Better buy - Used M2 Pro or new Air 2S

[DefCon65]

Looking for a bit of advice. It’s time to upgrade my old Mavic Pro Platinum and I have two options. I’m in Canada so this is Canadian dollars:

Used but like new Mavic 2 Pro (I know the owner and it has less than 10 flights on it) with fly more plus other extras (2 sets of filters, car charger, hard case, etc) for $1,450

New Air 2S fly more for $1,950 with taxes


I know the differences between them but I am leaning towards the 2 Pro mainly because I like the idea of not having to land to change filters with the variable aperture (and the 500 bucks cheaper of course) but I’d like to get some opinions on things that maybe I have not considered between the two

 

[karlblessing]

If you can get the M2 pro for cheaper than the air 2s with all the accessories, that's the way I would go. I was looking into the same comparison but at the time the m2pro I found were more expensive than the fly more combo of the air 2s at little under 1300 USD.

While the M2Pro does have a lower video rate (100Mbps max vs 150Mbps) it can do dlog/HLG at 10bit still if video is your thing (at 10bit they both do H265 which has a different maximum bit rate, 125mbps on the air 2s, but 125mbps h265 has more visual quality than 150mbps h264).

But the main camera related difference is that the M2pro can do variable aperture from f/2.8 to f/11, not requiring nd filters as much but also allowing for a tad more control over both dof but also exposure in a range of 4 stops before you have to touch your ISO for exposure control while in flight.

So in short, short, I think given the near 500 cad difference with extras, the M2pro is a better deal, particularly if you are aiming more for photos than video (variable aperture is nice for that).

 

[vindibona1]

Looking for a bit of advice. It’s time to upgrade my old Mavic Pro Platinum and I have two options. I’m in Canada so this is Canadian dollars:

Used but like new Mavic 2 Pro (I know the owner and it has less than 10 flights on it) with fly more plus other extras (2 sets of filters, car charger, hard case, etc) for $1,450

New Air 2S fly more for $1,950 with taxes


I know the differences between them but I am leaning towards the 2 Pro mainly because I like the idea of not having to land to change filters with the variable aperture (and the 500 bucks cheaper of course) but I’d like to get some opinions on things that maybe I have not considered between the two

The Mavic 2 Pro is a venerable drone. If I had to cite the one feature that puts it in a different class than the Air2s is the variable aperture. With the F2.8 fixed aperture of the Air2s in some situations you're hamstrung because all you can do is adjust the shutter speed. With fixed apertures in situations where you want a cine blur, you have to resort to shutter speed only or ND filters which only give you one stop increments. So if you're 1/2 stop off then you're no longer in that 2:1 fps/shutter ratio. In addition to my Mavice 2 I have a Mini 2, so know what it is to have fixed aperture. I haven't even bothered to buy ND filters for it.

Additionally, the controller of the Mavic 2 is head and shoulders better than the Air2s. It is compact and light. It has programmable C1 and C2 buttons, a programmable "5D" button separate start/stop buttons for video and photos that you also used to switch between the two image modes and a second wheel on the right side. The difference in controllers alone is night and day. Oh... and the M2P controller has an LCD screen that gives you readable data, absent on all the "new" controllers from th Mini 2 all the way up through the Mavic 3.

The power of the Mavic 2 will keep stable in the strongest of winds, though the Air2s is good at that too. Where the Air2s beats the Mavic 2 Pro is in resolution and frames per second. You can shoot in 4k 60fps which is helpful should you do slow motion. 4k/30fps isn't perfect if you slow down the speed in post. I'm not sure what the other features are in the Air2s that the M2P doesn't have. But I think the Go4 app is a better app than DJI FLy, but that's my personal opinion.

$1450 isn't a bad price with a hard case and and filters thrown in. But if you know the owner and the drone has a legitimate 10 flight record and is in perfect condition, I'd say buy it. I think $1300 is a better price as I got my M2P as a reburbished unit (like new in every respect down to the packaging) with the flymore kit for $1500 from an authorized dealer (yeah, a stellar deal) so I have to base my pricing thoughts on that.

So, IMO the M2P is the way to go.

