The drone wars are just starting to get more intense as manufacturers are coming up with better and even more affordable drones stacked with features that would make it easier to take aerial video footages. Last week, it was DJI releasing the new Phantom 3 which comes in two flavours; and now 3D Robotics announced their "Solo", the smart drone.

Whilst the Phantom 3 is a drone and 4k/1080p video camera package, the 3D Robotics Solo is designed to work with the GoPro Hero, which is the best selling action camera series. With GoPro Hero4 now available and comes better 4K recording at 30fps and 1080p HD recording at 120fps, taking aerial shots with Solo means that it can capture more detail or give better video and slow-motion options.

Most probably your first question about the Solo is, what does it do that the Phantom 3, Inspire 1, or even the Parrot Bebop Drone, and other even the other custom built drones for aerial videography cannot?

For starters, 3D Robotics and GoPro collaborated to ensure that Solo has access to the Hero's camera settings. Solo comes with two options, the drone only option at US$1,000, or with the GoPro Gimbal option which will raise the price to US$1,400. This makes the Solo a bit more expensive than the DJI Phantom 3 Professional which already comes with the 4K camera (at US$1,260); and the US$1,400 Solo with the GoPro Gimbal still does not come with the GoPro Hero. 3D Robotics are confident that those who are going to buy the Solo already are owners of the GoPro Hero.

Since the Solo has access to the Hero's camera settings, the drone pilot can readily access the camera settings even if the Solo is in flight. With a 720p video resolution streaming via Wifi connectivity to the controller which you can mount an iPhone or an iPad to be the monitor, the pilot can set the frame rate, resolution, snap a photo, stop/start recording, and even adjust the camera angle.  No need to land and waste time adjusting the camera settings, do it with the Solo in mid-air.

For video gamers, the controller will be a familiar thing for them as it was designed as inspired by video game controllers. If you are not a familiar with flying a drone yet, it has a drone simulator so you can fly the Solo and crashing it whilst learning without actually flying the drone. You can then move on to flying the real Solo when you are confident with your drone piloting skills.

Now we go into the unique offerings of Solo apart from the "follow me" feature that most drones now have and it's a nifty feature since if you issue this command, the drone will follow you and take the footage of whatever you do.

The first one is the "Cable Cam" which is a virtual cable for the Solo to follow. Set Point A to Point B and the drone will follow that in a strict straight line and doing a panning shot of the area whilst in the motion (or you can do the panning yourself). The second is the "Orbit" in which all you need to do is circle a spot on the monitor and the Solo will do a wrap-around shot of the spot. This is usually good for architectural and event videos, especially for airsoft events when the drone goes around an objective being attacked or defended. The third feature is what every normal and camera-hugging airsoft player would love --- the "Selfie" in which they put themselves in the centre of it all.

The Solo will fit right in an airsoft milsim event with its aggressive design, just like the DJI Inspire 1. The Solo design looks like a stealth UAV doing some recon on the field as compared to the blinking lights and white colour scheme for the DJI drones that includes the Phantom 3.

If you have the budget to afford the Solo, especially with the 3-axis GoPro Gimbal, then just wait for a little bit more. The Solo will be available at various retailers in May 2015.