All About Multirotor Drone FPV Goggles and Monitors
Drone FPV Goggles or Screens are the devices used by pilots to observe the live
video feeds being transmitted from their quadcopters. FPV viewing devices come
in a variety of sizes, feature sets, and price points. It is crucial to choose an FPV
viewing device fit for your application as it is essentially your interface into the FPV world.
This article will discuss the various types of FPV viewers and a series of
relevant specifications and features to keep in mind when selecting your viewer.
Because goggles are significantly more common than monitors,
most topics will discuss them in greater depth.

How Drone FPV Goggles and Video Receivers work together
The video receiver (VRX) receives a quadcopter’s constant video transmission
and converts the oscillating radio waves into electrical signals that conforms
to either the PAL or NTSC analogue video formats. The Drone FPV Goggles,
onnected to the VRX either internally or externally, receives analogue video signals
and converts them into an image displayed on the screen(s). The displayed image
updates at 25-30 frames per second creating a live video feed from the quadcopter’s
camera. Most goggles have a VRX integrated into them or the ability to fit one into
a module bay. It is also quite common for goggles to have an integrated video input jack
enabling connection to a seperate VRX using an analogue video (AV) cable.
This is useful for long range flying as a VRX mounted on a tripod prevents the
antennas from moving when the pilot moves their head.

Types of Drone FPV Goggles
The Drone FPV Goggles used to pilot aircraft fit into the two main categories:

box goggles, and low profile goggles (usually referred to as just ‘goggles’).



Goggles can be purchased with either one screen or two. In most cases, box style
goggles utilize one screen compared to low profile goggles which contain two.
Dual screen goggles incorporate a pair of micro liquid crystal displays (LCD) up to half
an inch in size to display a duplicated FPV image on each. These goggles are usually more
expensive than single screen box goggles due to the high manufacturing costs associated
with the production of their micro LCD’s. When combined with custom magnification optics,
the miniature LCD’s can be placed closer to the user’s eyes allowing the goggles design to be
relatively compact and low profile. Single screen goggles cover the majority of box style goggles.
Single screen goggles are significantly cheaper to produce as their 4-8” monitors have a
significantly lower manufacturing cost, compared to micro LCD’s, due to the reduced precision
and manufacturing tolerance requirements. Although box goggles and monitors tend to be the
cheapest FPV viewing options, low profile goggles are the preferred option by the
FPV community due to the extra convenience of the reduced form factor and weight.

Aspect Ratio and Resolution
Drone FPV Goggles and monitors can be purchased in the aspect ratios of 4:3 or 16:9.
See the below image for a screen ratio comparison. Preferred aspect ratio is quite subjective
however 4:3 is the most common for the reason that most FPV cameras transmit a 4:3 image
(16:9 cameras are available although they are less common). The 16:9 image ratio is also
quite common for goggles, however, a quadcopter transmitting an image from a 4:3 ratio
camera will result in a stretched image being displayed on the goggles. The rising quantity of
digital HD downlinks has also increased the popularity of 16:9 goggles as it provides a more
|cinematic view from the quadcopter. Goggles and monitors also come in a variety of resolutions
commonly ranging from 320×240 pixels to 1280×720 pixels. For most analogue applications,
an 800×600 resolution 4:3 ratio screen is the highest resolution required as the analogue
video protocol transmits with a resolution of 720×576 in the PAL format (the most commonly
used format worldwide) and 720×486 in the NTSC format (the most commonly used format
in America). For digital FPV applications, 720P HD video(meaning 720 pixels vertically) is
the most common image quality meaning that a 1280×720,
16:9 display would be the ideal screen to use.



Field of View
Field of view (FOV) is the angle between the diagonals of the FPV screen and the eye
observing them. The below image demonstrates the FOV angle. The FOV of different Drone
FPV Goggles can range from 25 degrees, up to 80 degrees. For box goggles, the usual FOV
ranges from 50-80 degrees and for low profile goggles, the FOV ranges from 25-50 degrees.
The ideal FOV is quite subjective however any angle below 30 degrees is quite difficult to fly with.
When racing, pilots usually prefer a FOV ranging from 30 degrees to 50 degrees with 42 degrees
being the most common as it allows the pilot to view the entire image without requirement to
excessively move their eyes around the picture. For freestyle, a FOV of 40-50 degrees is quite
common as the image is sized such that fine details (e.g. thin tree branches) are large enough
to be visible and the picture is relatively immersive without forcing the pilot to look around the
screen an excessive amount. Box goggles provide the most immersive experience with a FOV
range of 50-80 degrees. This can be ideal for long range pilots or people using
cameras with extremely wide viewing angles.



New Drone FPV Goggles Technologies
Due to the increasing popularity of FPV and virtual reality, the technology implemented
into the FPV goggles is constantly evolving and improving. The most noticeable improvements
come from the optics and micro LCD screens which have gradually developed to provide
greater contrast, colour, pixel density and reduced image distortion. These technology
improvements become especially apparent when directly comparing a new set of slim
profile goggles to a pair from five years ago. With the constant microchip size and price
reductions, goggle manufacturers are also able to provide users with many integrated features
for increasingly more affordable prices. Many of these will be later discussed. An increase in
goggle manufacturers has also promoted further technology innovation as each manufacturer
strives to create products with increasing refinement and feature sets.

Features to consider
When purchasing a set of goggles, there are many desirable features to consider which
can increase the functionality and user experience. The most common features are summarized below:

Audio. Certain analogue and digital FPV systems transmit audio which can be
heard if the monitor/goggles has an inbuilt speaker or audio jack.
Audio increases immersion however its use is subjectively based on pilot preference.