ok so i've been watching a ton of youtube videos about drones for like the past month and i keep going back and forth between different ones and honestly i'm more confused now than when i started. my budget is around 300 maybe a little more if it's worth it. i don't really know what i want to do with it yet, maybe some outdoor flying, possibly some video but nothing serious. i keep seeing the DJI mini series come up but then people say get something cheaper first to learn on and then i see other people say no just get a good one from the start so you dont have to rebuy. i genuinely dont know what the right move is here

honestly the "buy cheap to learn on" advice made more sense years ago when entry level DJI stuff was like 800 bucks. the mini 2 SE or even the mini 3 if you can stretch it is so stable and easy to fly that you're not really going to crash it unless you do something obviously dumb. the obstacle avoidance isnt great on the cheaper models but the GPS hold is solid enough that you can get comfortable without it flying away on you. i started on a tiny whoop indoors for like two weeks before going outside and that helped but honestly wasnt necessary. just get the mini and go fly it in an open field a few times before you try anything near trees

i was in the exact same spot maybe 8 months ago lol. ended up getting the mini 2 SE and have zero regrets tbh. the only thing i wish someone told me is to buy ND filters pretty much right away if you care at all about video, the footage looks kinda washed out in bright sun without them. also register with the FAA before you fly, took me like 5 minutes and its only 5 bucks, dont skip that part