 24 hours, the wisest practice is to charge the battery right away.
• Safe storage: If you don’t plan to use the drone for some time, store the battery without charging it completely. 

Charge the batteries between 50 and 65 percent or when one of the indicator lights is on. With this practice, you ensure the HS720E battery will last longer as it won’t cycle.

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