okay so ive had my drone for about 3 weeks now, its a holy stone hs720 i think, and when i hover and take my hands off the controls it slowly drifts to one side. sometimes forward a bit too. i thought these things were supposed to just stay still. do i need to calibrate something or is this just how it is. im flying in my backyard which is maybe a bit small but i dont think thats the issue

yeah you need to calibrate the IMU and probably the compass. thats almost always what causes drift on budget drones like that. do it on a flat hard surface away from any metal or electronics, the app should walk you through it. also make sure your props are on tight and not damaged because a slightly bent prop can cause drift too and people miss that all the time

wind can also cause it but if its drifting consistently in the same direction every time then its definitely a calibration thing

tbh some drift is just kind of expected on entry level stuff, the GPS and optical flow sensors on cheaper drones arent super precise. calibrating helps for sure but dont expect it to hover like a phantom 4 or something. that said definitely try the calibration first before assuming its just a hardware limitation