Selling the Mavic 2 Pro to get the Air 2S?

[AroundTheWorld]

Hello,

I'm a happy owner of the Mavic 2 Pro that I was able to buy 2 years ago at an incredible price of 1050 euros (1250 dollars) and I'm now wondering if I should sell the drone in order to replace it with the DJI Air 2S?

I'm pretty sure that I could sell it at very good price and buy the Air 2S Fly More Combo at almost no extra cost.

The Air 2S Fly More Combo is actually available at 1200 euros here (1430 dollars) which is 100 euros below the normal price.

On top of that, I could receive 150 euros of cashback and 150 euros of coupons available at the store.

1) Would you then sell the Mavic 2 Pro to get the Air 2S?

2) If my plan is to buy the next Mavic 3 Pro while saving as much money as possible, do you think that I will more easily sell a Mavic 2 Pro or a Air 2S at that time?

Thanks for your help

 

[Thomas B]

IMHO, keep the M2P!

Dunno about future sales... only time wil tell. Anything else is mostly speculation.

 

[AroundTheWorld]

IMHO, keep the M2P!

Dunno about future sales... only time wil tell. Anything else is mostly speculation.

Thank you for your message. Do you think that it's not worth it to upgrade even if I could sell the Mavic 2 Pro and get the Air 2S FMC without spending much money?

 

[Roamer105]

Maybe this helps a little to decide:

I finally got to compare A2S footage with M2P footage taken at the same time, light and subject matter. I took 4 sequences of A2S video (4K Dlog, 4K HLG and 5.4K Dlog, 5.4K HLG). I also took 4 sequences with the M2P (4K FOV Dlog, 4K FOV HLG and 4K HQ Dlog and 4K HQ HLG). I am not interested in the "normal" video mode. All comparisons and adjustments have been made using Davinci Resolve Studio 17.

For all shots I used auto white balance but fixed during the shots. I also adjusted the exposure in manual using the overexposure indicator on the A2S (very critical) and the EV value (0) for the M2P with aperture fully open. Both drones were equipped with an ND8 (sunny situation). Both drones ended up with approximately the same shutter speed to achieve correct exposure. The white balance as measured in auto resulted at 5100 for the A2S and 5400 for the M2P. The resulting footage appeared much cooler on the A2S (too cool actually). I ended up adding +150 warming to the A2S video to make it more natural and comparable. This difference may have been a one-off fluke. Maybe I did not wait long enough for the "auto mode" to adjust white balance more accuratly. For the M2P I used "Style=normal" since the A2S does not have Style settings capabilities (that's a real bummer!).

Observations:
1) Overall impressions:
The A2S footage has more contrast (maybe a bit too much actually) and a bit more color saturation. The A2S Dlog gamma is a bit different with less highlight compression and more shadow compression. Shadows appear a bit "crushed" in comparison with the M2P. In Resolve, pushing the shadows by +25 makes the A2S video very comparable in the shadows without producing more noise. It also boosted the overall gain to match the M2P gain. Switching between the two left one important distinction: The mid-tones of the M2P are brighter but the overall light distribution seems better on the A2S video (after beforementioned shadows adjustment). Even in FOV mode, the M2P viewing angle is a little smaller than the A2S.

2) Clarity. colors and sharpness:
Clearly the A2S is much less "muddy" and sharper in details with more clarity and definition. The colors (after warming) where outstanding on the A2S actually a bit more pleasing than the M2P.
I made the following sharpness/clarity comparisons:
- A2S 4K with M2P 4K FOV --- A2S is sharper and clearer (less muddy)
- A2S 4K with M2P 4K HQ --- A2S is still a little sharper and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with M2P 4K FOV --- A2S is MUCH sharper, detailed and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with M2P 4K HQ --- A2S is clearly sharper and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with A2S 4K --- 5.4K downconverted and compared with 4K was surprisingly sharper. However probably not worth doing in most cases.

So after all this and comparing the overall flight capabilities of the two it is no longer an easy choice. The A2S is a better drone with more evolved capabilities (Active Track 4.0 is amazing). It is lighter and smaller in addition.
Comparing the cameras (so far I only compared VIDEO for post production but I am quite sure the stills will be just as impressive). Frankly, IF DJI ADDS STYLE settings to the A2S I would choose the A2S over the M2P hands down. However, out-of-the box not adjustable contrast, color and sharpness settings are set too high in contrast for sure. That really makes the M2P camera MUCH better for difficult lighting situations.

