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Mavic AIR 2 vs Mavic MINI

The Mavic air is more better than the mini .but both have excellent video quality.
And the Mavic air 2 is more stable in the wind and longer range ability.
I’m hoping soon they will have a much better update for the mini with more features like active track or something [emoji846]
 
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That's a pretty comprehensive and IMO a fair comparison. Thanks for sharing.

Having owned the MM for (only) one week today, and having done a ton of research and soul searching I've come to this comparative conclusion:
The Mavic Mini is an SERIOUS and ENTRY LEVEL drone- not necessarily a "beginner" drone, though quite good for beginners like me. The Mavic Air2 is a compact professional level drone, probably at the entry level of the professional spectrum, noting that there are exponentially more expensive drones out there. IMO both the Mavic Mini and Mavic Air2 exceed their price points for quality of flight and image. I truly wrestled with the choice, having before made a mistake with an "off-brand" Chinese drone which was a disaster.

Speaking from the standpoint of a beginner, I don't think I'd fly either drone much differently for awhile, except the MA2, with more power, would provide more security in heavier winds which for some might, and possibly should be the deciding factor that pushes toward the MA2. I'm sure the MA2 is more responsive, but would a new pilot even know the difference unless he's flown both... or an off-brand model? The MM is pretty responsive, having come from that off-brand, surprisingly responsive.

The details are well outlined in the video and so having digested that...

...In retrospect, at least to me, comes down to a few simple questions:
Can I afford the Mavic Air 2?
Are there "must have" features or specifications on the Mavic Air 2 that I can't do without?
Do I see myself "outgrowing" the Mavic Mini in the short term?
Is the risk factor, and how I might feel in the event of a crash, better with the Mavic Air2 so that you feel less likely to crash the $800 drone rather than the $400 one?

My conclusion? i could "afford" the MA2, and yes, I could potentially see myself outgrowing the Mini. But there were enough features in the Mini to get me started at a reasonable cost. "Outgrowing" for me would be moving into the professional realm at some time, which would require a "backup" anyway. But after a week, I am so impressed with the Mini that for me the two real advantages of the MA2 would be; 1) better overall picture quality good enough for entry level professional use. 2) More security in higher winds; winds that I might not fly the MM in. Perhaps my next drone will be a more expensive one yet? Probably not the next one. But for now the MA2 is in my sights in for the medium term. We will see.
 
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I also agree with you as well. I own a Mavic Mini and I just really like all the features it has and I have grown to having flying it for over 86 flights now with no problems.but I do hope to be able to afford a Mavic air 2 one day
 
I have both. I use the Mini for risky stuff...like flying inside of a shower of mortars.
Good to know someone who has both. So tell me, what handling/control differences are there with the MA2? Feel? The one thing I feel with the MM is that when I attempt dual-stick, complex maneuvers, the MM doesn't respond exactly as I would have expected. As an example, I might want to ascend/descend, yaw and go fore/aft and/or drift simultaneously, and it doesn't seem to be as predicatable as when I try giving it only two commands as opposed to three or four. Advanced stuff, I know. But I know what I want to do in a given moment, but not so good at achieving them yet. Two days ago I wanted to manually circle my car, not too far off the ground, keeping the lens pointed at it, which was basically just drift and yaw and some backpedal/forward motion... but I sucked. Would I have had an easier time with the MA2?
 
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I've actually despised the "drone" world for one simple reason. Many (nearly all) who do purchase these don't actually have the understanding of how rc aircraft operate. My friends and I had many different types of planes and helis. Some for indoor only. Some for very smooth low energy. Some for aggressive flight. Some for high wind. Some for reckless behavior (not to be confused with dangerous). Some for contact. What I'm getting at is that many drone "pilots" don't actually factor in how the aircraft flies. You push the sticks while looking through a screen, but you have no clue what's actually happening. As long as you are flying through the camera, your senses are dulled. This cuts reactivity. That reaction is what teaches you how the aircraft moves.

To put it into perspective, I can bring the MA2 in at it's max 45mph and come to a full reverse stick dead stop in front of my face without concern. This is really only a two motion input, but it carries over to adding more inputs. If you are trying to fly smooth slaloms, but just can't get it, it's because the drone itself is making a bunch of tiny inputs that you just can't see. If you can't see it, you can't learn how to work along side those inputs. Not only do you have to factor in the drone inputs, but also situational factors. Is it carrying a payload? Is it windy? Is it a hot/cold day? Is foggy/rainy? All of that plays a factor.

That was a bit of a tangent, but the point is clear. If you're only interested in flying through the camera, you'll never get better at flying in general. Get out into an open field and push the sticks to its maxes. More importantly, work on very minimum input maneuvers. Work on a smooth transitions from pitch to roll with yaw.

