Any reason to upgrade?

[88lance]

Hello everyone, I haven't flown much lately, after my trips through Mexico. Been stuck at home in Texas dealing with some medical bs, but finally about to head out to Asia for some more travel and filming.

Since I haven't been keeping up with new things coming out and upgrades the past year, I was curious if there is anything new that anyone really recommends upgrading to.
My Air2 is a couple years old at this point, and has no issues, but with how fast technology moves, not paying attention to the market for a year can mean big changes in a short amount of time.

I don't use it for any big professional video, mostly just vlog shots for YouTube.

Is there anything new that anyone recommends upgrading to before I head out, or is the Air2 with it's updates about as good as anything else out at the moment for simple filming? Curious to hear y'all's thoughts

 

[maggior]

I started with the MA2 a couple of years ago. I was happy with it but got heavier into photography. With the improved camera on the Air 2S, I decided to upgrade by buying the aircraft only. It was a good deal since I could use all of my existing stuff like batteries and remote control.

The photos and videos were quite noticeably improved. Night shots were much better. I also noticed much better signal stability which included better range.

There will likely a new drone released for the Air lineup sometime soon so it might be worth waiting to see what happens there so you are on the front of the tech curve rather than on the trailing edge.

 

[88lance]

I started with the MA2 a couple of years ago. I was happy with it but got heavier into photography. With the improved camera on the Air 2S, I decided to upgrade by buying the aircraft only. It was a good deal since I could use all of my existing stuff like batteries and remote control.

The photos and videos were quite noticeably improved. Night shots were much better. I also noticed much better signal stability which included better range.

There will likely a new drone released for the Air lineup sometime soon so it might be worth waiting to see what happens there so you are on the front of the tech curve rather than on the trailing edge.

Great, thanks for the info. I have seen the Air2S but didn't really think about just buying the aircraft, that's a great idea. The improved night video would be a big plus, along with the signal stability.

Is there any word or hints at what might be coming up for the Air lineup?

 

[Meta4]

Is there any word or hints at what might be coming up for the Air lineup?

No-one knows when or if another Air would be released.

 

[Yaros]

I have experience with both an Air 2 and Air 2S.
I fly my Air 2 mainly, that's the only aircraft I personally own. Great aircraft, video quality isn't really the best because of the small sensor, but good enough for me.
Photos are very good quality in my opinion, especially if taken in RAW format and edited in Lightroom.

However, I also often fly my friend's Air 2S, and edit photos and videos from it as well.
What I noticed is that when shooting in D-Log on the Air 2S, especially in bad weather, it has a magenta tint, I don't know why. The photos also have this issue, but not as much as in video mode. The quality is excellent though, videos are much better than the Air 2, especially when shooting something from a distance. Photo quality is good as well, but I think it's comparable to the 48MP mode on the Air 2, just cramped into 24MP.

Long exposure on the Air 2 is more than enough for me for night photography, but when it comes to video, Air 2S is substantially better at that.

Regarding signal, I haven't noticed a huge improvement, but maybe it's because both drones had the RC-N1 (RC-321) controller, that has Occusync 2, even if the Air 2S supports O3, that only gets activated when using A DJI RC (with screen) or DJI RC Pro. However, the signal is still a bit better with the Air 2S because it has 4 antennas, instead of the 2 on the Air 2.

Is there any word or hints at what might be coming up for the Air lineup?

Not yet, but personally I think it would make sense for them to release it in a couple of months.
But recently they focused more on the mini lineup as well as the pro-tear Mavic lineup. Not sure if they will release an Air 3 soon, but I really hope so.

In any case, you can sell your Air 2S and upgrade at any time.

 

[waynorth]

Not sure if they will release an Air 3 soon, but I really hope so.

I wonder how an Air 3 would be different from Air 2s. It will not have larger sensor, as they have the Mavic 3 Classic. It will not be under 250g, they have the Mini 3 Pro.
A drone with a good 1" sensor is a good idea, sort of placed between the Mini 3 and Mavic 3. But the Air 2s is still on sale, it is a very good and well-proven drone, and I can't see any huge improvements that could justify a new Air 3.
Except of course the usual consumer electronics way of thinking: make some small improvements or add a few new features, give it a new name and increase the price a little

 

[maggior]

I wonder how an Air 3 would be different from Air 2s. It will not have larger sensor, as they have the Mavic 3 Classic. It will not be under 250g, they have the Mini 3 Pro.
A drone with a good 1" sensor is a good idea, sort of placed between the Mini 3 and Mavic 3. But the Air 2s is still on sale, it is a very good and well-proven drone, and I can't see any huge improvements that could justify a new Air 3.
Except of course the usual consumer electronics way of thinking: make some small improvements or add a few new features, give it a new name and increase the price a little

Compared to recent DJI offerings, the flight time of the A2S is pretty short. And improvement in that area would be a big deal. Also upgrade to Occusync 3.

 

[maggior]

I have experience with both an Air 2 and Air 2S.
I fly my Air 2 mainly, that's the only aircraft I personally own. Great aircraft, video quality isn't really the best because of the small sensor, but good enough for me.
Photos are very good quality in my opinion, especially if taken in RAW format and edited in Lightroom.

However, I also often fly my friend's Air 2S, and edit photos and videos from it as well.
What I noticed is that when shooting in D-Log on the Air 2S, especially in bad weather, it has a magenta tint, I don't know why. The photos also have this issue, but not as much as in video mode. The quality is excellent though, videos are much better than the Air 2, especially when shooting something from a distance. Photo quality is good as well, but I think it's comparable to the 48MP mode on the Air 2, just cramped into 24MP.

Long exposure on the Air 2 is more than enough for me for night photography, but when it comes to video, Air 2S is substantially better at that.

