Long Range FPV drones are a hit among drone enthusiasts who mainly like to explore the distant landscape and or want to collect data on a large industrial or commercial site.

The main objective for them is to have their drone in the air for an extended period of time. Thanks to the modern battery solutions available these feats are now achievable.

Many of the long-range FPV drones have a standard air time of more than 30 minutes while some hit the one-hour cap, this is nothing but significant. Let’s take a look at various battery related aspects of these long-range FPV drones;

Li-Po vs lion batteries for long range FPV flights

Both Li-Po and the Li-ion batteries are used in the long-range FPV drones but there are a few key differences between these that also reflect in the performance of the drone as well. Following are the differences that exist between these battery types;

  • The discharge rate of the battery
  • Energy density packed in one cubic inch surface area of the battery cell
  • Lowest safe voltage

Li-ion batteries have the upper hand as these can store double the charge while remaining compact in size and portability. But the Li-Po batteries have a higher discharge rate which means that these can provide a higher intensity of the current to your bird. Li-

Po has a 30C to 40C consistent discharge rate whereas the Li-ion only has a 5C discharge rate.

Best mAh for long range FPV

The capacity of a battery is usually measured in mAh which is milliamp hours and it defines the overall current a battery can supply for a dedicated measure of time.

If the mAh rating is higher for a battery then it means that it would be able to provide a steady charge for a long period of time, thus increasing the flight time of the long-range FPV considerably.

When going for a long-range FPV drone it is recommended that you go for anything that is above 2200mAh otherwise you won’t be able to cover much ground without the drone’s battery requiring another charge.

Some long-range FPV drones go above and beyond 3000mAh as well.

Battery weight for long range FPV drones 4s vs 6s

4s and 6s are the measures of how many cells are aligned in a series fashion for the given drone battery. As the number of cells increases in the drone battery so does the weight of the battery.

The number of cells is directly proportional to the amount of current it will be able to provide. It also means more weight for the battery, so if the range is your utmost priority then you would have to make some sacrifices in terms of the overall weight of the bird. A typical drone battery can weigh 200g-350g.

Li-Po battery connection in series and parallel

If you are tempted by the discharge rate of the Li-Po batteries and would want to use it for your next long-range FPV drone run, then it is recommended to explore both series and parallel options.

With series, you merely get a 30C discharge rate but with the same assembly in parallel, you would be able to get an almost 60C discharge rate. Another benefit of going with parallel is that it will help to increase the maximum current being supplied to drone motors.