Holy Stone HS110D Review: Less Than $100, But Is It Reliable?

Holy Stone has been known around the drone scene with their innovative releases in the past years. Building a reputation as kings of price to performance, Holy Stone has come up with another contender: the Holy Stone HS110D.

Targeted towards beginner drone flyers and the occasional enthusiast, how exactly does the HS110D fare with its price bracket competitors?

Find out in this comprehensive Holy Stone HS110D review.

Quick Specs

WeightUnloaded weight: 145 g
SizeLength: 12.6 inches
Height: 12.6 inches
Width: 4.7 inches
Speed4-speed layout (beginner to professional level)
SignalController Range: ~100m
Video Transmission Range: ~50m
Operating Frequency: 2.4 GHz
BatteryFlight time: ~10 mins
Capacity: 1000 mAh
RecordingFPV camera: 120°, 720p or 1080p
Holy Stone HS110D Drone - Black
  • 1080P FOV 120° HD FPV Camera: You can capture memorable moments with distortion-free and...
  • Altitude hold: When you focus on shooting images, you may set your hands off the joystick...
  • Headless Mode: The pilot will feel easier to control, especially when the drone is out of...
  • Mobile Control: Through the APP, multiple functions, Voice Control, Gestures Control,...
  • 2 Modular Battries: 2 batteries can support a 20 Minutes flight which makes it easy to...

Holy Stone HS110D Features

Auto Hover

On a solo drone excursion and need to take a quick sip of hydration? You won’t need to land the HS110D every time you do so, as the Auto Hover Function allows you to take your hands off the remote. If the drone drifts too far or is out of controller range, it will perform an emergency stop maneuver to avoid straying off-path.

One Key Start

Specifically designed for beginners, the HS110D’s takeoff and landing sequence is taken care of by the One Key Engine Start/Land. With a single button press, the HS110D can take off or land on its own, getting rid of the awkward maneuver accompanying newbies trying the drone out. While this is indeed useful for the uninitiated, the function isn’t viable when you want to step up to flying enthusiast-grade crafts.

Gravity Control

When used with the mobile app, you can control the HS110D by maneuvering your smartphone accordingly. This makes use of the phone’s gyroscopic sensors, in which the signals are sent to the drone to mimic your movements.

Headless Mode

The HS110D has a headless mode which allows it to follow the person holding the controller without worrying too much about its position. Who needs a dog when you’ve got an intelligent bird on your tail? OK, you can have both.

Battery Life

For a toy-grade drone like the HS110D, we would advise to not expect much in terms of battery life. A 1000 mAh LiPo battery powers the craft, which gives it 10 minutes of continuous flight time, more or less.

The modular battery has a charging time of roughly about an hour and 30 minutes, which is rather unimpressive considering the relatively short battery life.

Do note that in order to charge the battery, you need to plug it into the drone, as it has a charging port built into it. If you’re planning to carry multiple modules, make sure you charge them beforehand for convenience.

What the HS110D lacks in juice, it makes up for in battery indicator features and emergency fail-safes. The in-app indicator is fairly accurate with readings, while the LED indicator on the HS110D also helps in keeping track of battery level status. Plus, once the battery level gets low enough, the HS110D automatically initiates a return-to-home function towards the pilot for safe landing.

Camera

The HS110D sports a modularized camera design, so you can either stick with it or not when flying. It is bottom-mounted, just like its contemporaries for a greater field of view, which amounts to about 120° of coverage. It has a recording resolution of 720p (or there’s a 1080p option available for a slightly higher price) using its 2-MP sensor.

Live First Person View (FPV) footage is a bit grainy and does lag behind at some times, but when the HS110D is hovering it can still take decent photos. The camera also offers a 90° tilt action, which can be controlled with a scroll wheel.

While this obviously pales in comparison with drone cameras that can dish out resolutions of 4K and greater, considering the HS110D’s price point, it doesn’t get much better than this.

Ease Of Use

Just like most drones nowadays, a the HS110D uses a displayless controller. However, hooking your smartphone onto the controller gives you access to the FPV functionalities, which are activated through the HS110D’s corresponding app.

The controller has large indicators for speed and battery level as well, making it extra-friendly for beginners. When paired with the intuitive features mentioned above, you are able to fly the drone within minutes of tinkering with the controls.

Design and Build Quality

The HS110D adapts the popular quadcopter layout of today’s drones, taking inspiration from crowd favorites such as the DJI Phantom 4. It makes use of ABS plastic for the body, which is a tad higher in durability when compared to drones that use conventional plastic. The HS110D can definitely take a beating.

This design allows the HS110D to take a hefty profile without weighing the part. Lesser momentum means less damage in the event of a crash, and Holy Stone has you covered in case you actually do. Propeller guards and extra propeller blades, along with landing pads, are included in the package should you manage to break one of them.

The HS110D is offered in various colorways, so you won’t have to get stuck with generic white or black variants. Overall, the HS110D sports the modern drone aesthetic with its sleek and innovative design.

Performance

The HS110D needs to be calibrated first to function properly while mid-flight. This can be done by using the trimming buttons on the controller. Once you get the balance right, the HS110D flies like a champ. Controller response is great and seamless as well.

Its 4-way speed and One Key Start/Land function are probably the biggest Christmas presents any beginner could ever want in a drone. Nothing like a confidence boost with a safe take-off and landing experience, while the speed levels allow you to ease into varying degrees of control of the HS110D.

This drone can even do tricks in the air, being 360° and 3D-flip capable. We do advise that you do this with ample experience and a healthy amount on the battery left. You wouldn’t want to crash it whilst showing off.

Final Thoughts

Holy Stone has delivered yet again with the Holy Stone HS110D. Priced in the toy-drone territory, it has a decent camera, powerful motors, handy intuitive features, great control and response, and a durable and stylish design. What’s not to like?

It’s not everyday that you see a drone of this price point that’s loaded to the gills. For those looking to enter the drone space or enthusiasts just wanting to have some fun, picking up the Holy Stone HS110D is a no-brainer.

Holy Stone HS110D Drone
  • 1080P FOV 120° HD FPV Camera: You can capture memorable moments with distortion-free and...
  • Altitude hold: When you focus on shooting images, you may set your hands off the joystick...
  • Headless Mode: The pilot will feel easier to control, especially when the drone is out of...
  • Mobile Control: Through the APP, multiple functions, Voice Control, Gestures Control,...
  • 2 Modular Battries: 2 batteries can support a 20 Minutes flight which makes it easy to...

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