Ask 2 people and you'll get three answers. This is one man's opinion....
I can't count the money in your pocket book and I have no idea of your business plan. What I can grasp from your opening is that this is your first drone and you have no business or marketing already in place. Perhaps you're a photographer and want to expand? That's valid. But I can tell you that marketing a specialty from the ground up can be a slog unless you already have contacts and momentum something that will let you tap into the real estate market. In some areas, even if you're a known photographer, the agents might, and probably do have relationships with other guys who do that sort of work. Only you know that.
As far as (I'm assuming) a first drone, I would go for the
Air2s. IMO it is the best value in the drone market today and other than milking the very last ounce of resolution of the image stands up nicely to the
M3. Image wise is is comparable, and maybe better in some ways than the
Mavic 2 Pro and for the most part better than the
Mavic 2 Zoom.
IN MY OPINION the
M3, while it takes the best images out there is the worst value out there at the same time. If you're earning $50k/yr from your drone work it's an investment easily absorbed. As a newbie, its an expense, and perhaps overkill (I'll get to that later). You're going to spend a minimum of $3000 for the basic
M3 and the extra batteries and stuff. And you'll still have the same controller as the
Air2s. What I think the main advantage of the
M3 is over the
Air2s beyond image resolution is variable aperture. But that leaves a 3rd option you didn't mention.... A
Mavic 2 Pro... if you can find them. I got a refurbished on with the fly more kit for $500 less than list! Can't find them any more. The other thing is the Care/Refresh insurance that you'll want . The
M3 costs $239/($159 deductible) a year whether you use it or not. And the deductible is more expensive than the the
Air2s $99/($119) deductible.
Overkill: In terms of raw image/film quality the
M3 is the clear winner. But by how much? Here's the thing. Unless you know that your client is showing your images/footage on a large 4k screen, not sending it to a website that'd going to compress the heck out of it and the end viewer is viewing on a high end 4k screen, the extra "quality" is lost. Even as a professional, I only have one screen that is true 4k. And while I can see the difference, I'm not sure that most folks will be able to appreciate it. And when you get skilled at editing there is a lot you can do to bridge the resolution difference between the
Air2s and
M3. Just my opinion and others may think differently and have different experiences.
The
Air2s refurb with the fly more combo can be had for $1100! If it were me, I'd get one of those until I got some experience and momentum under my belt. Save the extra $2k for now and when you get some business, the next best drone will be out there for you. You won't be unhappy with the
Air2s' images, the flight characteristics or the price. JMO