Both drones are going to fly like crap if you don't know how they will react. Both are going to be amazing once you do. And when you do, you'll try sending it through gaps in treelines. That's essentially what race quads are. Except the left stick I'd throttle and not altitude.
 
I've actually despised the "drone" world for one simple reason. Many (nearly all) who do purchase these don't actually have the understanding of how rc aircraft operate.
Both are going to be amazing once you do.

Your point is well taken, despite the condescending attitude. Happy flying
 
That was a bit of a tangent, but the point is clear. If you're only interested in flying through the camera, you'll never get better at flying in general. Get out into an open field and push the sticks to its maxes. More importantly, work on very minimum input maneuvers. Work on a smooth transitions from pitch to roll with yaw.

Both drones are going to fly like crap if you don't know how they will react. Both are going to be amazing once you do. And when you do, you'll try sending it through gaps in treelines. That's essentially what race quads are. Except the left stick I'd throttle and not altitude.

I agree. Natural fluidity of control is essential. And yes, I have been mostly flying in open fields for that reason. I'm also trying to become precise when flying near stuff. Yesterday my daughter was looking at a house to purchase and I did an ad hoc roof inspection and overall aerial. I thought it good practice to do as at some point, after the 107 test, I could begin to seek some work. A few decades ago I entered a photography career via video, so I'm not starting from ground zero in that regard and am crash-coursing it in DaVinci Resolve. I'm happy to be working with a drone now as I was so bored with photography with a "been there/done that" attitude, even having worked in digital photography as early as 1996 fully converting in 2000.

I'm not ready for trees yet as I have some experience tree skiing and know what to expect and understand that my skill level isn't there yet with a drone of any kind. At some point I'd love to start challenging myself with a race quad. I wish I had some space in my budget as I'd love to be flying with FPV goggles.
 
The Mavic air is more better than the mini .but both have excellent video quality.
And the Mavic air 2 is more stable in the wind and longer range ability.
I’m hoping soon they will have a much better update for the mini with more features like active track or something [emoji846]
I agree with your points
 
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Some good points made in this thread. I agree the 2 main differences are stability in wind and camera quality (from what one can gather through YouTube).
I’ve only had a mini for 2 weeks, and I’ve had moments that I wished I’d gone for the MA 2. It’s obviously natural for a lot of people to think of the “next level” immediately after getting hooked on a new hobby like I have. However, there’s so much that you can get out of the mini and I’m going to use this drone for a full year before really considering moving up.
 
I guess I can follow up with quite a bit more. Having both, I will definitely favor the MA2 for most applications.

I would rather fly the MA2:
- when risky terrain or open water becomes a factor. I have way more confidence in my connection with the MA2. I can also have a little more faith in the RTH procedure due to the higher speed.
- in tight areas that I can NOT see.
- if I'm taking the shot relatively far from the target due to higher resolution.
- for slo-mo.

I would rather fly the Mini:
- if I'm in tight areas that I'm physically in.
- training someone else.
- if I'm taking some seriously risky shots, such as flying through a fireworks display.
- when flying indoors.

Flying both at the same time is also fun as you can get multiple perspectives.
 
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I've actually despised the "drone" world for one simple reason. Many (nearly all) who do purchase these don't actually have the understanding of how rc aircraft operate. My friends and I had many different types of planes and helis. Some for indoor only. Some for very smooth low energy. Some for aggressive flight. Some for high wind. Some for reckless behavior (not to be confused with dangerous). Some for contact. What I'm getting at is that many drone "pilots" don't actually factor in how the aircraft flies. You push the sticks while looking through a screen, but you have no clue what's actually happening. As long as you are flying through the camera, your senses are dulled. This cuts reactivity. That reaction is what teaches you how the aircraft moves.

To put it into perspective, I can bring the MA2 in at it's max 45mph and come to a full reverse stick dead stop in front of my face without concern. This is really only a two motion input, but it carries over to adding more inputs. If you are trying to fly smooth slaloms, but just can't get it, it's because the drone itself is making a bunch of tiny inputs that you just can't see. If you can't see it, you can't learn how to work along side those inputs. Not only do you have to factor in the drone inputs, but also situational factors. Is it carrying a payload? Is it windy? Is it a hot/cold day? Is foggy/rainy? All of that plays a factor.

That was a bit of a tangent, but the point is clear. If you're only interested in flying through the camera, you'll never get better at flying in general. Get out into an open field and push the sticks to its maxes. More importantly, work on very minimum input maneuvers. Work on a smooth transitions from pitch to roll with yaw.

Both drones are going to fly like crap if you don't know how they will react. Both are going to be amazing once you do. And when you do, you'll try sending it through gaps in treelines. That's essentially what race quads are. Except the left stick I'd throttle and not altitude.
Your so amazing...someday I’ll be like you.
 
