If you have a Mavic Pro 2, is it worth getting a Mavic Air 2?

[ihavequestions]

Just wondering your thoughts and WHY?

 

[Spartan Drones]

you need to add () No Idea

 

[ChipDjipro]

I personally wouldn’t see the point in owning a mavic air when you have the pro or zoom.

 

[sar104]

The MA2 has a better camera than the M2Z, but a worse camera than the M2P. On the other hand it can do faster video frame rates at all resolutions, and lossless crop zooms. The comparison is quite similar to the EVO II 8K vs. EVO II PRO 6K in terms of lenses and sensors. So it really depends on your priorities.

MA2 specifications

 

[SCCooper]

I voted no, but, the ability to do 4k/60 is intriguing. Also, as a 107 pilot, I wonder if the Air 2 will be compatible with dronedeploy, for mapping missions, etc

 

[Deleted member 114292]

I think it was an excellent marketing response to the EVO II.
The reviews I’ve seen of that sensor are very So so. In the 48 MP mode the pixel size is .8 µm which is really small.
But then the cameras in our price class don’t even come up to good compared to say a low end DSLR.
For example a Nikon D 3400 as a pixel size of 15 microns And the dynamic range is 14 EV.

 

[kwolfskill]

As a Mavic Air, now MA 1, owner, this just allowed me to now wait for the MP 3. I got my Air instead of an MP 2 because the Air was so much more portable (i.e. it, the controller, and spare batteries take up two lens pockets in my photography backpack.

The MA 2 is about the same size is the MP2, so it loses the whole advantage the MA had. At least for my usage.

 

[captaintrips]

Really it's pretty simple:

If you want something affordable and easy, but minimalistic and so-so footage, go Mini

If you want a something better than a mini and at a discount until stock is out, but don't want to drop coin on a improved revision, go Air

If you want 4k/60fps with a decent cam and some early previews at what's to come with improved tracking, go Air 2

If you want a actual zoom lens with a decent cam, go Zoom

If you want the best camera quality and customization, go Pro 2


If you just want better than that from a DJI perspective (and without going Enterprise level) well you've got probably several months to wait for Mavic 3 series.... though I have suspicions they will likely do a silent update to the Zoom and Pro 2 to incorporate some software level updates of the Air 2 (such as Activetrack 3.0) before they phase out the Mavic 2 series.

I've heard some say they think they'll 'unlock' a 4k/60fps mode for the zoom/pro2... but as that's more hardware limitation specific, not sure such is possible. or maybe it is, I dunno... We can argue sensor capabilities all day, but in the end, even the Air 2 sensor is capable of 4k/90fps, but they've locked it to 4k/60fps, so it's plausible that the Pro2/Zoom sensors could have some locked potential up DJI's sleeves.

 

[Jordaneer]

I voted no, but, the ability to do 4k/60 is intriguing. Also, as a 107 pilot, I wonder if the Air 2 will be compatible with dronedeploy, for mapping missions, etc

With that, it depends on when dji releases the SDK for integration, which is why I'm hesitant to sell my mavic air right now since otherwise I couldn't do any mapping which is half of what I do

 

[him7403]

Really it's pretty simple:

If you want something affordable and easy, but minimalistic and so-so footage, go Mini

If you want a something better than a mini and at a discount until stock is out, but don't want to drop coin on a improved revision, go Air

If you want 4k/60fps with a decent cam and some early previews at what's to come with improved tracking, go Air 2

If you want a actual zoom lens with a decent cam, go Zoom

If you want the best camera quality and customization, go Pro 2


If you just want better than that from a DJI perspective (and without going Enterprise level) well you've got probably several months to wait for Mavic 3 series.... though I have suspicions they will likely do a silent update to the Zoom and Pro 2 to incorporate some software level updates of the Air 2 (such as Activetrack 3.0) before they phase out the Mavic 2 series.

I've heard some say they think they'll 'unlock' a 4k/60fps mode for the zoom/pro2... but as that's more hardware limitation specific, not sure such is possible. or maybe it is, I dunno... We can argue sensor capabilities all day, but in the end, even the Air 2 sensor is capable of 4k/90fps, but they've locked it to 4k/60fps, so it's plausible that the Pro2/Zoom sensors could have some locked potential up DJI's sleeves.

I'm torn between the Mini and Air 2.
I had the Mavic Air but I sold it recently with a good value. I really liked the air for the compact size and easy to carry while going on hiking/backpacking. But few things bothered me -
1. Loud high pitch noise
2. Camera quality not so good
3. Flight time
I was almost down for the Air 2 but it's a bit bulkier and heavier about 33% than the Air.
Now I'm torn between the Mini and Air 2 :/

 

[mavicn00b]

Buy first, regret later. Don't tell the wife.. ?

