so i've got a 1w VTX on my 5inch and i've been running it at full power basically all the time because i figured why not, more power = better signal right. but someone at my local field told me i was probably overheating it and that 200mw is more than enough for the distances i fly. i mostly do backyard and a local park, nothing crazy, maybe 300-400 meters max.

started looking into it more and now im confused because some guys say 25mw is plenty with a good antenna setup and others say crank it to max always. and then there's the legal side of things which im not even gonna get into because that varies by country and its a whole thing.

also curious if the VTX brand actually matters that much ? ive got some random AKK unit in there and wondering if something like the rush tank or the TBS unify would actually give me a cleaner image or if VTX quality differences are kinda overstated at this point

for 300-400m you really dont need 1w, like at all. 200mw with a halfway decent antenna will do that no problem. running full power when you dont need it just generates heat and heat is bad for basically everything on your quad. i throttled mine down to 200 and honestly couldnt tell the difference at the ranges i fly.

as for brand ? look the AKK stuff gets a bad rap but some of it is fine, the issue is consistency. like you might get three great ones and then one that outputs garbage and you wont know until you test it with a power meter. the unify pro is just... reliable. you know exactly what you're getting. the rush tank is solid too. if your AKK is working and the image is clean i wouldnt rush to replace it but if you're noticing noise or inconsistency then yeah maybe worth it

i had an AKK that was supposedly doing 600mw and measured it and it was putting out like 280mw lol. not saying they're all like that but the power rating accuracy on the cheap ones is pretty optimistic. TBS unify was a noticeable step up for me in signal cleanliness, not just power. something about the RF side just seems better built. also runs cooler which matters if you're packing it tight in a stack.