 

[AroundTheWorld]

Maybe this helps a little to decide:

I finally got to compare A2S footage with M2P footage taken at the same time, light and subject matter. I took 4 sequences of A2S video (4K Dlog, 4K HLG and 5.4K Dlog, 5.4K HLG). I also took 4 sequences with the M2P (4K FOV Dlog, 4K FOV HLG and 4K HQ Dlog and 4K HQ HLG). I am not interested in the "normal" video mode. All comparisons and adjustments have been made using Davinci Resolve Studio 17.

For all shots I used auto white balance but fixed during the shots. I also adjusted the exposure in manual using the overexposure indicator on the A2S (very critical) and the EV value (0) for the M2P with aperture fully open. Both drones were equipped with an ND8 (sunny situation). Both drones ended up with approximately the same shutter speed to achieve correct exposure. The white balance as measured in auto resulted at 5100 for the A2S and 5400 for the M2P. The resulting footage appeared much cooler on the A2S (too cool actually). I ended up adding +150 warming to the A2S video to make it more natural and comparable. This difference may have been a one-off fluke. Maybe I did not wait long enough for the "auto mode" to adjust white balance more accuratly. For the M2P I used "Style=normal" since the A2S does not have Style settings capabilities (that's a real bummer!).

Observations:
1) Overall impressions:
The A2S footage has more contrast (maybe a bit too much actually) and a bit more color saturation. The A2S Dlog gamma is a bit different with less highlight compression and more shadow compression. Shadows appear a bit "crushed" in comparison with the M2P. In Resolve, pushing the shadows by +25 makes the A2S video very comparable in the shadows without producing more noise. It also boosted the overall gain to match the M2P gain. Switching between the two left one important distinction: The mid-tones of the M2P are brighter but the overall light distribution seems better on the A2S video (after beforementioned shadows adjustment). Even in FOV mode, the M2P viewing angle is a little smaller than the A2S.

2) Clarity. colors and sharpness:
Clearly the A2S is much less "muddy" and sharper in details with more clarity and definition. The colors (after warming) where outstanding on the A2S actually a bit more pleasing than the M2P.
I made the following sharpness/clarity comparisons:
- A2S 4K with M2P 4K FOV --- A2S is sharper and clearer (less muddy)
- A2S 4K with M2P 4K HQ --- A2S is still a little sharper and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with M2P 4K FOV --- A2S is MUCH sharper, detailed and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with M2P 4K HQ --- A2S is clearly sharper and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with A2S 4K --- 5.4K downconverted and compared with 4K was surprisingly sharper. However probably not worth doing in most cases.

So after all this and comparing the overall flight capabilities of the two it is no longer an easy choice. The A2S is a better drone with more evolved capabilities (Active Track 4.0 is amazing). It is lighter and smaller in addition.
Comparing the cameras (so far I only compared VIDEO for post production but I am quite sure the stills will be just as impressive). Frankly, IF DJI ADDS STYLE settings to the A2S I would choose the A2S over the M2P hands down. However, out-of-the box not adjustable contrast, color and sharpness settings are set too high in contrast for sure. That really makes the M2P camera MUCH better for difficult lighting situations.

Thank you for your detailed feedback. It will help many of us to take the right decision.

I was pretty much disappointed with the sharpness on the Mavic 2 Pro so if the Air 2S solve that problem, it will be a big step up for me.

Do you think that DJI will add style settings on the AIR 2S? What do you think about the fixed aperture and the lack of side sensors?

 

[sar104]

Thank you for your detailed feedback. It will help many of us to take the right decision.

I was pretty much disappointed with the sharpness on the Mavic 2 Pro so if the Air 2S solve that problem, it will be a big step up for me.

Do you think that DJI will add style settings on the AIR 2S? What do you think about the fixed aperture and the lack of side sensors?

Are you shooting M2P D-log and post-processing?

 

[manowar_gub]

Of course, sharpness issue of m2p is not good. Also it shifts some colors (yellow to green) in d-log, highlights tend to overexpose

Fixed aperture not a big problem coz on my m2p I use f4 in daylight and f2.8 at night because of difraction infleunce at f > 4. If dji set nice optics which allow to shoot f2.8 with normal sharpness, why not ?

