ok so ive been going back and forth on this for literally three weeks and i need someone to just help me think through it. background: i fly mostly on weekends, do some landscape and the occasional real estate job for a friend (not commercial, just helping him out), and i currently have a Mavic Mini original which i love but the image quality isnt cutting it anymore especially in low light situations.

the Air 2S is significantly cheaper right now and i've seen some really good deals, like around $700 with the fly more combo which seems insane for what you get. but then every time i think im gonna pull the trigger someone on here or reddit is like just save the extra and get the Mavic 3 Classic and i spiral again.

the main thing is i dont know if i'll notice the difference in real use or if that gap is mostly theoretical. im not a professional, im not selling footage to anyone. does the 4/3 sensor on the Mavic 3 actually matter that much for casual weekend flying or am i just gonna be paying for specs ill never use

honestly for what you're describing the Air 2S is probably fine and i say that as someone who owns a Mavic 3. the 1 inch sensor on the 2S is genuinely excellent and unless you're really pushing into low light or doing heavy color grading in post you wont hit its limits that often doing landscapes on weekends. the Mavic 3 is better, yes, but better in ways that matter more at the edges of what the camera can do rather than in normal daylight shooting.

that said the fly more deals on the 2S are getting pretty good right now so if the price gap is significant and money is a consideration just get the 2S and don't look back. gear acquisition spiral is real and the best camera is the one you're actually out flying with

i had the Air 2S for about 8 months before i sold it toward the Mavic 3 Classic and i'll be honest the 2S never once made me feel like i was missing out during those 8 months. only after flying the 3 for a while did i really appreciate the differnce. so maybe that answers your question in a roundabout way ? you wont feel like youre missing something until you've had both, and by then you'll have had months of great flights anyway. just buy something and go fly