so i just got a mini 2 and i live in a pretty rural area, big yard, neighbors are far away and i mostly just want to mess around and maybe get some footage of my property. someone at work told me i need to register with the FAA but another person said thats only if you fly commercially? im confused about what actually applies to me. also is there like a state thing i need to worry about on top of the federal stuff because i live in texas if that matters

okay so the short answer is yeah you probably do need to register even for recreational flying. the FAA requires registration for any drone over 250 grams and the mini 2 is right at 249g so you might actually be fine depending on which version you have. but if its over that threshold its like $5 to register and takes 10 minutes on the FAA DroneZone website so its honestly not a big deal either way. the commercial vs recreational thing affects what rules you fly under, not whether you register. as for texas specifically, there are some state laws about not flying over certain private property and some restrictions around things like prisons and critical infrastructure, but for just flying over your own land you should be totally fine. just stay under 400 feet and keep it in visual line of sight and youre good.

yeah what he said about the weight limit is right. i fly in a rural area too and honestly the FAA stuff is pretty straightforward once you look it up, its the local ordinances that can get weird. some counties and cities have their own rules layered on top. texas doesnt have as many crazy local restrictions as some states but worth just doing a quick search for your specific county. also download the B4UFLY app, it shows you airspace restrictions wherever you are which is way easier than trying to read sectional charts if youre not into that stuff yet