ok so ive been watching a lot of youtube videos about drones and i really want to get one but i have no idea where to start. like there are so many options and i dont even know what half the specs mean. my budget is probably around 200-300 dollars maybe a bit more if its worth it. i dont want anything too complicated i just want to fly around outside and maybe take some decent photos or video. do i need to register it or get a license or something? i feel like i read something about that but im not sure if that applies to cheaper ones

so the registration thing ? yeah if its over 250 grams you gotta register with the FAA, its like 5 bucks and pretty easy to do online. most of the beginner drones people recommend sit right around that weight limit or just under it, DJI kind of engineered the Mini series specifically to dodge that threshold which is convenient. for your budget honestly the Mini 2 SE is probably where id point you, its not the newest thing but it flies really well, the stabilization is solid and you can actually get usable footage out of it. i started on a cheaper no-name thing from amazon and wasted like 6 months fighting bad gps and garbage image quality before i just bought a proper one

im kind of in the same boat as you actually, i ended up going with a holy stone hs720 because it was cheaper and people said it was good for beginners. its fine i guess? like it flies and stuff but the camera is pretty meh and the wind resistance is not great. if i was doing it again i think id just stretch the budget a little and go for something from DJI because the resale value is better too if you decide you dont like it