New Mini 4 Pro - Should I or Not

[resection3d]

Purchased a M4P (>250g) in mid - December. Because of all the uncertainty issues surrounding DJI and the FCC closed list and what it is or is not going to do, I purchased a 2nd one, (thinking for parts) thought to be identical, but found out it's the <249g version but no issue there. Box is still sealed.

Should I open it? Or wait until the 1st crashes and needs serious repair. Something more than just blades.

Your thoughts please.

Thanks for listening....

 

[waltermitty]

Keep the box sealed. You can bank it for resale down the road ... or if you find parts sources drying up. In the meantime, each time you need spares you can continue to shop via Amazon, Ebay etc while they are still cheap and available. Down the road, you can cannibalize from the new/spare drone OR sell it at for someone else needing parts.

Another thought is to buy a used, parts drone from the forum or ebay for spares

I've applied similar buying, stocking purchases for my motorcycle as well as an Autel drone. The motorcycle lasted 25 years and I continued to sell used OE parts online for years when NOS parts dried up. Autel no longer sells or supports my Evo 2 Pro but I have spare controller batteries, smart display controller, broadcast to TV "live deck", parallel battery charger, etc you get the idea.

Your situation and degree of risk may dictate a variation of how I handled my stuff so you can definitely apply fuzzy logic here.

 

[mavic3usa]

Purchased a M4P (>250g) in mid - December. Because of all the uncertainty issues surrounding DJI and the FCC closed list and what it is or is not going to do, I purchased a 2nd one, (thinking for parts) thought to be identical, but found out it's the <249g version but no issue there. Box is still sealed.

Should I open it? Or wait until the 1st crashes and needs serious repair. Something more than just blades.

Your thoughts please.

Thanks for listening....

Keep the box sealed.

Agreed; keep the box sealed...for the reasons mentioned. Some of your fellow drone pilots might laugh at you or mock you for keeping unopened drone boxes squirreled away for the future but never mind them, they can't see what is going on right under their nose. They believe the only option when buying a drone is to open it and fly it the next day. I have about 4 boxes unopened while I fly 3-4 other [equivalent] drones regularly that have at least another year or two left in them. This will probably ensure I can fly DJI as long as they are legal for the next 5-7 years. It's a personal winning strategy in response to the lunacy and might not be applicable for others but if that's what you choose to do, I welcome it. Especially now that we don't have good options for Care or repair, having backup drone(s) makes sense at least to some of us responsible flyers. Being prepared is a skill, it can't be taught or forced on others.

 

[resection3d]

Been laughed at before, will probably be again! Was also thinking about a possible increase in value down the road somewhere too. And if I open and fly, then the batteries have to be babysat.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Purchased a M4P (>250g) in mid - December. Because of all the uncertainty issues surrounding DJI and the FCC closed list and what it is or is not going to do, I purchased a 2nd one, (thinking for parts) thought to be identical, but found out it's the <249g version but no issue there. Box is still sealed.

Should I open it? Or wait until the 1st crashes and needs serious repair. Something more than just blades.

Your thoughts please.

Thanks for listening....

The Mini 4 Pro drone is identical in both "versions" and uses the same FW and has the same weight. The only difference is in the supplied batteries, which determine how the drone treats RID broadcasting and whether it requires FAA registration. The two sets of batteries are fully compatible with both drone bodies. The 249g labeled batteries will not broadcast RID regardless of which drone you use them in. The Plus batteries will always broadcast RID in both drones.

Using the Plus batteries technically requires registration because the total takeoff weight is now over 250g. Presumably, your Plus battery version is already registered with its RID. The new 249g battery one does not require registration as long as you only fly the 249g labeled batteries in it. Technically, once you register your Plus battery drone as over 250g, it must broadcast RID whenever it is flown, if used commercially, even if you were to fly it with the 249g battery, but it won't, so don't.

So keep them separate, and only fly the 249g labeled batteries with the new drone and the Plus batteries in the original drone. However, the drone bodies themselves are identical in every way, should you lose either drone, or need to cannibalize one for the other.

The 249g Mini 4 Pro combination is the only current Mini in the U.S. that does not require registration and will not broadcast RID, unlike the Mini 5 Pro. That makes it more valuable for those that care about not broadcasting RID and being registration free.

 

[Dan'sUavTech]

Keep it new in the box for a rainy day!

 

[GadgetGuy]

Keep it new in the box for a rainy day!

Sunny days are even better! LOL!

 

[MS Coast]

I wonder about degradation of the batteries over a year or more without charging and the gradual decline in the state of charge.

 

[BossBob]

Batteries will be fine in the sealed box for a year at least as they haven’t been activated yet. Once the button is pressed they are going to need 3 monthly charge cycles.

 

[FLDave]

Open or not, I would say "it depends". Did you purchase it new directly from DJI or assumed to be new from a re-seller? If from a re-seller you can't be certain what is in the box is really brand new as it could be replaced and re-sealed to look like new. I would open to make sure it is new and not one locked by DJI; if there is a problem you can resolve it now and not later.
On the other hand if you don't really want to fly it now, then re-sell and purchase a new one when you need another drone.

 

[mavic3usa]

Open or not, I would say "it depends". Did you purchase it new directly from DJI or assumed to be new from a re-seller? If from a re-seller you can't be certain what is in the box is really brand new as it could be replaced and re-sealed to look like new. I would open to make sure it is new and not one locked by DJI; if there is a problem you can resolve it now and not later.
On the other hand if you don't really want to fly it now, then re-sell and purchase a new one when you need another drone.

While you cannot always be certain 100% of whatever is inside, you can insert the serial number (found on the box) here to see if the product has been activated. If the original contents have been removed or replaced, this may give you the heads-up you need to either return the product or call DJI. Usually if someone tampers with the contents, they'll want to activate the drone before it can be blocked.