In our hobby, the subject of antenna modifications always comes up. Inevitably, there are a great deal of people who immediately jump on them with statements about how antenna mods are worthless and how you gain nothing. or 10%. Or whatever number they want to throw out this week.
As an Amateur Radio operator (ham radio), I'd just like to take a moment to leave you all with some thoughts.
So, you got a drone, and you have flown it. Maybe even in several areas. You think you have a firm grip on how this equipment works. But here is your first food for thought. Radio frequencies and how they work are not a cookie cutter "this to this" type of scenario. In fact, how frequencies work is so vast, understanding them is a hobby in itself. Most of you only think of it as LOS (Line of sight), but you miss the part where a near infinite number of variables come into play here. Free space loss, absorption loss, diffraction, multipath, terrain, buildings, the material of structures, and even the atmosphere itself.
Then there is the understanding of various antennas and what they do. An Omnidirectional antenna works significantly different than a yagi or a parabolic.
The truth of the matter is, there are so many different types of antennas because every single situation requires something different. What works for you won't work as well for someone living in the mountains, or in a city, or on a beach, or over a corn field, or in a desert.
So for someone on the internet to say, so matter of fact, that no antenna mod is worth it for anyone, just because Joe Schmoe out in Kansas got 4 miles of range with the stock antennas is... to say the least... inaccurate.
To sum it up... if your very first questions don't pertain to where the poster lives and what terrain they are dealing with, your answer is wrong.
If you really want to learn about this, there are literally millions of free books and sites to check out. And without a doubt, it will help you out a great deal in your travels with this hobby.
And on a side note... for my use in my terrain, installing a panel antenna on my P3P took my max range from 1200' out @ 400' (less than 1/4 mile) before losing signal all together, to an immeasurable distance (battery goes dead first - More than 4 miles) at about 200' with 3% signal loss. So even assuming that at the distance my battery dies is the distance I lose my signal entirely, thats still a 1660% increase. Not the 10% I keep seeing thrown around here. Omnidirectional antennas simply do not work in the area where I live, and I am sure they don't work for a lot of other people.
We have all been around forums and the internet long enough now to understand that false information is damaging. Your words have the potential to spread like wildfire because so many people get so used to just repeating everything they read without questioning any of it. That is never any good for anyone. Help the hobby to progress. Understand the 'how' and 'why' of everything. Don't repeat your own experience like it is fact, and the only truth that exists. Because it isn't. And there isn't one person here that shouldn't know that by now, given the tons of different experiences you have all shared regarding every other aspect of this hobby.
Thank you for your time.