On the other side, from what I understand, dji fly is more cut than dji go 4, for example you cant adjust EXP settings to operate drone smoother. In additional you can adjust some hidden options for additional control smooth via DJI Assistant

 

[Roamer105]

Thank you for your detailed feedback. It will help many of us to take the right decision.

I was pretty much disappointed with the sharpness on the Mavic 2 Pro so if the Air 2S solve that problem, it will be a big step up for me.

Do you think that DJI will add style settings on the AIR 2S? What do you think about the fixed aperture and the lack of side sensors?

Fixed aperture is obviously a minus point. However I happen to rarely use it. If you do daytime shooting - just put the ND8 on it and deal with the shutter. It is perfectly fine to shoot video with a 1/1000 shutter. It will look just fine.
To me Stile settings are clearly more important. I sure hope DJI will add that.
Today I flew the A2S and took some Dlog video. Following all my own rules. Set proper white balance -well it chose 4800. That was very wrong! It should have been at least 5000 probably more like 5100. Consequently I will still use the auto WB setting to start but when fixing it I will add 300 to the value and set it. There appears to be something wrong with auto white balance.
In post production using resolve I added 200 warming to fix wb.
The resulting video is rather impressive!

 

[Thomas B]

Thank you for your message. Do you think that it's not worth it to upgrade even if I could sell the Mavic 2 Pro and get the Air 2S FMC without spending much money?

That is what I believe.

 

[Droniac]

Maybe this helps a little to decide:

I finally got to compare A2S footage with M2P footage taken at the same time, light and subject matter. I took 4 sequences of A2S video (4K Dlog, 4K HLG and 5.4K Dlog, 5.4K HLG). I also took 4 sequences with the M2P (4K FOV Dlog, 4K FOV HLG and 4K HQ Dlog and 4K HQ HLG). I am not interested in the "normal" video mode. All comparisons and adjustments have been made using Davinci Resolve Studio 17.

For all shots I used auto white balance but fixed during the shots. I also adjusted the exposure in manual using the overexposure indicator on the A2S (very critical) and the EV value (0) for the M2P with aperture fully open. Both drones were equipped with an ND8 (sunny situation). Both drones ended up with approximately the same shutter speed to achieve correct exposure. The white balance as measured in auto resulted at 5100 for the A2S and 5400 for the M2P. The resulting footage appeared much cooler on the A2S (too cool actually). I ended up adding +150 warming to the A2S video to make it more natural and comparable. This difference may have been a one-off fluke. Maybe I did not wait long enough for the "auto mode" to adjust white balance more accuratly. For the M2P I used "Style=normal" since the A2S does not have Style settings capabilities (that's a real bummer!).

Observations:
1) Overall impressions:
The A2S footage has more contrast (maybe a bit too much actually) and a bit more color saturation. The A2S Dlog gamma is a bit different with less highlight compression and more shadow compression. Shadows appear a bit "crushed" in comparison with the M2P. In Resolve, pushing the shadows by +25 makes the A2S video very comparable in the shadows without producing more noise. It also boosted the overall gain to match the M2P gain. Switching between the two left one important distinction: The mid-tones of the M2P are brighter but the overall light distribution seems better on the A2S video (after beforementioned shadows adjustment). Even in FOV mode, the M2P viewing angle is a little smaller than the A2S.

2) Clarity. colors and sharpness:
Clearly the A2S is much less "muddy" and sharper in details with more clarity and definition. The colors (after warming) where outstanding on the A2S actually a bit more pleasing than the M2P.
I made the following sharpness/clarity comparisons:
- A2S 4K with M2P 4K FOV --- A2S is sharper and clearer (less muddy)
- A2S 4K with M2P 4K HQ --- A2S is still a little sharper and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with M2P 4K FOV --- A2S is MUCH sharper, detailed and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with M2P 4K HQ --- A2S is clearly sharper and clearer
- A2S 5.4K downconverted to 4K with A2S 4K --- 5.4K downconverted and compared with 4K was surprisingly sharper. However probably not worth doing in most cases.

So after all this and comparing the overall flight capabilities of the two it is no longer an easy choice. The A2S is a better drone with more evolved capabilities (Active Track 4.0 is amazing). It is lighter and smaller in addition.
Comparing the cameras (so far I only compared VIDEO for post production but I am quite sure the stills will be just as impressive). Frankly, IF DJI ADDS STYLE settings to the A2S I would choose the A2S over the M2P hands down. However, out-of-the box not adjustable contrast, color and sharpness settings are set too high in contrast for sure. That really makes the M2P camera MUCH better for difficult lighting situations.

