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Get the Mavic Pro or wait for Spark?

I'm sure we'll see a Mavic Pro 2 at some point since the current Mavic is so popular. You'll have the same dilemma at that point though. You'll need to decide if you should get the Mavic Pro 2 or wait for the Mavic Pro 3. Better technology is always around the next corner.

As usual, you're wrong.

The Mavic Pro 4 Elite is the way to go :)
 
Although there's a lot of hate for the Karma, I thought they took a sensible approach with a more basic drone that offered a different feature set to others - the idea of having a separate camera and gimble appealed to me as I'd use them on the bike so factoring in that and the 2 year accidental warranty GoPro were initially offering it made the Karma around half the price of the Mavic. Other drones like the Zano and Lily tried to offer more advanced features than DJI and cheaper but they're starting off at a big disadvantage given DJI's years of experience now and unsurprisingly both the Zano and Lily failed completely.

When the Karma was recalled I no longer considered it as I've been stung by GoPro beta devices before and won't be again but still I'm disappointed GoPro haven't managed to do well with the Karma. For all the mocking it gets, ultimately as consumers it hurts us not to have good competition between manufacturers to encourage better products and in the case of DJI particularly, better service which is clearly something they're failing badly. However with their dominant position in the market and high demand for products like the Mavic which have no real rivals, DJI have little reason to improve.

DJI are hardly sitting on their laurels! Occusync, miniaturisation, multiple flight modes, more sensors, more control, continuous improvement of software (you may say that they should get it right first time) and now fixed wing mode. There are many competitors out there and DJI are well aware that if the also rans hit on something then they could end up playing catchup. Hence the innovation continuing.

GoPro will return. Now that they've dipped their toe and found the water a bit hot they'll understand where they need to go to get something competitive. Their removable camera/gimbal idea is a good one and if they keep that and redesign the rest of it they could have a Phantom 4 Pro beater.

The future's bright, the only cloud being idiots, terrorists and OTT regulation and legislation.
 
DJI are hardly sitting on their laurels! Occusync, miniaturisation, multiple flight modes, more sensors, more control, continuous improvement of software (you may say that they should get it right first time) and now fixed wing mode. There are many competitors out there and DJI are well aware that if the also rans hit on something then they could end up playing catchup. Hence the innovation continuing.

GoPro will return. Now that they've dipped their toe and found the water a bit hot they'll understand where they need to go to get something competitive. Their removable camera/gimbal idea is a good one and if they keep that and redesign the rest of it they could have a Phantom 4 Pro beater.

The future's bright, the only cloud being idiots, terrorists and OTT regulation and legislation.

In terms of technology, no DJI are not sitting on their laurels but I was more thinking of their abysmal customer service which there is a lot of room for improvement. There's other drones out there but there's little in the way of real competition and nothing that offers the performance and portability the Mavic has. Due to the drones being highly complex and the high probability of crashes customer service is likely to always be a key part of selling drones, if another company can offer a decent drone with good service then DJI would really have to improve their services whereas right now they can get away with it for the most part.

John
 
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I can definitely see the Spark being the better option if video is similar. So many durability issues w/ Mavic and complication in such a small device. It's cool and I love it but would love the same form factor/size w/ a less complex mechanical design. Gotta admit I've been mulling over if I'd add a Spark to my inventory, would be great for motorcycling.
 
They will not come up with magic pro 2 until competitor come up with the killer. At the moment none.
 
I actually regard the Spark as an entry-level drone, maybe for half the price of a Mavic. Limited in many aspects, such as the camera lens size, two-axis gimbal, missing folding capability, less speed, less wind resistance and maybe less range in case there is no remote, too.
I could imagine buying an even smaller drone which will fit into my pocket in addition to the Mavic, which I can take with me all time. Something like the Dobby in case it has at least a simple one- or two-axis gimbal, but the Spark is already too big for that purpose.
So we'll see next days what will happen.
 
As we all know, DJI's product release cycle moves at a pretty fast pace and there's always new technology around the corner. It will definitely be neat to see a drone like the DJI Spark release at even smaller form factor than the Mavic but that's going yield sacrifices in features. DJI knows how successful the Mavic has been and the Spark will fall into a class of its own and in my opinion at the speculated price point we're going to see a pretty dumbed down unit from the Mavic, although still very impressive for its form factor. We'll have to wait and see but I don't think we'll be directly comparing the Spark to the Mavic.
 
I actually regard the Spark as an entry-level drone, maybe for half the price of a Mavic. Limited in many aspects, such as the camera lens size, two-axis gimbal, missing folding capability, less speed, less wind resistance and maybe less range in case there is no remote, too.
I could imagine buying an even smaller drone which will fit into my pocket in addition to the Mavic, which I can take with me all time. Something like the Dobby in case it has at least a simple one- or two-axis gimbal, but the Spark is already too big for that purpose.
So we'll see next days what will happen.

Yeah it will definitely be that. Frankly though I think DJI has learned some hard lessons w/ the folding and complicated design which is why they are taking the Spark back to basics. I'm sure they could easily make it folding as well. Probably to the point it would fit in a back pocket but durability has it's pluses too. I'm sure alot of folks will use it as a selfie drone or racing drone. I also imagine a lot of police and search and rescue will adopt it as well.

I hope the Spark will be compatible with the Mavic remote and not just a phone ordeal though. If it is then I will likely buy one for bike trips or to just live in the car for impromptu stuff unlike the Mavic which stays in the house when not actively going to fly.
 
If you gonna buy spark with controller (fly more with total of 2 batts = 32 minutes of flight time), then its better to get a Mavic Pro fly less package. 1 bat is 25 minutes and you get more bang for buck and probably the same portability as the spark.

There is way less chance of losing the Mavic as it uses Occusync and it has higher speeds for RTH.
The spark is using old wifi tech found on the Phantom Vision series and the Phantom 3 Standard and P34K. The spark with a 1400 mah and slow speeds will have trouble RTH.

I would recommend the spark if you are flying at really close proximities of 100m or less. Anything further than this then you are asking for a spark-away.
 
Had the Mavic Pro....it wasn't worth the wait for me. Sold it used at a small profit. Don't miss it.

Wanted cheaper and even easier drone to fly on my outdoor adventures. Loved that this one doesn't require a remote, has many advanced features that Mavic Pro 2 will have in a couple years, and that 1080 camera footage is much easier to edit compared to 4K. Batteries are cheap too!

For everyone needing 4K and longer flight time for $1400 Mavic Pro is a great drone.
 
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If I get the Spark and sell the Mavic, I think I'd miss the Mavic. Their both portable drones but only one you can really do more with. For example, when I was in Maui a few weeks ago I flew my Mavic about 100 yards out over the ocean then took up about 100ft from that point to get an awesome aerial shot. I dunno if I'd be comfortable doing that with a Spark. A Mavic can be a Spark (as far as being a selfie cam) but a Spark can't be a Mavic.

Besides, wasn't there talk about a Mavic Standard or something like that being released eventually. I think a scaled back version of a Mavic would push the Spark aside.
 
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