Please advice... Mavic 3 Enterprise vs. Air 3 Fly More

[Gerhard Boshoff]

Hi all.
I am quite familiar with Phantom 3, then Phantom 4, using Litchi very effectively in combination with Agisoft Metashape and AutoCAD. I did quantities and designs on roads, bypasses, and bridge construction.

Recently I used a Mavic 3 Classic but was not happy with the pictures and did not even try to stitch pictures as I could not fly in Litchi.

I now wish to buy a drone again, but I am a bit unsure.
My job will now entail more long-distance flights of about 3 km and flight levels of about 200m.

My first choice of course... A Mavic 3E - RTK with Pilot 2 built-in. Problem... Finance is a bit heavy in my country.
My 2nd choice... A Mavic Air 3 Fly More, with a decent tablet, loaded with Litchi. Cheaper but I have the following questions:

• How far can I fly with it? Will I still achieve relatively long distances like 3 Km without losing signal?
• Will the pictures stitch properly without RTK?

Your answers will be highly appreciated!
Thanks, Gerhard.

 

[Meta4]

My 2nd choice... A Mavic Air 3 Fly More, with a decent tablet, loaded with Litchi.

Litchi and Litchi Pilot aren't going to work with the Air 3.

[OPEN BETA] Litchi Pilot

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forum.flylitchi.com

Cheaper but I have the following questions:

• How far can I fly with it? Will I still achieve relatively long distances like 3 Km without losing signal?
• Will the pictures stitch properly without RTK?

No worries with either of those, but no SDK available means Litchi isn't going to be usable.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

You might consider getting the Mavic 2 Pro with the SC controller and the Alien Dual Antenna system as not to long ago this was a flag ship setup with good software choices.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to Fly your Mavic 2 drone in the Rain an Land on the Water.

 

[Recoveryone]

As this is a business purchase, you have to look at it from a investment perspective and not just its cost. If you have jobs that would benefit the use of a Mavic 3 E (Mechanical shutter, 4/3 sensor) capabilities of flying jobs at higher speeds (less time on site), it's all about discipline on your part to make sure you use those funds to payoff that investment. real business is not about profit upfront, but becoming a name, a preferred choice in your area. Ten years or so you look at profit.

 

[Felix le Chat]

I think that with your mapping requirements, the only Mavic 3 that might fit your brief would be the enterprise and that puts the price through the roof, as far as I'm aware: because of the lack of 3rd party software support, you would then be stuck with a new learning curve using expensive proprietary DJI solutions (TERRA).

The lack of SDK for newer consumer class drones ties users into a DJI 'software solution ecosystem' that may not offer the levels of functionality you are used to. The last drone to be anywhere good enough was the Mavic 2 pro and the phantom 4 RTK is still a heavyweight contender even though it doesn't look as sleek or contemporary. It might not look pretty but it sure gets the job done while putting big ticks in every one of your requirement boxes, bar one (4 over 3 sensor).

 

[Meta4]

• How far can I fly with it? Will I still achieve relatively long distances like 3 Km without losing signal?
• Will the pictures stitch properly without RTK?

You can use DroneDeploy to plan, fly and capture and Agisoft will stitch your images whether you have RTK or not.

 

[Gerhard Boshoff]

Hi all. I really appreciate your replies. Thanks! I did evaluate the Litchi Beta option. But... I like the last comment from "Recoveryone", that if I have work for it... get the right equipment. You strengthened my own thoughts and have decided to go for the 3E with RTK but without the base. Reasons:
1: I actually do have work for the M3E and believe the work will increase once I advertise a bit more.
2: I like the mechanical shutter. (I believe it is the main reason why I did not like the M3 Classic as the pictures were not as clear as the Phantom 4 when taking pics on the move.)
3: RTK ties in better with my knowledge and previous jobs. I was a bridge and road surveyor and liked the interchange of point clouds from the pictures, via Agisoft, to and from AutoCAD.
I do have the software Agisoft and Autocad. Autocad enables me to measure anything accurately from the pics. My previous achievements were 15 mm accuracy on the ground with Phantom 4 and ground control points set out beforehand with the GPS.

Concerning your reply, "Meta4", I do have a life license with Litchi. Drone deploy would be just another program to buy. I would rather use the supplied "Pilot 2" on the 3E.
RTK is important for me because I have seen too many pictures pulling completely skew without GCP's on all sides and inside the field to be surveyed.

The last issue, but I believe it will be OK. I intend to use my current GPS base and controller for the link to the RTK. It is a Stonex S10, with a Stonex S4 controller. It is very powerful and links with satellites in Glonass, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, and SBAS. It's got Wi-Fi at 802.11. Radio frequency 410-470 MHz with a range of 10 km.
Please tell me if you guys can think of any possible "hick-ups" that I must be aware of.

 

[Meta4]

Concerning your reply, "Meta4", I do have a life license with Litchi. Drone deploy would be just another program to buy. I would rather use the supplied "Pilot 2" on the 3E.

You don't buy DroneDeploy.
You use it and pay for them to process the images .... if you need them to.
But with Agisoft, you'd be doing that yourself.

 

[Recoveryone]

If your GNSS system works off a sim card you are golden, NTRIP can be spotty at times (depending on the provider) and it can cost if the local area doesn't have state sponsored system. I have the Emlid RS2+, but I also still use the DJI Base2- RTK .