As winter approaches, it’s whoop season once more! BetaFPV has one thing particular for us — a brand new Air65 II body and cover for his or her widespread 65mm Tiny Whoop. The improve guarantees higher efficiency and sturdiness. On paper, it seems like a small replace, however after testing it, I can confidently say this model takes the Air65 to a complete new stage. Let’s dive into what’s modified, the way it performs, and the way it compares to the unique body.
Be taught extra about tiny whoops on this purchaser’s information: https://oscarliang.com/best-tiny-whoop/
The place to Purchase
Get the brand new Air65 II Body:
Get the Air65 Whoop BNF (unique body):
Specs
- Body: BetaFPV Air65 II Body
- Wheelbase: 65mm
- Propeller Dimension: 31mm
- FC & ESC: Air 5-in-1 FC (FC + ESC + ELRS RX + VTX + OSD)
- ESC: 4-in-1 5A, operating Bluejay 96kHz firmware
- VTX: Built-in 5.8GHz (adjustable from 25mW to 400mW)
- Receiver: Built-in ExpressLRS 2.4GHz UART
- Digital camera: C03 Digital camera
- Motors: 0702 27000KV
- Propellers: Gemfan 1219 (3-blade)
- Battery Connector: BT2.0
- Advisable Battery: 1S 300mAh LiHV (≈4 minutes of flight time)
- Weight (with out battery): 17.27g
New Air65 II Body and Cover
Left: Authentic Air65; Proper: Air65 II
At first look, I used to be just a little confused why BetaFPV despatched me one other Air65, since I had already reviewed it final yr. However upon nearer inspection, I noticed this new model options the up to date Air65 II body and cover. Whereas the adjustments might sound minor at first, they carry some significant enhancements in sturdiness, efficiency, and flight really feel.
Left: Authentic Air65 Body; Proper: Air65 II Body
Body Design Enhancements
Probably the most noticeable replace is the lowered variety of help struts beneath every propeller — from six all the way down to 4. This enables extra unobstructed airflow, bettering thrust effectivity and total flight efficiency. The ducts are additionally barely narrower, which helps cut back drag and enhance dealing with in ahead flight.
Apparently, regardless of having fewer struts, BetaFPV claims the body is extra sturdy. The remaining helps are positioned extra strategically in high-impact zones, serving to the body take in crash power higher.
In hand, the brand new body feels stiffer than the unique, which probably contributes to the quad’s sharper and extra responsive flight traits. After loads of indoor flights — and the inevitable bumps into partitions and furnishings — I can verify that this body holds up rather well. It feels harder and extra resilient than earlier than.
Weight-wise, the Air65 II body is just about equivalent to the unique Air65 body (V2 weighs 2.57g vs. V1’s 2.63g — primarily no distinction in apply).
V1 Body Weight (left) vs V2 Body Weight (proper)
A small however considerate design element: the motor mounting pads now embrace three raised contact factors simply exterior the screw holes. This helps stop the metallic motor screws from scratching your flooring or furnishings throughout indoor flights — a pleasant contact for whoop pilots flying round the home.
Up to date Cover
BetaFPV additionally up to date the cover, and that is an enchancment I actually recognize. The digital camera angle adjustment belt on the again has been prolonged, permitting the digital camera to tilt decrease than earlier than. This makes an enormous distinction for indoor flying — now you can comfortably fly at slower speeds with a decrease digital camera angle, good for newbies or relaxed cruising round tight areas. It makes the Air65 rather more pleasurable to fly straight out of the field for slower, extra informal pilots like me.
Left: Authentic Air65; Proper: Air65 II
Left: Authentic Air65; Proper: Air65 II
As of this writing, the BNF Air65 nonetheless ships with the unique body, however you should purchase the brand new Air65 II body individually and swap it your self. Hopefully, BetaFPV will begin together with the up to date body in future batches of the Air65.
The remainder of the {hardware} stays primarily equivalent to the unique model, which I’ll go over briefly beneath.
