DJI - Phantom 4 Pro V2.0

I bought a $30 drone. 3 days later I ordered a P4P in 2018. 7 years later I only upgrade when the work covers the cost and I still walk with decent pay.

It might be, but that’s the drone you need. Otherwise I would buy a used M2P or P4Pv2. Both are workhorses in the industry. The P4Pv2 (v2 is really important) is probably the better buy as it has a mechanical shutter. Still sitting on my 2 M2P and 13 batteries I cycle as required. I still do a bit of work, but towers suck now. The demands on the serious work isn’t matched with pay. The industry has been flooded.

Then I would absolutely go after a used P4Pv2. It’s a solid workhorse that will do what you want, but opens you up to more possibilities for other work.

For all intents and purposes, the Phantom 4 was replaced by the Mavic 3E. It's no longer supported but you can still buy batteries and replacement propellers so that you can use the drone for as long as you'd like. I fly frequently within one of the most obnoxious areas in the country, the Washington DC FRZ. Nothing within the inner limits, but I have had dozens of FAA waivers to fly within the 15 mile radius. I've also flown adjacent to a number of military bases, all fairly recently with a Phantom 4 Pro v2. You should have no issues with a phantom 4 RTK outside of the government going nuclear and bricking all DJI drones, which I doubt they would do to currently compliant drones. Your drone is a workhorse and could easily provide you with years of good data and would last you well until after we know what is going to happen long-term with DJI. If they manage to get past this current madness, I'd keep your eye out for a Mavic 4 announcement eventually (I'd love a 3E but they're hard as hell to get these days for obvious reasons). Just make sure that any drone you get for mapping has a mechanical shutter. This goes for pretty much any company. As for US made drones... sadly there really aren't too many good options right now. They're expensive as hell and untested with plenty of quirks and no pedigre. What kind of work do you do in Alaska? Is it fairly wide open swaths of land? Or more urban? I've been eyeing the WingtraOne recently as its made in Switzerland, has a vertical take off, and has the stupid fast speed of a fixed wing drone. But it's also significantly more expensive than a DJI.

I am and always be a great fan of DJI P4 Pro v.2. The camera specs are outstanding. I have 2 and do land surveying. Insurance claims. Scenic videos etc. I have my Advanced Drone License ( Canada). Look at camera specs and compare.. You will be amazed.

Yes, I agree 100 %. But my thinking is why change what is not broken. BTW the camera also has mechanical shutters. It is also virtually indestructible:).. I have had high speed crash in trees and just needed to change props.

Camera specs  * **Sensor**: 1-inch CMOS with 20 million pixels * **Lens**: 84° FOV, f/2.8-f/11 auto focus * **Shutter**: Mechanical shutter with speeds of 8-1/2000 s * **Video recording**: 4K at 60 fps, 2.7K at 60 fps, FHD at 30 fps * **Photo modes**: Single shot, burst shooting, auto exposure bracketing * **Photo formats**: JPEG, DNG (RAW), JPEG + DNG * **Video formats**: MP4/MOV (AVC/H.264; HEVC/H.265)

I got a Mini 4k first but after about a month I upgraded to the 4 Pro. I like the waypoint and Hyperlapse feature the 4k does not have but the 4k is still a great drone.