Beacon & Joysticks: Engineering Simplicity Into Every Flight

HOVERAir has always been about helping anyone capture moments that feel personal and alive—quickly, creatively, and without complexity. While our signature automated flight modes make aerial filming accessible from the start, accessories like the Beacon and Joystick open the door to even more expressive control.

Today, we’re taking you behind the scenes to explore the engineering behind these two compact devices, how they differ from traditional drone controllers, and how they make effortless, intuitive aerial shooting possible.

HOVERAir’s patented Tri-Body Combination System brings together two devices with fundamentally different roles:

• Beacon — a compact controller that serves as the system’s core. It gives you quick access to settings, real-time previews, and flight status, making it the simplest way to launch, monitor, and adjust your shot.
• Joysticks — modular control sticks that attach to the Beacon to unlock more advanced flight control.

The Beacon was created to fit naturally into real life on the move. With its 1.78" OLED screen and haptic feedback, it's a powerful tool that allows you preview your shot, keep track of your device's status, change settings, use CoPilot (link), and more!
To make it truly versatile, we designed a suite of accessories that expand how and where it can be used:

For control to feel natural, it has to fit the way people actually move. We built Beacon and Joystick around this idea. The one-handed JoyStick option provides intuitive motion-based controls, perfect for simple paths or beginner pilots while the two-handed JoySticks provide a familiar remote controller option and can include your mobile phone as a larger preview.

• Buttons aligned to natural thumb movement
• Sculpted rear contour for long-use comfort
• Built-in 6-axis gyroscope for expressive motion input

Tilt your wrist to move the drone. Adjust the angle to change speed with smooth, stepless precision. It’s intuitive—almost playful—yet incredibly capable.

• Tuned joystick height, spacing, and damping
• Rear control wheel positioned exactly where your fingers expect it

This is classic control, reimagined for anyone to master in minutes.

Let’s dig into the engineering behind these compact devices—the careful placement of every sensor, the structural design, and the thermal management that all come together to make Beacon and Joysticks not only comfortable to hold but also incredibly precise and reliable.

Don’t let their size fool you—the Beacon and Joysticks pack a remarkable amount of engineering into their compact frames. Every structural layer, every sensor placement, every thermal pathway was refined through countless iterations to achieve the perfect balance of:

• Reliable wireless communication
• Responsive, high-precision sensing
• Consistent thermal stability
• Optimized battery efficiency

This system-level harmony allows both devices to remain lightweight and pocket-friendly while delivering the stability, speed, and endurance creators rely on.

One of the most delightful moments is when Beacon clicks into the Joystick. That smooth “glide-and-lock” feel is the result of extensive testing:

• Material friction optimization
• Micron-level manufacturing adjustments
• Real-world comfort validation

It’s simple, satisfying, and secure—no matter where you fly.

Although distance isn’t our mission, signal reliability is. Beacon & Joystick’s internal antenna architecture achieves up to 1 km* control range (environment-dependent). In real use, it outperforms many comparable internal-antenna remotes used by action cameras—proving that small can still be powerful.

*When there is strong interference or obstructions, the transmission distance may significantly diminish.

The Beacon and JoySticks are tools to extend the ways you can use your HOVERAir to  help you point at a moment—big or small—and capture it beautifully without thinking about resistors, antennas, or control protocols.

They represent our belief that aerial storytelling should be easy.  Natural. And fun.

This is the essence of HOVERAir. 

And with every new generation, we’ll keep pushing simplicity and creativity even further.