Hardware suggestions for a multicopter with gimbal and camera?

Hi,

I am developing a GCS, using MAVSDK. I’ve been making a lot of progress with simulators and a little Pixhawk board with HITL.

I would now like to have a testing platform to test the software with a real drone.
The requirements are:

  • Camera with gimbal that listens to MAVLINK gimbal commands. Image quality is unimportant, as long as it’s good enough to see that the gimbal commands are working correctly and that it’s pointing where I want it to point
  • reliable
  • hard to destroy; or easy&cheap to repair/make multiple of them

I have no reference or starting point. I have been lent a 6-rotor drone that kinda flies but I’m not sure I can attach a gimbal to it, and I don’t understand how it works which is also a bit of the goal.

My budget is around 2000€. I already have a Herelink controller + antennas that I’ve been testing on the borrowed drone & the Pixhawk board.

Does anyone have experience with a setup like this or ideas of where to start looking, what to avoid, etc?

Thanks in advance!

Would the siyi a8 mini be a good starting point for example?