Multirotor Axessories Landing Mode Inspire 1 Case Review
Multirotor Axessories Landing Mode Case
Type: Landing Mode
Weight: TBC
Ext Dimensions: 26.5 x 20.5 x 14.4″ / 67 x 52 x 39 cm
Price: £340 (Available in UK & Europe only)
I discovered this case purely by accident when watching YouTube one evening. It’s put together by a guy named Martin Spencer in the UK under the brand of Multirotor Axessories. Unlike the previous cases I’ve looked it this one’s built to allow the Inspire to be transported in landing mode and with the option of leaving the camera attached.
As you can see from the photo’s, while the case is obviously larger than the standard Inspire case it’s actually quite compact. The material used feels really hard and actually looks nice too, it’s a dark grey colour with flecks of lighter and darker material running through it.
The case features carrying handles on the front and each end. While these are not the chunkiest handles I’ve seen they do feel solid. The handles don’t however have any rubber parts which is a shame.
The front features an automatic pressure release which should hopefully stop the case expanding or becoming compressed as altitude varies. Round the back is a pull out handle along with rubber feet.
I found the mechanism to release and lock the pull out handle to be a little hit and miss on the first few uses. The handle wouldn’t stay extended and kept pushing back inside the case however the more I tested it the more reliable it became. Something that will need looking at over time.
The wheels are large and fitted with hard rubber tyres which should provide a nice smooth ride on hard surfaces and pavements. There isn’t a lot of protection around the wheels though so that may be something to keep an eye on over time to see how they handle the rigours of airport baggage systems.
The four latches use a lever and lock system to secure the lid. Unlike some of the other cases I have, there are no springs or gadgets at play with these, they simply snap in to place and snap open. While there is ribbing to protect the latches they do remain a little exposed and proud of the ribs, it would have been nice to see them recessed a little more to stop any unwanted knocks or accidental activations.
Looking inside the case reveals the custom designed foam and it has to be said that this one really impresses me, there’s some very clever design work here. The foam feels really high quality, even the lid is lined with custom designed solid foam with cutouts for the top of the inspire and tube holders for props.
There’s even cutout parts included that allow you to store alternative items if you only have one controller. The Propeller tubes are a really nice touch, these even have small pieces of foam inside each end cap to keep your props safe. The prop tubes are positioned so that when the lid closes they secure in to the slots where the Inspires motor booms fit further securing everything in place.
Another nice little touch is that the case comes with a small plastic box for all those little bits and bobs that don’t have anywhere specific to live in the case, and of course there’s a space for the box in the foam as well.
Look deep within the case and you’ll find that every opportunity has been made to make use of the space available, there’s even extra battery storage below the controllers and the Inspire itself. The Inspire drops in perfectly in Landing mode and there’s plenty of space around the camera gimbal.
The Inspire is supported by it’s legs and partially by some foam parts deep within the case which contacts the carbon motor booms. With the Inspire in position the landing gear is very close to the bottom of the case with just a few millimetres of foam between them and the case itself. I’m not sure how much of an issue that would be in the event of an impact but I opted to added a little more foam at the bottom on my case just to offer a little more protection.
While the cutouts for the controllers are perfectly cut I found that by default the bar on the back of the controller could make contact with the tail of the Inspire. The case is supplied with some small foam shims for limiting the depth of the iPad slots so I used one of those to fill the rear most cutout which solved the problem. The Controller still slides in and out with ease but is held nicely in place.
The battery slots are cut perfectly, they grip the batteries just enough to hold them in place.As well as the six battery slots at the side of the case there’s also one under each controller and another under the body of the Inspire allowing for nine in total.
The iPad slots work offering great protection and as mentioned earlier spacers are provided allowing you to customise how low the iPad sits inside the slots. Shown is my iPad Mini on it’s side, a larger iPad would be placed on end without using the spacer. There’s a large cutout at the front for a sunshade and a deep square one for FPV goggles, although I used that for my cables. Interestingly behind the tail of the Inspire there’s also a deep oval cutout for the Inspire Handle, although as that’s yet to be released it remains untested… good thought though!
Conclusion
I really like this case, the layout and finishing inside is top notch and Mr Spencer has really put a lot of thought in to every aspect of it’s design. I mentioned when looking at the HPRC case that I’m not a fan of designs that leave room for things to move around and while this one also has some space when the lids closed it’s designed in a way where that shouldn’t happen, especially with the prop tubes forming a barrier between the Inspire and the accessories.
Without long term testing it’s hard to say how the case itself will stand up to the rigours of travel. While I’m not overly concerned about it’s quality the fittings are not quite as substantial as those on my pelican cases and I do think the latches could have been better protected when closed.
One thing that concerned me a little was having the camera gimbal shaking around inside the case. I’m sure that would be fine for short trips in the car and for storage but I wanted to find a way to offer some support to it.
Hunting around the house I came across this foam cleaning pad. I tested it with the Inspire on the floor and it worked perfectly, just enough pressure to stop the gimbal moving around but not enough to apply much upward pressure. It also fitted inside the case a treat! If you’re travelling any distance though the safest place for the camera is still in it’s box!
All in all I really like this case and this one is staying right here with me! It’s a shame that Martin doesn’t ship outside of Europe as I’m sure this one will be popular.
To find out more about this case you can email Martin at Multirotor Axessories. Please let Martin know that you read about it here.
If you’re in the US and looking for a landing mode case check out the new Landing Mode Case from GPC, I should be getting that one in for review soon.
Click here for more Inspire 1 Case Reviews.
Inspire 1 Cases – Overview
