so ive been flying my mini 3 for about 6 months now and always just launch from whatever flat surface i can find, usually the roof of my car or just grass. my buddy keeps telling me i need a landing pad but honestly i dont see the point if im being careful. anyone actually use one regularly and notice a difference or is it just one of those things you buy and never use

i fly mostly in fields and parks, occasionally gravel parking lots. not doing anything crazy professional just recreational stuff on weekends

honestly i thought the same thing until i sucked up a piece of gravel into my props on a landing. nothing broke but it scared me enough to order a pad that same night lol. the cheap 50cm ones on amazon are like $15 and fold up into basically nothing so theres really no reason not to have one in your bag at this point. grass can also throw up debris and moisture way more than you'd think, especially if theres any wind at all. i use mine every single flight now, takes 5 seconds to unfold

i mean it depends. if your flying somewhere clean and calm then yeah probably not essential. but the orange ones are also nice just for visibility, helps spot your landing zone from altitude when your coming in. i have one of the rollup silicone ones and its fine but kinda heavy compared to the nylon foldable type