so the Neo has been out for a bit now and i keep going back and forth on whether its a genuinely useful product or just DJI filling a slot in their lineup to cover a price point. like on paper a sub-100g drone with all those autonomous modes sounds great but the image quality comparisons ive seen look noticeably softer than the mini 4 pro and the wind resistance is basically nonexistent if you're anywhere remotely gusty.

that said i know a few content creator types who are obsessed with it because of the palm launch and the easy social media integration stuff. which like, fine, but is that really what we want driving drone development forward. feels like they're chasing the casual user so hard that the actual flying experience is becoming secondary.

curious if anyone here has actually put some real hours on one and has an opinion that isnt just lifted from a youtube review

i picked one up for a trip to japan actually and honestly came away more impressed than i expected, with some caveats. the footage is definitely not mini 4 pro level, thats just true, but for what it is the convienience factor is real. i threw it in a jacket pocket, launched it off my hand in a crowded street market and got a shot i would never have gotten setting up a tripod or even pulling out a bigger drone. so i think the use case is just really specific - if you need the smallest possible footprint and you're okay with the image tradeoffs its kind of brilliant. if you're doing anything serious though yeah get the mini 4.

the wind thing is not a joke btw. anything over like 15mph and it starts looking nervous

idk i feel like DJI does this every couple years, releases something that seems weird and niche and then suddenly everyone has one. remember when the original mini came out and people were like why would anyone want this. now its the default recommendation for like half the questions on here. wouldnt count the Neo out just yet even if the current version isnt fully baked