on paper it looks really competitive. the sensor is big, no geofencing which honestly is the main thing, and people seem to generally like the image quality. but autel just doesnt have the same community around it and thats kind of a concern for troubleshooting and firmware stuff. also the autofocus situation on it confused me when i was reading, some people say its great some people say its annoying.

anyone actually switched from dji to autel and stuck with it? not looking for someone to tell me autel is amazing because theyre not dji, i want to know if its actually a good drone day to day. the evo lite+ specifically if possible but general autel experience helps too.

little background: i mostly do landscape stuff, some hiking trips, occasional family vacation footage. nothing professional, this is purely a hobby for me. i had a mini 2 before and sold it a while back which i kind of regret but thats a whole other thing.

the air 3 feels like the obvious upgrade in terms of raw capability, dual cameras are genuinely appealing and the omnidirectional obstacle avoidance actually works well from what ive seen. but the mini 4 pro is no joke either and the under 250g thing still matters to me even if the rules in my area are pretty relaxed. plus the price difference is real money.

has anyone actually used both of these back to back? not just spec sheets, i mean actually flown them in similar conditions and noticed a real difference in footage quality? thats the part i cant find a straight answer on.

dji mini 3 keeps coming up as the obvious beginner suggestion but then i see people saying the autel nano plus is worth a look, and then someone else said just save up for the mini 4 pro and dont bother with the cheaper stuff. i dont really know what i need yet since im still figuring out what kind of flying i even like. shot some footage of a hiking trip with my brothers drone and loved it, maybe some family stuff too

is there a reason not to just get the cheapest dji that isnt totally garbage and upgrade in a year once i know what i actually want? or does that end up costing more in the long run. genuinely not sure how to think about this

thing is most of those youtube videos feel like sponsored content or the guy clearly already loves one brand and is just going through the motions. has anyone here actually owned both or at least flown both back to back in real conditions? not asking about specs because i can read the dji page myself, more like how do they actually feel to fly, does the air 3 dual camera thing actually matter day to day or is it one of those features you use twice and forget about

my main use is travel and some light real estate stuff so weight does matter to me but not to the point where i'd give up meaningful image quality

im a real estate and construction guy, do a lot of inspection work and some mapping occasionally. looking seriously at the mavic 3 pro or possibly the autel evo lite+ because a buddy recommended it. someone else told me to look at the dji enterprise stuff but that feels like overkill for what i do and the price jump is significant. the phantom always felt rock solid in wind which matters because i work in some exposed coastal areas, wondering if the smaller form factor of these newer mavics actually holds up or if its just marketing.

not really a beginner question i just feel out of the loop after flying the same platform for so long

the omnidirectional obstacle avoidance on the air 3 is really calling to me because im still relatively new and i know ill probably do something dumb eventually. but then the mini 4 pro also has that now? i think? and the size difference is genuinely meaningful to me because i travel with carry-on only most of the time and every gram matters when youre already at the limit.

ive watched probably 15 youtube reviews and they all just say theyre both great which is not helpful at all. does anyone actually have hands on time with both and can tell me which one they'd actually pick if they were starting over

the thing is i got really used to the image quality and the feel of flying something that solid and substantial. the newer folding drones feel kind of toy-like to me even though i know on paper they match or beat the phantom in most specs. been looking at the mavic 3 classic mostly because of the hasselblad sensor situation but also glanced at the air 3s. my main uses are real estate work, some event coverage, and personal projects. anyone made a similar switch and have thoughts on whether you miss the phantom or got over it pretty quick

the omnidirectional obstacle sensing on the air 3 is the main thing pulling me toward it. im still not the most confident pilot and ive had a few close calls with trees. but then again the mini 3 pro has that extended battery life with the plus batteries and its under 250g which matters where i live for registration purposes. does anyone actually fly both of these and can give me a real world take, not just spec sheet stuff

the thing is the Avata is great when im flying through trees or doing those cinematic banking turns but any time i want to just get a nice wide establishing shot or anything that requires hovering steady and doing a slow pull back it just... doesnt feel right. the fisheye thing bugs me more than i thought it would too even with the flat mode or whatever its called.