Yup. That’s what I was going to say. [emoji15]

 

[Gbugari]

Hello,

I'm a happy owner of the Mavic 2 Pro that I was able to buy 2 years ago at an incredible price of 1050 euros (1250 dollars) and I'm now wondering if I should sell the drone in order to replace it with the DJI Air 2S?

I'm pretty sure that I could sell it at very good price and buy the Air 2S Fly More Combo at almost no extra cost.

The Air 2S Fly More Combo is actually available at 1200 euros here (1430 dollars) which is 100 euros below the normal price.

On top of that, I could receive 150 euros of cashback and 150 euros of coupons available at the store.

1) Would you then sell the Mavic 2 Pro to get the Air 2S?

2) If my plan is to buy the next Mavic 3 Pro while saving as much money as possible, do you think that I will more easily sell a Mavic 2 Pro or a Air 2S at that time?

Thanks for your help

Hello from San Diego Ca USA. I just bought a 3 yr old Mavic Pro fly more Kit with Goggles for the ridiculous price of $700.00 Dlls. The person who sold it to me paid originally 2,000,00. One thing to consider is that Technology is rapidly increasing in a exponential way. Go to E Bay and see for how much the DJI drone are selling for. Good luck

 

[Crashdummytest]

Hello,

I'm a happy owner of the Mavic 2 Pro that I was able to buy 2 years ago at an incredible price of 1050 euros (1250 dollars) and I'm now wondering if I should sell the drone in order to replace it with the DJI Air 2S?

I'm pretty sure that I could sell it at very good price and buy the Air 2S Fly More Combo at almost no extra cost.

The Air 2S Fly More Combo is actually available at 1200 euros here (1430 dollars) which is 100 euros below the normal price.

On top of that, I could receive 150 euros of cashback and 150 euros of coupons available at the store.

1) Would you then sell the Mavic 2 Pro to get the Air 2S?

2) If my plan is to buy the next Mavic 3 Pro while saving as much money as possible, do you think that I will more easily sell a Mavic 2 Pro or a Air 2S at that time?

Thanks for your help

As I own an MA2 as well as a M2P there is not a chance I sell my M2P for an Air2s. With the reduced fly-time (compared to a MA2) it is a joke if the Air2s is to be the fabled 'M3P'. That would at least open up the market for other drone makers I would guess.

 

[Roamer105]

Day 2 with perfect weather conditions and dramatic scenery. Shot more video with the A2S and after that with the M2P. The former in 4K Dlog mode and the latter in HLG FOV. Unfortunately I screwed up the second A2S flight that should have been in HLG mode, but forgot to press record.... go figure LOL.

So the comparisons are definitively not apples to apples. One thing I have to state here: I use Davinci Resolve Studio 17+ and I grade in HDR. It offers a built in DJI specific log profile correction. See attached DR17 setup. I use a properly calibrated 55" LG OLED E9 as my grading monitor via a DeckLink Mini Monitor 4K. I target 1000nits HDR10. DR is incredibly well equipped to do HDR even from a Rec709 10-bit log format. (this example).

Observations:
First, as discovered yesterday already, the built in White Balance measurement is WAY OFF on the A2S. Hopefully DJI will fix that soon. Meanwhile, turn on AUTO, wait a few seconds and check the reading. Then turn to manual and increase the value by 400. That will take you where you need to be.
Second, turn the drone towards an area of most brightness for your shooting sequence and with overexposure indication turned on, turn the shutter to right were most (some extreme points if not significant may still exceed exposure. Be careful of clouds especially if they are prominent) or all of the overexposure indication disappears. DO NOT USE AUTO because the exposure with change during flight and make the sequence unwatchable. It is OK to see the EV value drop into negative territory. You are OK with -1 to -3. The latter sequences may have a bit more noise but that is easy to fix.
Set to AF and touch the screen to invoke autofocus on a good contrasty object in the distance.
All this, if you plan to fly a scenic pass through some awesome terrain.

