DJI - Mavic Pro

What? I've owned a Mavic Pro and now a Flip. There is no difference in the build quality.

Never flew a drone in my life prior to 5 years ago. Bought a Mavic Pro, did all the training, got my FAA Small UAS certificate. For sh*ts and giggles I got a part 107 (no need at the time). Now I actually do a few real estate property videos regularly, as well as have gained some home inspection friends, and do surveys for them. Do I need the part 107? Probably not, but I'm legal this way. "They" say, it's not if you crash your drone, it's when. Other than landing in some bushes once early on (no damage) I've never crashed. Long story short, my Mavic has been absolutely trouble free for over 5 years. I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but learned it fairly easily. I'd buy it again tomorrow.

I have a large rural property that I plan to do some improvements/rehab to and would like to document the stages of that work with some photogrammetry. All the "cool" stuff is out of my budget (Matrice range for example) and the cheaper end of town is limited in flight time and camera options. I currently use a Mavic Pro, but I think a basic platform I can program to fly around a set flight path with a modern compact camera set to interval mode (or lidar unit) strapped to its underbelly would suite my needs a lot better. It will be a workhorse, flying above the treeline so I don't need a multitude of sensors. Does such a beast exist?

Agree with posts , DJI is market leader at this time based on consumer models. After budget then the choice is camera or FPV model. If your budget is huge and camera focused then it’s the full sized mavic or Inspire models, however its more likely you want a 249g or less weight class to maximize convenience so a mini. I would recommend the refurbished DJI units regardless of budget then you can spend the savings on extra batteries and/or DJIcare (insurance replacement).

I've basically stopped using my Mavic and use my Mini 3 Pro for most things now. Wind resistance isn't quite as good, but image quality is more than good enough and being under 250 g makes flying a lot easier (in Canada, might be different where you are). Some people assume 'bigger is better'. I've seen that in photography, where my Nikon D800 with huge lens gets more respect than a smaller camera. (So sometimes I'll being the bigger camera for show, use it for a few pictures while mostly using a smaller camera, and let people assume that the best pictures were taken with the bigger camera when in reality all the pictures came from the smaller easier-to-carry camera.)

If you want something good and not care about price get the mavic but if you do care about price then get the dji mini 3 or 4 pro remember to ALWAYS do the training flight simulater when you buy a new drone you will need to

I have a Mini 4 Pro. It's a great all-rounder. It's small enough that it can fly indoors with some prop guards if needed, though it's better outside. The camera is versatile, and it can tilt its head for pure vertical shooting. Weighs less than 250g, so registration (especially when traveling) is often easier or absent. Folds up really small. I think it's the best international travel drone for that reason. Here are why you'd want the other drones: * The mini flies well, but the Air flies even better. In places like iceland with high winds, Minis get sent to the shadow realm (the ocean), but Airs can manage better. * Mavic line when you want the best camera setup on a drone for photo and video. The flagship camera drone line for a reason, that tri camera is a beautiful, beautiful tool. * Neo for a more entry level, indoor friendly drone. It's just as easy to carry as the mini and costs less, but the camera is not as good and it's not as strong a flyer. Supersedes the Tello. Lacks omnidirectional obstacle avoidance. * Avata 2 is the strongest flyer, but it's for a different type of flight and shooting. It's for first person flight and exploration. It can definitely chase cars and is the fastest, and also the easiest to control at high speeds, but it's definitely rooted in a concept that's flight-first and photography-second. That said, it's a far more capable camera than its roots in custom handbuilt FPV. The others shown are older models. Good if you want to shave some of the newer features for a discount.

Mavics are so good!

Honestly, to the eyes of the public, the Mavic isn't much more impressive than the mini. If you want to look serious, you need an Inspire or an M300. But that's 500% overkill for OP's use cases.

Bottom line it's a more expensive version of shat is a generic Chinese built drone. It has a "sort off" collision  avoidance but not great in lower light. The cameras are as they say they are but as there is no active gimbal they are no where near 8k quality unless it's not flying (even then it's debatable). So up to this point you get what you pay for..... Now stability......GPS on.... its as stable as Donald Trump..... GPS off..... you never know where it's going..... In short it's not the worst but if you need it for anything semi decent then pay more money for a mavic

A Mavic isn’t really going all-out. If you had the choice of hiring someone who could only bring a Mini or someone who had a Mavic, who would seem more serious to you? Who would you hire?

It depends entirely on your requirements. While there are some advantages to the better camera on the maverick, unless your client is going to run the video on large screens there may be no practical difference. Your skill as a videographer and editor will make much more of a difference than the camera. As others have pointed out, the Air is a great compromise, but depending on where you need to fly, the Mini 4 Pro may have advantages. One of the challenges in an urban environment is operating over people. Unless you have a category UAV or a waiver, you can’t legally fly over uninvolved people. In an urban setting that can be a challenge. A category 1 drone needs to be under 250g with prop guards and remote ID. The only current option to get there in the DJI lineup is a Neo with an external RID module, but the photo/video quality isn’t as good as the air or mini, and that’s a bit of a limitation for pro photographers. (On a related note, if someone from DJI is reading this, please poke your product management with a sharp stick and wake them up. The new DJI Flip is one firmware change away from being an awesome option that 107 pilots like me — who already own a M4P and Neo — would buy in a heartbeat. Please add the option to turn on Remote ID in the USA so we can fly it as a Category 1 UAV.) Category 2 essentially requires a parachute which right now is stupid expensive. Your other option is to apply for a waiver. I won’t go into all the details in case OOP isn’t important to you. But if it is, an M4P with extended battery, prop guards, and an anti-collision light is still light enough to operate over people and moving vehicles under a 107 waiver without requiring a parachute. Flight times and wind handling will decrease, but in an urban area that might make the difference between being able to legally get your shots or not. Just buy the extended batteries because they turn RID on. On the other hand, if OOP isn’t an issue, then in the USA under 107 an Air is probably a better choice. And, if you have any interest in popping north of the border, do yourself a favour and take an M4P with standard batteries. Being under 250g in Canada will make your life much, much easier. Remember that the best camera in the world isn’t going to help if you can’t get it where you need it.