okay so ive been going back and forth on this for probably three months now and i feel like im no closer to a decision so figured id just ask here. budget is roughly $900 give or take and the Air 2S keeps popping up used for around $550-600 which would obviously leave room for ND filters and a couple extra batteries. the Mavic 3 is just out of reach new but i've seen a few refurb units around $1050-1100.

i mostly do landscape and some real estate stuff on the side, nothing super professional yet but trying to get there. i dont really do much video honestly its mostly stills. someone told me the 1-inch sensor on the Air 2S is already really good for what im doing and i probably wouldnt notice the difference vs the Mavic 3 in real world use. is that true or is that the kind of thing people say and then you actually do notice it once you have better glass.

also the Air 2S doesn't have omnidirectional obstacle avoidance which makes me a little nervous since im still relatively new and fly in some tighter spots sometimes. or am i overthinking the obstacle avoidance thing

for real estate stills the Air 2S is genuinely excellent, the 1-inch sensor handles the high contrast interior/exterior shots well and the 20mp gives you enough to crop. i shot real estate on one for almost a year before switching and clients couldn't tell the difference. if budget is the constraint id honestly just grab a clean used Air 2S and put the rest into a good set of NDs and an extra battery or two, youll get more flights in and that matters more early on than marginal sensor improvements.

the obstacle avoidance thing -- yeah the Air 2S only has front, back, and top sensors which is definitely more limited. if youre flying in tight areas just go slow and be deliberate about your movements, most incidents happen when people get complacent not because the drone ran out of sensors.

i mean the mavic 3 sensor is genuinely better but whether YOU would notice depends a lot on what youre comparing it to. if youve only ever seen Air 2S shots it all looks great. but side by side in tricky light the M3 does pull ahead especially in shadows. that said i think the used Air 2S route makes total sense at your stage, you can always sell it later and upgrade once you've figured out exactly what you actually need from a camera. the people who stretch their budget early and then realize they barely fly anyway are the saddest stories on this forum