 

[karlblessing]

The Mavic 2 Pro is a venerable drone. If I had to cite the one feature that puts it in a different class than the Air2s is the variable aperture. With the F2.8 fixed aperture of the Air2s in some situations you're hamstrung because all you can do is adjust the shutter speed. With fixed apertures in situations where you want a cine blur, you have to resort to shutter speed only or ND filters which only give you one stop increments. So if you're 1/2 stop off then you're no longer in that 2:1 fps/shutter ratio. In addition to my Mavice 2 I have a Mini 2, so know what it is to have fixed aperture. I haven't even bothered to buy ND filters for it.

And ISO, which is primarily what you would change for video, shutter speed gets locked down to avoid jitters due to high or automatic shutter speed during movement. The ND filters are primarily useful for videos, not so much for photos outside of long exposure.

So for that half a stop you do your best with an iso increment (since the drone software doesn't let you do 1/3 increments like many cameras).

Also the ratio you're referring to is the 180 degree shutter rule, even with the variable aperture you're not going to nail a half or third exposure change since those too are in 1 stop increments.

 

[DefCon65]

Thanks for the in-depth answers! I decided to go with the 2 Pro. It really is in like-new condition (some of the smaller protective stickers were still on it and even the landing feet are pristine). Got it for $1,400 CAD with 4 batteries, two wall chargers, car charger plus filters, case and spare props.

Ironically, the guy who owned it spent so much on it that he got really anxious about flying it and then it started collecting dust so I'll make up for that.......

 

[alfo2010]

I own a Mavic 3 and the Air 2S, I had a 2 Pro but sold it when I bought the Mavic 3. The Air 2S is a great drone but the issue with them is the short battery life. If you have three or four batteries they are ok but the batteries will go down fairly quickly on a windy day. The 2 Pro is the better buy.

 

[karlblessing]

I own a Mavic 3 and the Air 2S, I had a 2 Pro but sold it when I bought the Mavic 3. The Air 2S is a great drone but the issue with them is the short battery life. If you have three or four batteries they are ok but the batteries will go down fairly quickly on a windy day. The 2 Pro is the better buy.

The Mavic 3 does certainly seem to make you spoiled with that 45 minutes. Though calling the Air 2S short on the battery life is only in comparison to the Mavic 3, as the Air 2S on par with nearly every other Mavic drone on the market (~30min), and that would be true of the other models on windier days that it shortens. If the Mavic 3 wasn't a part of the equation, it wouldn't really be "short" compared to its peers.

To throw another thing into the mix, there's something you get with the Mavic 2 Pro that you don't get with either the Mavic 3 or Air 2S ... Natively supported Waypoints (not thru virtual stick commands third a 3rd party app).

 

[yankfanp]

Looking for a bit of advice. It’s time to upgrade my old Mavic Pro Platinum and I have two options. I’m in Canada so this is Canadian dollars:

Used but like new Mavic 2 Pro (I know the owner and it has less than 10 flights on it) with fly more plus other extras (2 sets of filters, car charger, hard case, etc) for $1,450

New Air 2S fly more for $1,950 with taxes


I know the differences between them but I am leaning towards the 2 Pro mainly because I like the idea of not having to land to change filters with the variable aperture (and the 500 bucks cheaper of course) but I’d like to get some opinions on things that maybe I have not considered between the two

I have owned both models, the M2P is the best for photos and videos/maybe, and you can use way points. I would sell my Air2S for a decent used M2P.

 

[alfo2010]

Don't get me wrong, the Air 2S is an awesome drone and best bang for the buck. How long the battery life last is a very important question as you cannot trust DJI battery flight time numbers as they are inflated and no bases in reality. When you are flying in the real world and leaving enough battery power to get back to your home point safely the battery comes up a bit short. The best way to determine flight time is to review YouTube videos posted by pilots that have done reviews of flight times.

 

[Capt KO]

GO 4 way better than Fly app..imo

 

[Droniac]

Looking for a bit of advice. It’s time to upgrade my old Mavic Pro Platinum and I have two options. I’m in Canada so this is Canadian dollars:

Used but like new Mavic 2 Pro (I know the owner and it has less than 10 flights on it) with fly more plus other extras (2 sets of filters, car charger, hard case, etc) for $1,450

New Air 2S fly more for $1,950 with taxes


I know the differences between them but I am leaning towards the 2 Pro mainly because I like the idea of not having to land to change filters with the variable aperture (and the 500 bucks cheaper of course) but I’d like to get some opinions on things that maybe I have not considered between the two

M2Pro and still truly enjoying mine since inception. Good buy and trusted source ! Godspeed Droniac