Just ordered my Mavic Air... what should I know?

[griffinhart]

So since we are on this topic can somebody please explain what is the functional difference between ExFAT and FAT32 and does it mean anything when I am considering what size card I am purchasing? I see people out there using disks up to 128 G on their MA, for some reason I though it was limited to 32G being FAT32. Also my Windows 10 PC will only format 64G drives to ExFat, unless I am missing something. I guess the MA formats to FAT32 regardless of the size of the card.

The 32 designation is nothing but what bitness is being used. The Partition limit for FAT32 is 2TB. File size limitation is 4GB. The MA will do videos in 3GB chunks. The max Micro SD card the MA supports is 128GB. The easiest thing to do is to format it from the DJI Go app and just use it.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

How do these fly in comparison to the older phantoms?
My p3a gets a little wobbly if the wind is blowing harder than 15-20mph gusts

 

[Coskier]

How do these fly in comparison to the older phantoms?
My p3a gets a little wobbly if the wind is blowing harder than 15-20mph gusts

I've had it in pretty strong wind and it has been impressively stable.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

I've had it in pretty strong wind and it has been impressively stable.

How strong before you’re uncomfortable? I always had the fear watching my expensive toy getting bobbed around. lol [emoji23]

 

[SpyderSkeets]

The 32 designation is nothing but what bitness is being used. The Partition limit for FAT32 is 2TB. File size limitation is 4GB. The MA will do videos in 3GB chunks. The max Micro SD card the MA supports is 128GB. The easiest thing to do is to format it from the DJI Go app and just use it.

The ONLY thing you should do is format with the DJI Go app. I went through two SD cards that i formatted on my computer and they are no longer recognizable on the Air

 

[Coskier]

How strong before you’re uncomfortable? I always had the fear watching my expensive toy getting bobbed around. lol [emoji23]

I had a strong wind warning on my screen when I reached a certain altitude. It maintained position well, but I am sure battery life was affected. So I left it up there for a few minutes and brought it back down. I can't estimate how fast it was, but the warning did come on. I guess I'm saying I wouldn't have flown long like that, but this is my first serious bird, so...

 

[f1r3b1rd]

I had a strong wind warning on my screen when I reached a certain altitude. It maintained position well, but I am sure battery life was affected. So I left it up there for a few minutes and brought it back down. I can't estimate how fast it was, but the warning did come on. I guess I'm saying I wouldn't have flown long like that, but this is my first serious bird, so...

That’s kinda cool... braver man than me. Lol
I don’t know what kind of wind they can handle. But I would love to find out ......vicariously lol

 

[Mcgon]

How strong before you’re uncomfortable? I always had the fear watching my expensive toy getting bobbed around. lol [emoji23]

I had it out in 25kph with gusts of up to 40kph the other day and I took it back down as quick as I could. It was grand, but the strong gusts that lasted 5 or 10 seconds moved it so much that it couldn't come back against them and was drifting. I think it's rated up to 36kph.

 

[djiboi]

I had it out in 25kph with gusts of up to 40kph the other day and I took it back down as quick as I could. It was grand, but the strong gusts that lasted 5 or 10 seconds moved it so much that it couldn't come back against them and was drifting. I think it's rated up to 36kph.

Similar story to me today. Took it up above my house is very similar conditions, it blew across to the neighbours house and I had to fight to bring it back. It's not a particularly strong drone but rock solid in mild wind.

 

[zackdbassist]

I added a rubber strap and just squeezed it in

Can you show me a picture? I would also like to use my casey instead.

 

[Chrisbarbers]

I read that wind up to 22mph was the limit, in the specs or user guides in the box as my MA arrived today, gonna sell my Spark and keep my Karma, purely because i like the grip and without the grip and gimbal I am assuming the drone is worthless.

 

[Chrisbarbers]

Just checked and the Quick Start Guide says “DO NOT... and wind speeds exceeding 10 m/s or 22 mph” which is more than I expected.

Can’t wait to get flying but UK weather is really bad at the mo., had a quick launch and hover in the kitchen but thats it so far.

 

[3VP]

How strong before you’re uncomfortable? I always had the fear watching my expensive toy getting bobbed around. lol [emoji23]

I have flown my spark in two hurricanes, three tornados and seven typhoons. I would upload the videos to show you but my drone is 300 miles away from where I first took off...

Of course, the larger drones can handle much stronger winds.

 

[Air Beetle]

Please remember that the wind is likely much stronger the higher you go. As a full size pilot we look up winds aloft at 1000, 2000, 3000 above ground level because the wind at the ground level is always much less. Even 100 or 200 ft up the wind could be double the wind on the ground.

 

[Chrisbarbers]

Its a good point, the difference is not easy to judge at ground level, very easy to exceed the guided 22mph at just 50 feet up if that is what it is doing at ground level, I live in a place called the “Fens” and it is very flat and winds are a real challenge.

 

[Drone Master]

This graph from UAV Forcast shows you how much of a difference there can be at higher altitudes.

 

[mattvandyk]

Stick to 2.4ghz if you don’t want to do auto because the updates you do will actually improve the 2.4g signal. Another thing is to go into the app settings and make sure that when you lose signal it returns home, some people have it set to when it loses signal, it tries to land itself. If you want a super tiny carrying case the GoPro Casey works well and can carry the drone, controller, charger, and 2 extra batteries and even has some crush protection. If you need any help, feel free to ask!

Can you share a pic of how you have this laid out?

 

[galfridus]

Another thing is to go into the app settings and make sure that when you lose signal it returns home, some people have it set to when it loses signal, it tries to land itself.

One note: if like me you are going to start by flying at low altitude around your yard or anywhere there are lots of obstacles overhead, change the Return to Home setting to "hover". If it tries to ascend to RTH altitude beneath a tree you may be unhappy with the results.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

Wow!!! My favorite part of having he air vs the phantom is the compass calibration.

I couldn’t calibrate the compass of the phantom myself; because of the wheelchair. It’s too big for me to hold up and do the compass dance while keeping it level. I always needed someone else to do the dance for me.
The air is so small that I can do it all by my lonesome.

It’s the little things that make this such a better aircraft for me.
Between that and not having to ‘plan’ the cargo space for the big backpack with the phantom and my chair in the backseat.

 

[ddesens]

One thing I do as a quick check of wind speeds is go up to desired height and switch to atti mode for a few seconds and watch the drift then switch back.