F450 motor orientation

[discv]

Have I lost the plot or is this page in the DJI manual wrong- I see it showing motors 1&2 on the left of the boards.

 

[OI Photography]

Looks right to me...but there's no wrong answer either. DJI advertises the F450 with the boards oriented like they are in that diagram (with the "wings" on the bottom plate sticking out the sides)...but many people mount the boards 90deg from that, with the wings to the front and back.

 

[ElGuano]

DJI recommends the "wings" stick out to the sides (but some of their official shots show otherwise). The rationale is that you can use that space to mount position-agnostic accessories like RX modules and PMU/BTU/etc. However, many (most?) people mount the wings front and back, to provide overhanging support for cameras/gimbals which need to be forward-mounted, and slung batteries in back to offset gimbal weight.

If you look closely, the bottom plate isn't actually symmetrical; once side is rounded and the other is flat :O Of course, it makes no difference in flight, but it does suggest DJI intended a sideways-wings setup.