We have had some very good fishing drone models so far this year 2023 & there are more to follow. It seems like there are going to be some great options for Kiwi Beach Fisherman!

Following on from the very popular Swellpro Fisherman Max model earlier this year (which is a heavy lift drone), over the last month Swellpro has also now announced that it is releasing a brand new model to its very popular “Fisherman” range. While the FD1 is now gone from the range, we are excited with some the new features that FD3 model brings (in a more compact style drone like the FD1) so read on….

Swellpro Fisherman 3 (FD3)

The latest model from Swellpro is currently being launched for 2023 – called the Fisherman 3 (FD3). Swellpro has been busy this year and following the successful launch of the Fisherman Max earlier this year, Swellpro is continuing to innovate again – with another new and exciting model to add to the lineup.

The FD3 is actually sits above the popular FD1 drone (being the budget fishing drone) and like the FD1 the FD3 is made primarily for beach fisherman, however the FD3 has some serious upgrades!

These upgraded features mean that Swellpro continues to stay well ahead of the others in terms new and advanced features, more than any other purpose made fishing and marine drones anywhere.

Easy Access Slide in Battery

Firstly there is a Slide in Battery with the FD3. This is a great feature which allows the easy changing of the battery, as you can see below. It means that if you run out of battery on the beach, you can simply slide out the old one, and slide in a brand new fully charged battery – and you are ready to go with another fish!

The FD3 doesn’t require calibrations!

Secondly, like the Fisherman Max, the FD3 DOES NOT need calibrations – which is a welcome change for a lot of kiwi fishermen. The “Drone Dance” is now a thing of the past, so now all you need to once you get to the beach is setup your FD3 and get flying!

The FD3 has a built-in global database of all of the beaches around the world, so as soon as you are on a particular beach the FD3 identifies this using it’s GPS & then automatically calibrates to that location.

Increased Payload lifting capacity

Thirdly, Swellpro have now increase the lifting capacity 10% on the FD3 vs. the FD1 so the FD3 is now able to lift upto 2.2kg (rather than 2kg). This additional capacity gives the fisherman some additional “redundancy” if lifting power if required. This can also be handy if you are needing to use some serious holding power because of the current at a particular beach – and require heavier sinkers.

All-in-one Remote Control with built in Colour LCD Screen

Fourth the FD3 comes with an All-in-one remote control which is water resistant has a built-in Colour LCD screen (for viewing what the drone’s camera if you buy the model with the camera) along with the flight telemetry like gps satellites, battery remaining, signal strength, drone’s distance away – so this means NO NEED to use an additional Phone. However the FD3 also allows you to place your own phone in a phone holder at the same time (if you choose to use it), which gives you access to advanced features like “Auto-fish” mission planning.

The FD3 will come in two versions – firstly the “Standard Model”. This model has a bait release mechanism (no camera), which is often fine for many fishermen.
For those that want a good camera, there is also the “FD3 Pro Fish” model . It’s good to see that Swellpro are putting an excellent 4K saltwater resistant camera on the Pro Fish model – this camera and gimbal is the same one that is on the Splashdrone 4 Profish Model, and also the Fisherman Max, so it gives you the ability to record in 4K video and record to and SD Card in the camera. In the area of Camera’s Swellpro are light years ahead of any of the other Fishing Drone manufacturers.

The FD3 Retails in New Zealand for $3799 for the entry level Standard model which can be found BY CLICKING HERE, and $4499 for the Pro Fish model, which you can find BY CLICKING HERE