Another really important observation on the A2S. Remember, the M2P especially in FOV has a substantial barrel distortion (when recording in 10bit log) that can be fixed easily but for scenic area shots it is essentially barely noticeable so I usually leave it alone. HOWEVER the A2S has a much more annoying lens distortion which is the exact opposite of the M2P. The A2S has a pincushion distortion that when shooting landscape and panning across it, one might get a bit nauseas! That I found out from my very first video. On Davinci Resolve set the lens correction to -0.1 or thereabouts to correct the pincushion.

The M2P HLG FOV footage needed very little correction. In fact, all I did was pushing gain a little highlights and a little shadows. This mostly because I used Style=normal. Otherwise I would record with less contrast and push HDR contrast in post. Results are a bit better.

The A2S footage went through the normal flat gamma 2.4 to HDR (PQ) approximation. Partly, DR takes care of it by checking the "use 203 nits reference for Rec2100 HDR" and by pushing the shadows +50 and work "negative Lift" and "negative shadows" to restore black and shadow definition before starting HDR grading. These actions "bend" the otherwise linear gamma to be more like PQ. The fully graded results are nearly indistinguishable from corresponding HLG (HDR) footage. Turns out I prefer to start with Dlog footage especially on the A2S since it offers a little more flexibility working shadows and highlights. HDR grading only included a minor push of shadows, light, highlight and specular. It also includes dropping selective color saturation only for shadows, dark and black.

In conclusion: I attached two partial frame shots that demonstrate the difference in M2P 4K FOV definition/clarity/sharpness vs A2S 4K. They also show that the two are otherwise nearly indistinguishable short of maybe a slight tendency towards the A2S "Red" in brown and skin-tones when compared with the very natural M2P colors.
NOTE: I used Dolby Vision (part of DR studio) to view the HDR footage on SDR to take the screen shots.

 

[Roamer105]

One more thing: I figured since I elaborated as much on this here is a link to the video shot with the A2S:

 

[Roamer105]

Just to be fair. Here is the video I shot with the M2P in FOV HLG mode right after the A2S. Same lighting. Judge for yourselves! But just a small point added from my perspective: I like the M2P. I think it is an awesome camera. Sure the A2S is really close and most of what is left is some smart DJI firmware upgrades. Meanwhile, for really high quality shots -- M2P will remain my "goto" because nobody notices the little thing on some little tree that seems to be a little more "muddied".. However, it is close!

So - here it is:

 

[Roamer105]

The really sad part of youtube is: Yes, they support HDR H265 10 bit media. However, after their processing... omg! So, please take all of it with a grain of salt.

I wish YouTube would use Dolby Vision to down-convert. I don't think they look at the results.
So, to be fair to anyone without HDR viewing equipment. Here are both videos uploaded after being post produced in SDR using Dolby Vision.
Here is the M2P version after Dolby Vision:

And here is the A2S version after Dolby Vision:

OK. I did not want to start and issue with YouTube. However, it is pretty sad if "google' thinks they can do better and really screw it up.

 

[Roamer105]

Are you shooting M2P D-log and post-processing?

Yes. I only do 10-bit (either Dlog or HLG) video using Resolve studio for post. Done this for years.

 

[sar104]

Yes. I only do 10-bit (either Dlog or HLG) video using Resolve studio for post. Done this for years.

Right - but the question was directed at the other poster who was apparently very disappointed with the M2P video quality.

I got mixed messages from your reviews. Initially you seemed to be saying that the A2S was much better, but you ended up apparently preferring the M2P?

 

[Roamer105]

Right - but the question was directed at the other poster who was apparently very disappointed with the M2P video quality.

I got mixed messages from your reviews. Initially you seemed to be saying that the A2S was much better, but you ended up apparently preferring the M2P?

I am sorry about that. I still have some reservations mainly because I am not able to control the camera as much as I would like to. After correcting the obnoxious pincushion and viewing the final result on my 65” OLED I am warming up to the A2S. Unfortunately something went wrong when I uploaded the M2P rendition of the sequence I shot for comparison. It looks fantastic here, but the YouTube version is awful. I just looked at it now. I will remove it and upload a corrected version.

 

[AroundTheWorld]

Are you shooting M2P D-log and post-processing?

Since I don't really do post-processing or color grading, I was mainly shooting in Auto mode, switching between HQ and FOV. When I was not satisfied with the sharpness, I sometimes increased it in Style settings or in Premiere Pro.

Would it solve the sharpness issue to shoot in D-log?