ok so ive been doing a ton of research and i keep landing in the same place which is basically nowhere. i fly mostly landscape stuff, some hiking trips, occasionally video for a friend who does real estate but thats maybe once a month. budget is around $900-$1000 USD and i keep going back and forth between the mini 4 pro and the air 3.

the size thing matters to me because i do backcountry hiking and every ounce counts but then the air 3 has dual cameras and i keep thinking ill regret not having that wide angle. my current setup is an old mavic mini 1 which honestly still works fine but the image quality is starting to bother me especially in low light.

does anyone actually fly both of these regularly or have switched from one to the other? i feel like all the youtube comparisons are just people who got sent the drone for free and theyre not really putting it through real use. anyway yeah. open to thoughts

had the mini 4 pro for about 8 months before i picked up an air 3 and honestly the dual camera thing on the air 3 is way more useful than i expected it to be. i thought i wouldnt use the wide lens that much but now i grab it constantly especially in tighter spots like canyons or forests where you cant really back up to get the shot. that said the mini 4 pro is genuinely a great drone and if youre doing serious backcountry hiking the weight difference is real ? my air 3 setup with the fly more kit is noticeably heavier in the pack.

for real estate once a month the air 3 probably makes more sense just because clients tend to be impressed when you can show them different focal lengths in the same flight. but if the hiking is the main use case and youre not doing paid work regularly i think the mini 4 pro would serve you better and youll actually bring it more often because it doesnt feel like a burden. both shoot great video though, that part isnt really the deciding factor imo

i was in the exact same situation last fall lol. went with the mini 4 pro and zero regrets so far. the low light is genuinely improved over the older mini's and for hiking it just makes more sense to me. i think the air 3 is probably the better drone objectively but better doesnt always mean right for your situation