Review: BetaFPV 95X V3 Cinewhoop – Upgraded to 1404 Motors

The BetaFPV 95X V3 is a “pusher” style cinematic FPV drone that is small and has propeller guards. They’ve improved a lot on the design from the V2, and only recently they replaced the 1106 motors with 1404, it’s so much better now.

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The 95X V3 is designed to carry a light weight HD camera such as the SMO 4K and GoPro Lite.

You will see me comparing the 95X V3 to the Holybro Kopis a lot in this review, because they are the same size, using the same sized motors and meant to do the same thing. I really like the Holybro, so let’s see how they compare. Here’s my review of the Holybro Kopis 2.5inch Cinewhoop.

Where To Buy BetaFPV 95X V3?

Analog Version (Caddx EOS2 Nano + M02 250mW VTX)

• BetaFPV: https://oscarliang.com/product-547l
• GetFPV: https://oscarliang.com/product-ficg
• RDQ: https://oscarliang.com/product-snya
• Banggood: https://oscarliang.com/product-hgbv

HD Version (DJI Vista + Nebula Nano)

• BetaFPV: https://oscarliang.com/product-d8ak
• GetFPV: https://oscarliang.com/product-2cv1
• Banggood: https://oscarliang.com/product-fomx

There are quite a few radio receiver options: Crossfire, Frsky (FFC and LBT), Futaba, and PNP (no RX).

Please watch out for motor in the product description, the newer version should come with 1404 while the old version is 1106. You definitely want the 1404.

In the box, we have the following accessories:

• One spare set of Gemfan D63 3-blades Propellers
• 20mm FPV Camera Mount (for micro size FPV cameras)
• Spare EVA Foam Tape in black
• Right angle USB Adapter for FC
• Power adapter for Naked GoPro
• Spare screws

BetaFPV 95X V3 Specification

This is the specs for the analog version which I am reviewing here.

• FC: Toothpick F405 AIO 20A FC V4
• Motors: 1404 4500KV
• Props: Gemfan D63 3-Blade
• Camera: EOS Camera
• VTX: M02 25-250mW 5.8G VTX
• Camera Mount: SMO 4K camera Mount
• Antenna: Air 5.8GHz Antenna (RHCP)
• Input voltage: 4S
• Battery Connector: XT30
• Wheelbase: 95mm

Let’s talk about weight. I am very happy about 95X V3’s weight, it’s nearly 45g less than the Holybro Kopis Whoop, it’s crazy!

• 95X V3 alone = 109g
• 95X V3 + naked GoPro (including TPU mount) = 142g
• 95X V3 + naked GoPro + 4S 650mah = 220g

For the DJI Version, just add 20g to those numbers.

New Motors!

Originally I wasn’t very interested in the BetaFPV 95X V3, because there were a couple of things I didn’t like: weak 1106 motors and bad camera choice for the DJI version (nebula nano). So I got the Holybro Kopis instead.

But as soon as I heard they changed out the motors to the bigger 1404, I decided to give it a shot. The wider stator of the 1404 will give you more power and control in the lower half of the throttle which is better for slower machines like cinewhoops.

If you have the old 1106 motors, you can get the 1404 to replace them.

The Holybro Kopis also uses 1404 motors, the one thing BetaFPV did differently is using higher KV (4500KV) to pair with 3-blade props. Holybro is using 3800KV with 5-blade props, both quads run on 4S.

In flight I feel like they perform quite similar in terms of power, but the 95X is so much noisier :) I think it might have something to do with the higher RPM of the 3-blade and higher KV motors.

I got similar flight time from both quads, but mind you the Holybro is almost 45g heavier, so that makes it a more efficient setup, imagine using that combo in the 95X instead :)

Why Analog?

I know there’s the DJI HD version, but I don’t feel too bad about getting the analog version. The DJI version comes with Nebula Nano camera, which I am not a fan of. Image quality maybe slightly better than analog, but it’s not worth the extra money IMO. It would have been so much better if they used the Nebula Pro which I recently reviewed. Maybe they are getting the Nano cheaper in bulk, because no one is buying them.

No Camera Mounts

I am a little disappointed about the fact that they don’t give us any HD camera mount. Well, the quad does have a mount for the new Insta360 SMO 4K camera.

But if you want to use the Naked GoPro or Insta360 GO, you‘d have to 3D print one. In that regard, Holybro wins, they provided both mounts in the box.

STL files are available on their website, but not everyone has a 3D printer, or friends!

Camera mount tilt angle is adjustable between 5° to 45°.

Closer Look at the 95X V3

I like they come with foam tape around the ducts for softening crash impacts.

The design of the BetaFPV 95X V3 has improved SO MUCH from the previous version, it looks more polished and professional. There are very few cables visible from the outside, and no antennas sticking out, it almost feels like a drone made by DJI.

Radio receiver antennas and VTX antenna are nicely tucked in, so no chance of damaging them from crashes or spinning props.

Yes, the appearance is awesome, but it’s not the most practical design.

For example, accessing the FC’s USB port could be a little tricky as it’s hidden inside one of the ducts. Fortunately, a right angle USB adapter is provided to remedy the situation, and it works pretty well. If you are getting the Vista version, you will face the same issue with its USB port and it will need an right angle adapter too.

The Holybro is more practical in that regard, as it doesn’t require any tools.

When it comes to repair, I do like the BetaFPV 95X V3 better. Once you remove the bottom canopy (7 screws), you can access all the electronics: VTX, FC, RX etc.