Regarding signal, I haven't noticed a huge improvement, but maybe it's because both drones had the RC-N1 (RC-321) controller, that has Occusync 2, even if the Air 2S supports O3, that only gets activated when using A DJI RC (with screen) or DJI RC Pro. However, the signal is still a bit better with the Air 2S because it has 4 antennas, instead of the 2 on the Air 2.


Not yet, but personally I think it would make sense for them to release it in a couple of months.
But recently they focused more on the mini lineup as well as the pro-tear Mavic lineup. Not sure if they will release an Air 3 soon, but I really hope so.

In any case, you can sell your Air 2S and upgrade at any time.

The signal stability improvement I notice is when I fly to a location and I change the orientation of the drone to get a shot. The A2S has more antennas than the MA2 so it is less directional. So where the MA2 may start to lose signal in some situations just because I face the drone in a different direction, my A2S will hold a solid signal.

 

[1TenaciousG]

I was in, relatively, the same situation as You are, just a few months ago.
I have several other models, as well (Mini 2, Mavic 2 Pro, Mini 3, etc), but, My main Drone was my MA2, and, for the most part, I didn't see any real need to upgrade... until I got the Mavic 3 Classic.
The M3C's Dynamic Range is outstanding! It handles changes in light like a champ, and, the images it produces are so gorgeous, that there's almost no need for editing!
I ended up selling my MA2 Fly More Combo to a close friend, and I haven't regretted it since.
Hope any of this helps.

 

[88lance]

Wow, good info. I have noticed the issue with the two antennas instead of four, sometimes flying away and the bars will suddenly drop, I will turn the drone around to come back closer, and suddenly the bars will be full again. So the four antennas is a nice upgrade as well.

Also really like the improved video in the dark.

I've never really looked at the classic, I guess I should really compare it to the air2S and see which one fits my needs more.

Is the Classic compatible with the Air 2 controller and batteries?

I may wait a few months just to see if something new releases, but since I'm not doing professional video, and it's more just messing around for my YouTube channel, I would think one of those two options as an upgrade would probably be just fine for my needs. Maybe they will even have a sale on one of those if a new one pops up in a few months

 

[maggior]

Wow, good info. I have noticed the issue with the two antennas instead of four, sometimes flying away and the bars will suddenly drop, I will turn the drone around to come back closer, and suddenly the bars will be full again. So the four antennas is a nice upgrade as well.

Also really like the improved video in the dark.

I've never really looked at the classic, I guess I should really compare it to the air2S and see which one fits my needs more.

Is the Classic compatible with the Air 2 controller and batteries?

I may wait a few months just to see if something new releases, but since I'm not doing professional video, and it's more just messing around for my YouTube channel, I would think one of those two options as an upgrade would probably be just fine for my needs. Maybe they will even have a sale on one of those if a new one pops up in a few months

The M3 Classic is not compatible with the original Smart Controller, but it is compatible with the RC-N1 (the controller where you attach your phone). The Classic uses different batteries so those are not compatible.

I think you have a good plan to wait it out for a bit and see what develops.

I'll just add that when I got my A2S, I was pleasantly surprised about how much of an upgrade it felt to my MA2. As appealing as the Mavic 3 lineup is, it just too costly for me.

 

[waynorth]

Compared to recent DJI offerings, the flight time of the A2S is pretty short. And improvement in that area would be a big deal. Also upgrade to Occusync 3.

But the Air 2s already have Occusync 3 according to DJI specifications.

 

[88lance]

But the Air 2s already have Occusync 3 according to DJI specifications.

I assume since the Air2S and the Air2 share the same battery, they have the same flight time?

Unless the drone itself just has improvements that make it run more efficient or something

 

[PacificSkyDreamn]

Hello everyone, I haven't flown much lately, after my trips through Mexico. Been stuck at home in Texas dealing with some medical bs, but finally about to head out to Asia for some more travel and filming.

Since I haven't been keeping up with new things coming out and upgrades the past year, I was curious if there is anything new that anyone really recommends upgrading to.
My Air2 is a couple years old at this point, and has no issues, but with how fast technology moves, not paying attention to the market for a year can mean big changes in a short amount of time.

I don't use it for any big professional video, mostly just vlog shots for YouTube.

Is there anything new that anyone recommends upgrading to before I head out, or is the Air2 with it's updates about as good as anything else out at the moment for simple filming? Curious to hear y'all's thoughts

I also have an almost three year old Air2 and fly about once a month in the northern California area - not the easiest area to find legal spots.

Given that DJI doesn't appear to be making the Air2 compliant with FAA RID and just a few months to go before it is mandatory, if there's no Air 3 with RID it would seem that the Air2S which is RID compliant might be the mid-tier cost replacement option.

 

[88lance]

I also have an almost three year old Air2 and fly about once a month in the northern California area - not the easiest area to find legal spots.

Given that DJI doesn't appear to be making the Air2 compliant with FAA RID and just a few months to go before it is mandatory, if there's no Air 3 with RID it would seem that the Air2S which is RID compliant might be the mid-tier cost replacement option.

Good point, i almost forgot about that. I haven't been keeping up with the new regulation since I haven't flown much, and most of my flying is outside the US.

If I don't upgrade, I may just fly the MA2 around my house when I'm home, which is nothing but farm fields. But it would be nice to have it compliant, getting the Air2S.

 

[Deleted member 173459]

I was just checking out my hayfield a half hour ago.

 

[Dbez1]

As noted above, the Air2S is better in low light among other things. I really liked my Air2, but when I got my creds and became deployable by our local VFD for SAR and brush fires, I felt the need to upgrade. There is a noticeable improvement in difficult lighting. I would do the same thing again.
PS: One slight downside is that my 2S seems louder (to me) than my old 2.