so ive had the mini 4 pro since around september and figured id actually write something useful for people considering it since most reviews out there are just regurgitated spec sheets

the good stuff first ? obstacle avoidance is genuinely impressive for something this size, way better than i expected coming from my mini 2. the omnidirectional sensors have saved me at least twice in tight spots, once near some trees i underestimated and once just being dumb in sport mode near a building. the 4K 100fps is nice but i honestly dont use it that much, most of my stuff ends up being 4K 30 for the smoothness

the things that bug me though ? battery life is fine but not groundbreaking, i get maybe 28-30 mins in real world conditions which is less than the 34 they advertise, and the ActiveTrack is still kinda sketchy on fast moving subjects. also the controller 2 that comes in the base kit has terrible range compared to the RC2 version, so if you're buying new just pay the extra and get the RC2 bundle, trust me

overall pretty happy with it but i wouldnt say its a massive upgrade if you already have a mini 3 pro. if you're coming from something older or a different brand then yeah it makes a lot of sense. happy to answer questions if anyone has them

this is really helpful thanks, ive been going back and forth between the mini 4 pro and just grabbing a used mini 3 pro to save some cash. the price difference is pretty significant where i am. main thing i care about is just getting decent footage for travel videos, nothing crazy, so im wondering if the extra money is actually worth it for someone like me or if im overthinking it

also good call on the RC2 thing, i had no idea there were different controller bundles, thats the kind of stuff that doesnt come up until you've already bought the wrong one

yeah the battery estimates are always optimistic, i dont think i've ever hit advertised flight time on any drone ive owned and ive been flying since the phantom 2 days. wind, temperature, how aggressive you're flying ? it all eats into it. i usually just plan around 25 mins and bring 3 batteries which covers most shoots

the ActiveTrack thing is a known issue honestly, it's okay for walking or slow cycling but put someone on a mountain bike or a dirt bike in front of it and it just loses the plot. for that kind of work i still think you need a dedicated follow setup or just fly manually