It’s using a single board F4 FC with 20A ESC (BLHeli_32), which is more than adequate. The motors are connected to the FC via plug, and the wires are all twisted which means they are longer than needed. If they straightened the wires and direct solder to the FC, they might be able to shave a few grams.

LiPo Battery

It seems the 95X V3 is designed for smaller batteries like 4S 450mah, a 4S 650mAh can barely fit in there. The strap holders will get in the way if you try to use a thicker battery like 4S 850mAh. With that said, you can still do it, but they just won’t lay flat on the frame, it’s kind of awkward.

I’d recommend 4S 650mAh, I think it’s the perfect size for the new upgraded motors. I get a solid 5 minutes of flight time from it. See my testing and recommendations.

Camera Mounting

FPV Camera tilt angle is adjustable between 25°- 45°. It can actually go much lower than that but the frame will occupy much of your screen. Image quality from the Caddx EOS2 Nano is nothing amazing but decent.

I like the HD camera mounting that separates the frame from the camera and reduces vibration. This is a better design than the Holybro in my opinion.

But when I thought the Holybro’s camera mount wasn’t rigid enough, the camera mount on the 95X is even less rigid. It gives me a bit of wobble when doing acro moves, but usually Reelsteady can smooth it out (most of the times). And that’s not an issue at all if you are just cruising around, which is the main type of flying you will be doing with this quad anyway, not freestyle and acrobatics. If you want a micro FPV drone for freestyle, I’d recommend the GEPRC Rocket.

The power cable for the SMO 4K is already soldered to the FC, so that’s handy. And it’s good to know that it also comes with an power adapter for the naked GoPro, both cameras are supported without any soldering :)

By the way, I always remove the yellow wire (which is meant to control the GoPro’s recording from the flight controller), because it’s just not always reliable.

How To Setup 95X V3

The BetaFPV 95X V3 was easy to setup, just bind the receiver and setup the arm switch and you are ready for first flight.

The FC comes with Betaflight version 4.2.2, the FC board is BEFH/BETAFPVF405(STM32F405). ESC’s are “BETAFPV_20A_BLHeli_32”, comes with 32.7 firmware.

I saved a copy of the stock CLI Dump in Betaflight here.

It looks like BetaFPV attempted to tune this quad (the PID and filter values are different from the defaults), but in my opinion the PID tune still has room for improvement. Out of the box, it doesn’t feel particularly locked in and tends to drift when flying outdoor especially when there’s a breeze.

I copied my tune from my Holybro Kopis and it works quite well, I did however have to give it a bit more D-term filtering to keep the motors cool though.

Here is the tune if you want to give it a try, make sure to back up your settings first. The first time you try this, you should fly 20-30 seconds and land to see if the motors are warm. If they are, you should revert back to your original settings, you don’t want to burn your motors!

First thing to do is enabling RPM filter, then set motor idle percent to 5.5%. Then go to BLHeliSuite32 and enable 48KHz which will give you a bit more flight time and cooler motors.

Next, enter these settings in CLI, it’s based on the official Cinematic settings:

set iterm_relax_cutoff = 5
set rc_smoothing_auto_smoothness = 40
set ff_interpolate_sp = AVERAGED_4
set ff_smooth_factor = 50
set ff_spike_limit = 50
set ff_boost = 0
set feedforward_transition = 70
set yaw_lowpass_hz = 50
set throttle_boost = 2
set throttle_boost_cutoff = 10
set dyn_lpf_dterm_curve_expo = 8
set gyro_rpm_notch_q = 900
set iterm_windup = 75
set thrust_linear = 25
set anti_gravity_gain = 10000
set p_pitch = 54
set i_pitch = 81
set d_pitch = 57
set f_pitch = 86
set p_roll = 50
set i_roll = 77
set d_roll = 52
set f_roll = 81
set p_yaw = 53
set i_yaw = 81
set f_yaw = 81
set d_min_roll = 0
set d_min_pitch = 0
set d_min_yaw = 0
set deadband = 2
set yaw_deadband = 2
set dyn_notch_width_percent = 0
set dyn_notch_q = 200
set dyn_notch_min_hz = 100
set dyn_notch_max_hz = 400
save

Finally, tweak the filter sliders a little bit and that’s it.

• Gyro Filter Multiplier = 1.0
• D-Term Filter Multiplier = 0.8

And here’s my rate for cinewhoops, note that I also like to put a throttle limit at 95% (scale) because I rarely use full throttle on cinewhoops and that gives me a bit more throttle resolution.

Conclusion

Pro’s:

• Fantastic design
• It’s small and light weight, and it has prop guards so it’s not as dangerous when you crash compared to bigger 5″ fpv drones, more beginner friendly
• If you want to say under 250g and still get decent flight time from a bigger battery, the 95X V3 is the one to get
• Great flight time and lots of power thanks to the new motors with wider stator
• Effective camera mounting that separates the frame from the camera and reduces vibration, a better design than the Holybro

Con’s:

• No HD camera mounts
• DJI version uses Nebula Nano
• Very noisy – I feel like the lower KV motor and 5-blade prop combo used in the Holybro might be lower in noise as well as being more efficient
• Slightly odd battery mounting design, mounting large battery can be awkward (e.g. 4S 850mah)
• It requires more filtering in Betaflight than the Holybro to keep motors cool. To be fair, not a huge problem for most people really
• Part of the front ducts is in FPV camera’s view (but clear from HD cam’s view)
• No buzzer
• No telemetry (for the Frsky version as they are using XM+)

So yup! The 95X V3 is a cinewhoop that I’d recommend :)