so my buddy has been asking me about getting a drone since he saw some of the footage i posted from my trip last summer. problem is i dont really know what to recommend for someone brand new. when i started i just kind of fumbled through it and bought a cheap one first that i basically threw money away on, then upgraded anyway. he doesnt want to spend a ton but he also doesnt want something that flies like garbage. i told him to just skip the cheap stuff and get something decent from the start but then i dont want to tell him to spend 500 bucks on something if theres a better option at half the price. hes not super tech savvy either so it should probably be pretty plug and play. what do you guys actually recommend nowdays, feels like the market has changed a lot even in the last couple years

yeah you're right to skip the cheap amazon stuff, those $80 drones are fine for goofing around in your living room but they tought you nothing useful and the cameras are useless. for someone not tech savvy id honestly just say DJI Mini 3, its boring advice but its boring because its correct. the app does most of the heavy lifting, automated flight modes are good for beginners who want nice shots without having to really nail manual flying yet. the only thing id warn him about is not to fly it somewhere sketchy on day one, get some hours in a wide open field first before he tries anything fancy near trees or buildings

i mean it also depends what he actually wants to do with it. if hes just messing around and doesnt care about footage quality at all something like a Holy Stone or even an older DJI Mini 2 SE refurb could save him money. i got a used Mini 2 off facebook marketplace for like 180 bucks and its been totally fine. but if he wants footage that actually looks good and not like vaseline smeared on a lens then yeah spend the real money. also worth mentioning the Autel Nano is worth looking at, people sleep on it and its competitive with the mini 3 in a lot of ways, just the ecosystem isnt as polished