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Lightest drone and charger setup

mogmog

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I am going to be doing a 4 week bike touring trip soon, and am convincing myself that a drone will make this more awesome.

I will need to bring the following with me whilst minmising weight and maximising convenience of charging:
  • Drone
  • A way to charge the drone
  • Phone for controller
  • A way to charge phone

I have so far considering the Mavic Air and the Mavic Spark - I need some help regarding the charger setup.

If I got the Mavic Spark I could charge it by a power bank, and so my setup could be

Mavic Spark
2 batteries
Power Bank
Phone
USB plug to charge power bank​

If I got the MAvic Air, I understand that it needs a special plugin charger. I also understand that I could potentially charge my phone on the road from Mavic Air batteries via a USB clip on attachment. (DJI Mavic Air Battery to Power Bank Adapter - Heliguy)

With this set up I could remove the weight of a power bank by using the Mavic Batteries. Potentially a decent weight saving if the battery charger itself isnt too heavy.

MAvic Air
2 batteries
Battery to USB adaptor
Phone
MAvic Air battery charger​


Any thoughts on what the lightest way I can acheive this is?
 
If I got the Mavic Spark I could charge it by a power bank, and so my setup could be

Mavic Spark
2 batteries
Power Bank
Phone
USB plug to charge power bank

This will be your lightest, cheapest, and most compact configuration.

The MA is a great drone and folds small very nicely. The price is almost double that of the Spark. If the Spark meets your present and future needs, go for it.
 
What’s your current drone flying experience? Regardless of what you choose, less than 4 weeks to learn even the basics is tight! I see another “I lost my drone while on holiday, please help” coming up!
 
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This will be your lightest, cheapest, and most compact configuration.

The MA is a great drone and folds small very nicely. The price is almost double that of the Spark. If the Spark meets your present and future needs, go for it.


I was half wondering if the Mavic Air batteries are better than those in a basic usb power bank though. Ie I read something online that even a used Mavic Air battery still has enough charge in it to charge a phone?
 
What’s your current drone flying experience? Regardless of what you choose, less than 4 weeks to learn even the basics is tight! I see another “I lost my drone while on holiday, please help” coming up!

OP, listen to this member. He makes a valid point.

I was half wondering if the Mavic Air batteries are better than those in a basic usb power bank though. Ie I read something online that even a used Mavic Air battery still has enough charge in it to charge a phone?

By better you mean can an MA battery charge a phone, for sure it can. Just dont keep it on there long enough to deplete the MA battery lower than 25%.
 
I would go for the following:
  • Spark with two extra batteries (2 in the fly more package, 1 extra)
  • Spark portable charging station
  • Controller (in the fly more combo)
  • iPhone
  • Lightning cable; can be used for OTG connection when flying, can be used to charge the phone off the portable charging station. The cable is not included in the fly more package if I understand correctly.
 
The Mavic Air is far and beyond a superior option over the Spark in terms of camera quality, obstacle avoidance sensors, flight time, etc. However you can charge the batteries on the Spark through a standard USB charger from your cell phone, you don't need to bring a separate power brick. I currently have the Mavic Air, I sold my Spark a week after getting it. Just food for thought. The Spark Portable Charging Station is nice too
 
The Mavic Air is far and beyond a superior option over the Spark in terms of camera quality, obstacle avoidance sensors, flight time, etc. However you can charge the batteries on the Spark through a standard USB charger from your cell phone, you don't need to bring a separate power brick. I currently have the Mavic Air, I sold my Spark a week after getting it. Just food for thought. The Spark Portable Charging Station is nice too


This is pretty much the root of my problem. I am a fairly pro photographer so would really appreciate the camera quality, RAW support etc. It just seems very difficult to charge the Mavic Air in a light weight fashion.
 
This is pretty much the root of my problem. I am a fairly pro photographer so would really appreciate the camera quality, RAW support etc. It just seems very difficult to charge the Mavic Air in a light weight fashion.
There are other charging options for the Mavic Air that are a little slower to charge but are more compact like THIS. As a professional photographer I don't think you would be as happy with the Spark, I wasn't.
 
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The Mavic Air folds up smaller than the Spark (which doesn't fold at all), and this was the drone I used on my hiking holiday in Wales the other week. It's very light and the batteries are tiny and also very light, so you can take a few spares.
Charging any battery will be your issue if you really have no access to mains power. You can get car-chargers for the Air batteries quite cheap on eBay that do the job fine if you have access to a 12v outlet (the battery has the intelligent charging electronics, not the charger).
Having the Air would be a great addition to your trip. Wish you the best!

Ian in London
 
Buy the Air and charge it at cafes and restaurants along the way. Much better drone and only a slight weight penalty. Very easy to fly like other decent drones. Absolute childsplay.
 
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