My wonderful fascination with DJI Drones have taken me from the humble Mavic Air to now the
DJI FPV. All this while, ever since my first drone crash with the Mavic Air, I have considered the DJI Care Refresh program to be something worthwhile having. Two fast replacements no questions asked. But with the DJI Care Refresh for the
DJI FPV.... I am not so sure.
Here is my experience when I sent my
DJI FPV into the DJI Service Centre for repairs.
This was a very informative video. I've been wanting the
DJI FPV for a while, but when I did a similar comparison of costs for Care Refresh for the FPV, it made me pause.
I have three Mini-
2s and a Mini-SE, all of which I bought new, and I have Care Refresh on all of them. Used it a couple of times in my early training just shy of a year ago.
But the cost of the first Refresh for the Minis...the cost for the Care Refresh insurance + the actual cost of the first refresh...is only about 20% of the cost of the aircraft itself.
With the FPV Care Refresh, that "first hit" cost is closer to 50% of the purchase price.
I just can't see making that bet. I've gotten
vastly better at flying drones in the year that I've been flying them, and whenever I do get my FPV, I intend to fly it in "Timid" mode a lot, and use the Stimulator a lot, before I even
think of trying manual mode. And when I finally do that, I'll do FPV things gradually, with an explicit self-training plan. Which will include a Pilot Institute course on the subject, if they have one.
I'm not rich, and a $1000 USD hit would be major painful, but I just don't think I'd fully trash. I might ding it up in some minor way, but my experience with DJI repair is that their prices are very reasonable.
In a way, this makes it
easier for me to make the decision to buy the FPV. A total purchase cost of $1000 USD, vs $1200 USD if I include the Care Refresh, is a big enough difference that it matters to me.
Thoughts and comments appreciated!
MM