not sure if im just still in the learning curve with it or if i genuinely bought the wrong tool for what i actually want to create. has anyone switched from fpv style to more traditional or done both? how did you handle it

my main stuff is travel filming, some hiking shots, occasional real estate stuff for a friend who pays me a little. i dont do anything super crazy, no racing or anything. weight matters a bit since i do carry everything in a backpack but its not like im ultralight backpacking or anything.

has anyone actually used both or gone through this same decision? would love to hear from someone who isnt just copying specs off the DJI website lol

the good stuff first ? the portability is obviously a massive change, going from carrying that phantom case everywhere to just tossing the mavic in a small bag is kind of life changing for spontaneous flying. hasselblad color science thing, whatever you think about that marketing, the files do look really nice out of camera and the highlight rolloff in particular seems better than what i was getting from the phantom.

the thing that took adjusting was the size honestly. the phantom felt solid and planted in wind in a way the mavic just doesnt, or at least doesnt feel like it does even if the specs say its fine. and i miss having the dedicated controller with the built in screen, the rc2 is good but its different.

anyway just thought id share since i feel like theres not many people coming from older dji prosumer stuff talking about the transition. its a good drone, im happy with it, but it wasnt a no-brainer upgrade the way some people made it sound.

the mini 4 pro seems like the obvious choice because of the weight exemption thing and i travel internationally sometimes so that matters. but then i keep reading that the air 3 sensor is noticeably better and the omnidirectional obstacle avoidance vs just front/back/down on the mini feels like a real difference when youre flying somewhere new and not totally confident.

has anyone actually used both? like not just watched the youtube comparison videos but actually flown them in real conditions. i feel like the reviews online are all kind of samey and nobody really talks about what its like day to day. the price difference isnt a dealbreaker for me but its not nothing either.

i went in kind of assuming DJI would win everything because thats just what everyone says but honestly the autel surprised me. the image on that evo lite plus in good light was genuinely beautiful, colors felt a little more natural out of the camera without as much post work. the app is kind of a mess though and the obstacle sensing felt less refined than what i remember from using DJI stuff before. like it worked but it wasn't as smooth.

the mavic 3 classic was just... really good. not shocking. the hasselblad color profile thing is a bit overhyped i think but the overall image and the way it handles wind is noticably better than the autel for serious use. also the active track on the 3 classic just works in a way that the autel's tracking didnt quite nail every time.

my actual fpv quad is still the most fun to fly by a mile but obviously its apples and oranges for footage purposes. anyway just thought id share since i see a lot of autel vs DJI threads and most of them are pretty one sided

heres the thing though ? i dont do any professional work. im just a weekend guy who likes to fly at the beach and around hiking trails, occasional family vacation stuff. i dont need the omnidirectional obstacle avoidance necessarily but the air 3's dual camera thing is genuinely tempting. my mini 2 footage is fine but i find myself wishing i had a tighter zoom sometimes.

anyone actually switched from something similar and can tell me if the air 3 is really that much better in day to day flying? or am i just going to pay 400 extra dollars and not notice most of the time

the avata 2 is just so much more nimble in tight spaces. the original FPV drone always felt like it needed a bit of room to breathe, which makes sense given the size, but the avata 2 can thread gaps that i wouldnt have even attempted before. and the image quality jump is noticeable, i had gotten so used to the original that i forgot what sharper footage looked like i guess. the goggles 3 integration is also just smoother, the latency feels lower even though i dont have hard numbers on that.

