The technology is already there, with professional salvagers and underwater explorers using remotely-operated robots for some time now. Apart from photography, an underwater drone is very useful for exploration. But the technology has been expensive, and has required a lot of skill and training to operate. But prices have dropped with this new generation of consumer drones, and usability is quite high.
- iBubble
The iBubble is the first underwater drone developed specifically for scuba divers. The iBubble records not just the dive site, but also you and your buddies as well. The operator wears a bracelet so the iBubble knows who to follow. You can also use the bracelet to call the drone to you if you want to use it as a camera, or if you need to surface. The drone can move up to 80 feet (25 m) away from divers. It gives you unprecedented possibilities to create underwater movies with sports camera like the popular GoPro.
- Sizes : 60x45x35 cm
- Weight : 9kg
- Max depth : 60m
- Speed : 1.5m/s
- Battery : 1 hour
- PowerRay
This is doubtlessly the gold-standard at the moment. Although Power Vision charges a hefty sum for the PowerRay Wizard, compared to premium photography drones it’s in exactly the same ballpark. The PowerRay certainly lives up to its name. It has that distinctive triangular ray shape and smooth hydrodynamic lines. Just sitting there on dry land you get the impression will slip through the water with no trouble at all. While Power Vision created this underwater drone for fishing specifically, it has clearly evolved into a general-purpose underwater photography machine.
- Sizes : 46.5x27x12.6cm
- Weight : 3.8kg
- Max depth : ≤30m
- Water temperature : 0°C to 40°C
- Speed : 2m/s
- Battery : 4 hours
- Wire : 75/100 meters
- Blueye Pioneer
The best underwater drone for the serious enthusiast. The Blueye Pioneer straddles the line between consumer underwater drone and professional level ROV. Its price tag and hardware are professional level, but its feature set is squarely aimed at the underwater explorer. The drone ships with 4 thrusters and a stabilization system that provides excellent maneuverability and speeds up to 5.6 MPH even in rough waters. Pioneer is billing Blueye as the “world’s finest” undersea drone for exploration purposes. The drone can reach depths of up to 150 meters, uses Wi-Fi connectivity.
- Pressure Rating: 150m.
- Weight: 9kg.
- Speed: 2m/s(4 Knots).
- Run–time: 2 hrs.
- Battery: 99Wh lithium ion smart battery.
- OpenROV Trident
The OpenROV Trident doesn’t have any gimmicky features. With 3 hours of runtime and speeds up to 4.5 MPH, there Trident is a solid underwater drone that is focused on subsurface exploration. You can submerge up to 330 feet and watch a live video feed on your smartphone or the optional $400 LCD-equipped controller. You can also capture 1080p video using the built-in camera.
OpenROV has built the Trident to be extensible allowing you to add on custom sensors or additional cameras. The drone is tethered to a buoyant WiFi module that is used for communication with the controller and with other sensors that are added to the drone. Pricing starts at $1,699 for a base model with a 25-meter tether.
- Weight: 3.40 Kg
- Capacity: 95Wh
- Depth: 100m
- Speed: 2m/s
- WIFI Interface: 802.11 b/g/n
- Robosea BIKI
The Robosea BIKI comprises of unique fish-like design. The drone not only looks like a fish, it actually moves like a fish with a motorized rubber tail fin. Not the fastest drone, the BIKI can glide through the water at a slow 1.12 MPH for up to 90 minutes. The BIKI is one of the few drones which can be controlled wirelessly underwater using a TV-style handheld remote or a smartphone app. Wireless signals don’t penetrate through water very well so you have to immerse the handheld remote and keep it within 33 feet of the drone or use the smartphone app to draw out the path before submerging.
- Internal Memory: 32GB
- Lens: 150 degree wide angle
- Lumen Lights: 2*114
- Video Storage: 90-120.
- Video: 4K ultra HD.