 

[GoGo22]

Im guessing it isnt possible, but just curious and thats why i want to ask. The ActiveTrack 3.0 that the MA2 has, is it hardware which makes this happen or can a MP2 or MZ2 get an firmware update and get the same ActiveTrack 3.0 possibilities also maybe ??

If its a stupid question sorry for asking then ?

 

[ImageAmos]

I personally wouldn’t see the point in owning a mavic air when you have the pro or zoom.

I have to agree with Chip on this. At the start of this year I owned the M2P and Air. I really loved the Air for portability but although larger in size - I can still get the the M2P+Smart Controller in a rucksack and crucially up/down/re-packed in no time at all. The Air eventually saw less and less flight time and I sold it on for a good return.

It makes no sense to me that the MA 2 has increased in size to almost match the M2P. I understand that DJI want to obviously streamline their product design, but question whether existing Air owners will upgrade to this. If it was me, I'd chuck in a few extra quid and just go M2P with its superb 1 inch sensor. At the end of the day, these drones are a means to and end, capturing the highest image quality possible.

 

[RayOZ]

I see a lot of rules are going to be broken when this is delivered, namely isolation rules.
10km transmission is nice but specified max distance is less than 20km. So, doing the maths, sar104 will be busy.

 

[thewishy]

I have an M2P - the aim was to use it during travel, not really happening at the moment...
The only reason I can see myself purchasing the M2 Air would be regulatory - <700g avoids regulations in a few countries, for example Chile requires a parachute >700g (Which will cripple the performance and flight ceiling of the M2P) and France requires registration >700g. France may harmonise at 250g, but I doubt Chile will change.

Also after slightly bitter experiences with the Mavic Mini, I'm going to let other people work out if they're capable of staying in the sky first.

That said, if I was buying new, I suspect I would have seriously considered the MA2 for these reasons.

 

[Hiflyer808]

I'm a bit surprised so many are finding reasons to favor something like the 2 Pro or the Mini over the Air 2. This seems to have been a massive upgrade, with much better range and battery life, tracking and oa second only to the Skydio 2, and a great price for the Fly More package that includes ND filters. If you already have a Mavic 2 Pro keep it, but if getting a new drone the Air 2 is the best choice unless you have specific niche needs such as doing a lot of low light photography. The camera is worse than the M2 Pro's for low light and photography in general, but better in some ways for video which most people do more than photos, while in most other ways the Air 2 is about as good (range, battery life) or better (oa, tracking, portability) than the M2 Pro, while being much cheaper. It's as good or better than the Zoom in almost everything except for the lack of the zoom lens, while being much cheaper. And it's better in every way except portability than the Mini, while not being all that much more expensive. And regarding portability, sure it's somewhat larger than the original Air, but on the other hand the props fold away better, and really, for most people the M2 Pro is already portable enough. The folding design was the genius of the original Mavic, with succesors retaining that concept. The extreme portability of the Mini or the original Air is a niche need few have. Unless some much more negative reviews come out, I'm selling my Zoom and getting the Air 2.

 

[thewishy]

Depends how much investment you've made in the existing system. I've got a flymore combo and a second controller which allows the Wife to join in flights (Not sitting around bored and a second pair of eyes in always useful).

But agreed, if I didn't have a M2P then it would be hard to argue for paying the list price for it over the MA2. (For me - Benefits - full GO4 solution, aperture, *probably* better image quality. Cons: Cost, 4k60, larger more expensive batteries which probably take a little longer to change)

 

[Johnmcl7]

The Mavic Air 2 looks a great drone and clearly designed to fit in along side the Mavic 2 series but as a Mavic 2 Pro owner I wouldn't consider one as I bought the Mavic 2 Pro for its 1in sensor and it's been a welcome upgrade over the 1/2.3in sensor in the Mavic 1 Pro. I see frequent comments claiming that the main benefit of the larger sensor is the better high iso performance but that's more a bonus as I don't fly often at night (nor do many others looking at content here), the big advantage the larger sensor offers is much wider dynamic range which is useful with most drone photos. The image below shows how much detail can be recovered from the underexposed areas of the image:

It's certainly not for everyone and if you don't process the raw files you're not going to see as large a benefit but at the same time it's nowhere near as specialised or niche as I keep seeing being claimed. On the sensor scale a 1in sensor is still very small but it's the tradeoff for portability,

 

[GadgetGuy]

What is a Mavic Pro 2?
How could anyone have one, when there is no such drone? ?

 

[Capnfletch]

Not if it only flys 200 meters like the “old” one