only thing i miss is the raw speed of the original in manual mode going full send in open areas, the avata 2 in manual is fast but its a different feeling. anyway if anyones on the fence between them and doesnt need the absolute top end velocity the avata 2 is where id point people now. changed my mind completely

the main thing tripping me up is the obstacle avoidance. i know the air 3 has the omnidirectional sensors and the mini 4 pro also has pretty good avoidance now but people keep saying theyre different in practice? and then theres the whole dual camera thing on the air 3 which honestly sounds really cool but i dont know if id actually use it that much. also i travel internationally sometimes so the sub-250g thing on the mini 4 pro is appealing but ive heard the registration rules vary so much by country that its kind of a wash anyway

anyone who has actually used both or switched from one to the other, please weigh in. im going in circles reading specs sheets at this point

im trying to figure out if theres a real use case for something like that or if its just dji trying to grab a chunk of the action cam market. the whole no-controller thing is interesting to me conceptually but also feels like it takes away most of what i actually enjoy about flying. curious if anyone here has used one seriously or if you all had the same reaction i did at first

my situation is i mostly shoot landscape stuff, some hiking trips, occasionally travel internationally so the under 250g thing matters to me but not in every country i go to. budget isnt the absolute deciding factor but i dont want to spend air 3 money if the mini 4 pro genuinely does 95% of the same thing for less.

the omnidirectional obstacle avoidance on both is honestly what im most hung up on because i fly in some pretty tight spots in the mountains and my mini 2 has scared me more than once. does anyone actually use the side sensors on the air 3 in a meaningful way or is it more of a comfort thing than a practical thing

i got into drones for landscape and real estate stuff and the mavic makes total sense for that. its a tool, it does the job, clients are happy. but the avata 2 experience was just so different. its like the difference between driving a normal car and a go kart. totally different thing.

anyway now im reading about fpv and freestyle and acro mode and i dont know if im about to spend a bunch of money on a hobby within a hobby or if i should just accept that the avata 2 is kind of a novelty and my mavic is the right tool for what i actually do. has anyone else gone down this road, like kept their camera drone and added an fpv setup? how did that end up for you

my use case is mostly travel photography, some hiking shots, occasional video for personal projects nothing professional. i dont need to make money with this thing i just want something that actually looks good and isnt a pain to carry around. the mini 3 pro seems like the obvious choice for travel because of the weight but then i keep seeing people say the air 3 dual camera thing is a game changer and now im second guessing everything again.

anyone actually own both or switched from one to the other? would love to hear from people who actually fly these not just youtube spec comparisons

i dont really know whats changed in the last few years in this price range, ive kind of been out of the loop. not looking to spend more than like $700-800, mostly use it for landscape stuff and maybe some family vacation footage. nothing crazy. is the mini series the obvious answer here or am i missing something? also does anyone still fly the original Mavic Pro and is it worth keeping as a backup or should i just sell it

the Mini 4 Pro seems like the obvious choice for my use case because of the under 250g thing ? i travel a lot internationally and having that weight class just makes registration stuff way simpler. but then i see the Air 3's dual camera setup and the omnidirectional obstacle avoidance and i start second guessing myself again.

has anyone actually used both? like not just watched youtube reviews but actually flown them back to back? the footage comparison videos i find are always shot in perfect conditions and i want to know how they actually handle in real wind or when the lighting gets weird at golden hour. also curious if the RC2 controller makes a big difference in day to day use vs using your phone

the thing is im not sure if its kind of a toy version of fpv or if its actually capable enough to grow into. like will i hit a ceiling with it fast? ive watched a ton of avata 2 footage and it honestly looks great but i also know dji smooths a lot of stuff out in post with their processing. anyone flown both a proper freestyle rig and the avata 2 and have thoughts? is it a gateway drug or is it kind of a dead end

from what ive read the air 3 has the dual camera setup which is cool but honestly do i actually need that? the 70mm equivalent on the air 3 is appealing but i keep reading that the mini 4 pro footage is basically just as good in good light. the obstacle avoidance on both seems solid. the size difference matters a bit because i do hike to locations and every gram counts.

i guess what im really asking is ? has anyone switched from one to the other or used both? not looking for spec sheets, just like real world impressions of which one you'd actually grab if you were me

my concern is the ecosystem stuff. like if something breaks or i need accessories is it going to be a pain. and also just general reliability, i dont know anyone personally who flies Autel so i cant ask around the way i normally would. anyone here have experience with Autel stuff or made the jump away from dji at some point? not looking for a fanboy fight just honest takes from people who actually fly