Restricted Halloween Version
BetaFPV is providing a restricted Halloween version of the Air65 II body — and it glows at the hours of darkness! Merely go away it below a light-weight supply for some time, and it’ll take in power to glow at the hours of darkness.
Sadly, BetaFPV advised me this particular glowing body isn’t offered individually; it’s solely out there with the Air65 BNF Halloween Version. Additionally they talked about that as a result of completely different materials composition, this glow-in-the-dark body is much less sturdy than the usual Air65 II body. So if you happen to plan to fly aggressively, it’s greatest to stay with the common model for sturdiness.
To be sincere, it’s a enjoyable however considerably gimmicky concept. The glowing impact fades fairly rapidly — after about half-hour, the brightness drops noticeably and turns into barely seen, even in darkness. In order for you constant, vivid lighting in your whoop, you’re nonetheless higher off including RGB LEDs as an alternative.
Flight Controller: The Air 5in1 FC
On this Air65, it continues to make use of the identical Air 5in1 flight controller. Because the identify suggests, it integrates the flight controller (FC), ESC, ExpressLRS receiver, video transmitter (VTX), and on-screen show (OSD) right into a single compact board. This design saves weight and simplifies wiring — superb for tiny whoops the place each gram counts.
There’s no USB-C port on the FC itself. As a substitute, BetaFPV features a USB adapter cable that you just use to attach the board to your pc. It’s a minor inconvenience, however a good compromise for preserving the board light-weight.
The ESC runs Bluejay firmware at 96kHz PWM frequency, which improves motor effectivity and makes throttle response smoother and quieter. When you want stronger braking and snappier throttle response, you possibly can re-flash to 48kHz, however understand that doing so can cut back flight time noticeably.
One other noteworthy element: the motors are soldered on to the FC as an alternative of utilizing plug connectors. Whereas that makes repairs barely much less beginner-friendly, it’s design selection. Direct soldering lowers electrical resistance, improves energy supply, and saves a small however significant quantity of weight. And realistically, motor failures on whoops are fairly uncommon, so it’s not one thing most pilots should fear about typically.
VTX and Digital camera Setup
The built-in VTX helps output energy from 25mW as much as 400mW, adjustable in Betaflight OSD menu. For indoor flying, I discovered 25mW to be completely adequate — larger energy isn’t at all times higher until you want extra penetration or vary. In truth, operating larger energy indoors may cause the VTX to overheat and drain your battery quicker.
The light-weight dipole antenna performs surprisingly effectively for short-range flights. When you might improve to a round polarized antenna for improved penetration, I’d argue it’s pointless for an indoor whoop — each additional gram counts right here. The antenna connects through a U.FL connector, making it simple to improve, or substitute if it will get broken.
When you expertise video interference from your house WiFi, attempt switching to a Raceband channel that’s farther out of your router’s frequency — Raceband 8 (R8) is a superb choice for a cleaner sign. Be taught extra in my FPV channel information: https://oscarliang.com/fpv-channels/
The C03 digital camera delivers clear analog video. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but it surely’s completely succesful for freestyle and racing apply.
Flight Efficiency and Sturdiness
On paper, the Air65 II’s new body design sounds promising — however does it make a noticeable distinction in flight? I flew the brand new Air65 II and the unique Air65 back-to-back, and actually, the distinction wasn’t large. Maybe the brand new model felt barely extra responsive and snappier — although that may be as a result of my older Air65 has seen over 100 flights and the motors aren’t in the very best situations.
One factor I did discover, nevertheless, is the elevated body rigidity. Once you twist the brand new body by hand, it feels stiffer with much less flex. Within the air, this interprets to a firmer response and sharper management really feel. It’s potential that BetaFPV tweaked the fabric combine or body geometry to enhance structural stiffness. A stiffer body may also produce cleaner gyro knowledge that helps PID tuning.
That mentioned, the advance isn’t dramatic — most pilots probably wouldn’t discover until flying each variations back-to-back.
With a 1S 300mAh LiHV battery, you possibly can anticipate round 4 minutes of flight time, relying on how laborious you push it — fairly typical for a 1S 65mm whoop.