I own both and I can say that the Mini exceeded my expectations. I did not expect that type of performance out of something so small. When on the go (hiking, motorcycling, etc.) the Mini is my go to drone. Hand launch/landing is a breeze and it appears to be less likely to stir up people around you with its tiny size. If I premeditate a video I want to create, I'll go with the MA2. But for all around shooting to show people where I've been from a perspective other than a hand held camera, the Mini it is.

Someone once asked on an astronomy forum what their favorite telescope was. Someone answered, "the one you grab the most". I think the same applies for drones as well.
 
Its unrealistic to compare one thing with another which Cost twice as much!
Try with cars for example, 20.000$ Car Vs 40.000$ is it fair? Is it comparable?
 
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That's a pretty comprehensive and IMO a fair comparison. Thanks for sharing.

Having owned the MM for (only) one week today, and having done a ton of research and soul searching I've come to this comparative conclusion:
The Mavic Mini is an SERIOUS and ENTRY LEVEL drone- not necessarily a "beginner" drone, though quite good for beginners like me. The Mavic Air2 is a compact professional level drone, probably at the entry level of the professional spectrum, noting that there are exponentially more expensive drones out there. IMO both the Mavic Mini and Mavic Air2 exceed their price points for quality of flight and image. I truly wrestled with the choice, having before made a mistake with an "off-brand" Chinese drone which was a disaster.

Speaking from the standpoint of a beginner, I don't think I'd fly either drone much differently for awhile, except the MA2, with more power, would provide more security in heavier winds which for some might, and possibly should be the deciding factor that pushes toward the MA2. I'm sure the MA2 is more responsive, but would a new pilot even know the difference unless he's flown both... or an off-brand model? The MM is pretty responsive, having come from that off-brand, surprisingly responsive.

The details are well outlined in the video and so having digested that...

...In retrospect, at least to me, comes down to a few simple questions:
Can I afford the Mavic Air 2?
Are there "must have" features or specifications on the Mavic Air 2 that I can't do without?
Do I see myself "outgrowing" the Mavic Mini in the short term?
Is the risk factor, and how I might feel in the event of a crash, better with the Mavic Air2 so that you feel less likely to crash the $800 drone rather than the $400 one?

My conclusion? i could "afford" the MA2, and yes, I could potentially see myself outgrowing the Mini. But there were enough features in the Mini to get me started at a reasonable cost. "Outgrowing" for me would be moving into the professional realm at some time, which would require a "backup" anyway. But after a week, I am so impressed with the Mini that for me the two real advantages of the MA2 would be; 1) better overall picture quality good enough for entry level professional use. 2) More security in higher winds; winds that I might not fly the MM in. Perhaps my next drone will be a more expensive one yet? Probably not the next one. But for now the MA2 is in my sights in for the medium term. We will see.
Excellent points,
I perfectly agree!
 
Good to know someone who has both. So tell me, what handling/control differences are there with the MA2? Feel? The one thing I feel with the MM is that when I attempt dual-stick, complex maneuvers, the MM doesn't respond exactly as I would have expected. As an example, I might want to ascend/descend, yaw and go fore/aft and/or drift simultaneously, and it doesn't seem to be as predicatable as when I try giving it only two commands as opposed to three or four. Advanced stuff, I know. But I know what I want to do in a given moment, but not so good at achieving them yet. Two days ago I wanted to manually circle my car, not too far off the ground, keeping the lens pointed at it, which was basically just drift and yaw and some backpedal/forward motion... but I sucked. Would I have had an easier time with the MA2?
In my experience the main issue handling the Mini is the very abrupt yaw (which sadly cannot be modified, as of now).
Performing the complex moves that you describe is very hard for this reason, although flying in Cinesmooth mode helps
 
In my experience is all in the hands... Any complex combination, it may take a few seconds to get it started right, if you pick your fingers it debuggers some very predictable complex trajectories work short smooth video.

The manual circling of objects is definitely doable after some practice
 
In my experience the main issue handling the Mini is the very abrupt yaw (which sadly cannot be modified, as of now).
Performing the complex moves that you describe is very hard for this reason, although flying in Cinesmooth mode helps

You're right. C mode does produce more smoothness in the controls, but it would be nice if the yaw could have preference settings like gimbal independent of other stick movements. Complex moves might require quicker yaw while cinematic moves, in lieu of horizontal camera control would be extremely helpful. I assume that the MA2 doesn't have horizontal movement either. What about Mavic Air Pro/Zoom?

In my experience is all in the hands... Any complex combination, it may take a few seconds to get it started right, if you pick your fingers it debuggers some very predictable complex trajectories work short smooth video.

The manual circling of objects is definitely doable after some practice

"Pick your fingers"???? That's got to be a typo or Apple doing it's infamous auto-correct. What did you mean here? I'm a bit confused with that.
 
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