What drone would you recommend?

There was already a firmware update this week so they are working on the promised updates.

The Mini is an excellent drone for its price point. I bought one the first week it was out as an emergency for another project I was working on.

Good to see your name on the forum my good friend @Ncralph

@Dan Welcome to the group :slight_smile: and the fun world of UAS Photography :slight_smile:

Depending on your needs and budget here are my suggestions:

Base System - DJI Air2S (this craft offers a LOT of bang for your buck)
Current Top Level System - DJI Mavic 2 Pro. Feature rich with a much improved sensor over our Mavic Pro Platinum
Future Top Level System - DJI Mavic 3 - Once they get the bugs worked out and include all of the marketed features it has the potential to be a High Resolution system. Unless you’re deeply involved in production quality work I wouldn’t go for the CINE version as it adds a lot of cost and not a lot of return for our “level” of the photography industry. The files created are insanely HUGE and this causes many issues going forward (storage, processing, etc etc). CINE is for the big hitters making commercials and movies.

For those asking why not the M3 right now, I work for an international drone forum and the sheer volume of M3 issues right now is mind boggling. It’s so bad that several of our forum members have asked for a way to turn OFF seeing Mavic 3 posts because they are over running the forum and sadly (and ironically) most of them are NOT operator error. Ranging from the “Green Dot” (sunflare as a single green dot), color shifts, SD Card Errors (this one should have been fixed in this weeks FW update hopefully) up to erratic flight operations and random disconnects the amount of issues are very concerning. DJI has taken the term “let our customers find and report the bugs for us” to a whole new level. We sincerely hope a few FW updates can resolve many of these issues and add the missing features that were so heavily MARKETED prior to release. Not a good move for DJI but I sincerely think their loyal customer base is going to keep following them regardless of this huge fumble.

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The Mini is an excellent drone for its price point. I bought one the first week it was out as an emergency for another project I was working on.

Yep. I got the original Mini when it was first released, and the Mini 2 as soon as that came out. They are small, convenient, and capable for the price. And a good way to get started with drones.

For those asking why not the M3 right now, I work for an international drone forum and the sheer volume of M3 issues right now is mind boggling.

That sounds awful. I knew there were issues, but I didn’t realize the extent.

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If you have a few minutes you can go and just merely browse the many M3 topics that are “current”

I fly the Mavic 2 Pro and love it. Also have a Phantom 4 as a back up but have only flown it a couple of times. The M2P takes incredible video and photos with its Hasselblad camera. Incredibly stable even in brisk winds. Lots of auto flight features. And the Return To Home feature is amazing. Only lost connection once, but the unit returned home and landed within inches of take-off. Highly recommend the DJI Refresh program - often comes as part of a Fly More Package. Adds about 15% to the cost, but if you crash it, you get two replacements in 2 years for $150. Already used it once. In Canada does require at least a Basic UAV Licence. I got the Advanced licence which allows flights in restricted air zone. Needed it on numerous occasions. With Transport Canada’s new Drone app you create flights and submit for instant approval. Warns of other flights in the area. Gives me instant clearance to fly in restricted zone and with that approval you can upload to DJI to unlock the drone. Been confronted by police twice while shooting RE videos and as soon as you show them your licence and the approval they pat you on the back and leave you alone. Very cool.

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It depends on you what specification you need and the price range. You haven’t asked clearly.
Taking in consideration that you want medium quality and medium price level drones I can recommend DJI Mavic 3. I think it is available in online stores. You can also order it from amazon. If you don’t like it you can return it according to the seller’s or store’s return policy.

The M3 has many current “bugs/issues” and for the price point isn’t anywhere near a medium priced UAS. Actually, as far as prosumer level units it’s very much on the higher end of the price spectrum for anything with that form factor.

The Mavic Air 2s will do everything you need without breaking the bank. The one issues for DJI drones is the geofencing. If you are trying to fly in restricted airspace, you have to jump through some DJI hoops to unlock the drone to fly. I don’t know if the applies to Canada airspace, but here in the USA it can be a bit of a pain. I though about switching over to an Autel Evo 2 Lite, but the Air 2s is such a great drone that I am willing to put up with the occasional inconvenience.

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I have an Advanced Pilots licence here in Canada. You need such a licence to fly in restricted zones. Transport Canada now has an app you use to plan and publish a flight. It knows if the area is restricted, and if you have the proper licence it will clear you to fly - practically in an instant. You then upload that approval to DJI and they in turn unlock the drone to fly in that zone. You can do all of this in advance. I suggest you find a course and instructor to learn and study for the pilot’s exam - not the easiest exam to pass - and then you need to pass a flight exam.

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Any of this DJI drones are good. I picked up a Mini 2 a couple years back.
Pretty impressive what it can do. Be warned though, it seems there’s more places you can’t use a drone than can.

Lot of press on how DJI are aiding China in supporting the Russians in Ukraine. If it is true it really changes my perception of the company.

Autel EVO is another option… easy to operate and does not come with geo-fencing

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There are a lot of options so the decision depends on the requirements.

Some of the notable brands include Neheme, Holyton, Verflew, etc.

I agree. DJI magic 2 pro is a great drone . It also flies well with extra weight . You can attach a light weight GoPro or even a 360 camera with a problem . Plus the drones hasselblad takes great shots

Correction to my comment I meant without a problem. Spell check.

I had really good fun flying this DJI Mavic 2 Pro and the onboard intelligence makes it near impossible to do something stupid with it (although if you tried hard enough you could). The only thing that is not quite there yet is object avoidance you certainly can not trust it to follow you through a wood and it loses subjects quite easily. I have heard future generations of the product have this down a lot better so looking forward to the next release. Strongly advise getting the fly more pack the three batteries as advised here keep you in the air for nearly an hour which makes it worth the drive to go flying.

The Mavic 3 is definitely an improvement over the 2, though I never had the follow or avoidance problems you have had.

I’d recommend the 3 for sure! Even the Air 2S is amazing and for the price can’t be beaten.

I have 11 drones