After about 20 packs of indoor flying (and loads of crashes into partitions, doorways, and furnishings), my Air65 II body remains to be holding up completely. In comparison with my older Air65, which began to indicate seen scuff marks and minor duct deformation, the Air65 II stays in noticeably higher situation.
Out of the field, the tune from BetaFPV is superb — clean, locked-in, and responsive. It handles sharp turns easily, throttle management feels clear, and there’s no noticeable oscillation or jello. That mentioned, I feel there’s nonetheless some room to fine-tune it additional. Would you wish to see my customized PID and filter tune for the Air65 II? Let me know within the feedback beneath — I’d be joyful to share it.
Enhancements
When you’re trying to squeeze a bit extra efficiency out of your Air65 II, listed here are a couple of easy upgrades price making an attempt.
First, think about changing the inventory metallic motor screws with PEEK screws (m1.4). They’re lighter and have a decrease tendency to come back free throughout flight. Get them right here: https://oscarliang.com/product-afj6
There are additionally a couple of small areas the place you possibly can trim pointless plastic or materials to save lots of weight:
- Take away the “arrows” on the body
- Trim any extra warmth shrink on the VTX antenna.
These tiny tweaks shaved off round 0.7g from my construct, decreasing the overall weight from 17.3g all the way down to 16.6g. Which may not sound like a lot, but it surely’s a couple of 5% discount — and in a tiny 1S whoop, that’s sufficient to note enhancements in flight time, throttle response, and agility.
Battery Suggestions and Charging Recommendation
Correct battery care is essential to getting constant efficiency and lengthy lifespan out of your 1S packs. Listed below are my suggestions:
- Keep away from discharging beneath 3.0V throughout flight. Land earlier than it hits 3.2V per cell, after touchdown, the voltage ought to recuperate to round 3.6–3.7V.
- For security, it’s really useful to cost at 1C (0.3A). When you determine to cost at quicker charges, ensure that to watch battery temperature frequently for security.
- When you received’t be flying for greater than per week, retailer your LiPos at 3.8–3.85V per cell to delay battery life.
I like to recommend utilizing a devoted 1S charger with storage mode, such because the Vifly WhoopStor V3 or GEPRC WooPower. Each are compact, simple to make use of, and feature-packed 1S battery chargers.
Find out how to Setup
Firmware:
- The FC comes with Betaflight 4.5.0, and the FC goal is BETAFPVG473. You will discover the default CLI diff right here.
- ELRS Receiver: BETAFPV 2.4GHz AIO RX ExpressLRS firmware model 3.5.6
- ESC: A-X-5 – Bluejay, 0.19, 96kHz
Firstly, bind the receiver, comply with this information if you happen to don’t know the way: https://oscarliang.com/bind-expresslrs-receivers/
Listed below are the Betaflight configurations:
- Load ExpressLRS Preset
- Set Your Charges
- Allow Telemetry
- Set Arm change, angle mode change, turtle mode change
- Set OSD (disable “Core Temperature” below warnings)
- Cut back present sensor scale to 660 for extra correct mah studying (may want additional adjustment).
Conclusion – Ought to You Get the Air65 II (or the New Body)?
The BetaFPV Air65 was my favourite whoop of 2024, and with the brand new Air65 II body, I can confidently say it stays my favourite going into 2025. It’s one of the well-balanced whoops out there as we speak — providing a superb mixture of energy, effectivity, construct high quality, and tuning proper out of the field.
Whereas the Air65 II doesn’t look drastically completely different from final yr’s model, the refinements add up. The body is stiffer, extra sturdy, and the brand new cover design permits for a decrease digital camera angle, making it extra pleasurable for newbies or anybody who prefers slower, extra relaxed flights indoors.
That mentioned, the efficiency enhancements are delicate in real-world flying. When you already personal the unique Air65, there’s no pressing must improve. However if you happen to’re out there for a brand new whoop, or planning to interchange the body, the Air65 II body is completely price getting — it’s a refined evolution of the most effective 65mm whoops you should purchase.
Get the brand new Air65 II Body:
Get the Air65 Whoop BNF (unique body):