Smart controller versus Tablet

[RetiredInFL]

First off, you can pick up a used SC for a much better price than new. We choose screens not for price but ability to be able to see it in bright sunlight. Any cheap tablet or phone looks great in a darkened room but we don't fly from such places.

Then there is the amount of extra stuff to carry and plug in each time you want to go flying. If you choose a tablet that won't fit in the control holder arms then you also have to buy and fit the adapter to hold your tablet plus fit the tablet into that adapter.

So take all that into account when comparing a SC with a tablet. No tablet can stand up to the screen brightness and ease of use and no cable connection and no adapter to fit and hold it, when compared to a SC. Therefore, it is a No Contest sort of comparison and rather pointless.

You can buy a new iPad mini for less than the sc used with 50% more screen and quite comparative in brightness in REAL WORLD use ( and easily use it for other stuff). My iPad mini fit in my regular controller (Mavic 1 or 2) with no adapter. I had the SC on Mavic 2 Zoom and PERSONALLY prefer the larger size screen of the iPad mini. Yes, a bit less convenient. Yes, 1 extra cable. Yes, a cheap tablet is not good but compare a good tablet for fair comparison. Biggest gripe on the SC is that the screen is smaller than my iPhone 12 Pro Max if I wanted to use that. Have you tried an IPAD vs SC for brightness? I’d never use a full size iPad (weight) but it sure makes it easier to see. The SC is no lightweight either. Definitely convenient though.

 

[Xvtownboy]

Dedicated Ipad mini 5 with sunscreen works perfect for my needs..I leave it in the controller full time,so i dont fuss with anything

 

[RobW01]

Dedicated Ipad mini 5 with sunscreen works perfect for my needs..I leave it in the controller full time,so i dont fuss with anything

Will be interesting to see the specs of the Mini 6, due out soon. A brighter screen would be good.

 

[Cymruflyer]

You can buy a new iPad mini for less than the sc used with 50% more screen and quite comparative in brightness in REAL WORLD use ( and easily use it for other stuff). My iPad mini fit in my regular controller (Mavic 1 or 2) with no adapter. I had the SC on Mavic 2 Zoom and PERSONALLY prefer the larger size screen of the iPad mini. Yes, a bit less convenient. Yes, 1 extra cable. Yes, a cheap tablet is not good but compare a good tablet for fair comparison. Biggest gripe on the SC is that the screen is smaller than my iPhone 12 Pro Max if I wanted to use that. Have you tried an IPAD vs SC for brightness? I’d never use a full size iPad (weight) but it sure makes it easier to see. The SC is no lightweight either. Definitely convenient though.

The new ipad mini 4 is only 450nits, where the Smart Controller is almost 300% brighter, and the Feelworld monitor is 2,200nits, so either screen when compared to any iPad (and the others are all 415 to 425nits, so the new mini 4 is their brightest offering) is far superior in brightness. Plus the ipads can suffer from overheating when used in hot weather, plus you need yet another charging device to keep around, as well as your controller.

Of course people say the screen on anything they are using is bright enough for them, just like someone who has a crap $400 car might say it does everything they need, but in true comparison to other modern cars, it is a non contender in real life. Therefore those who say their phones or iPads is bright enough for them, that's great, stick with it, but if they were to compare it to the brightness of the SC or the CS or the Feelworld monitors, they would see a shocking difference.

Yes I will admit that it would be very nice to have a larger screen size on the SC and that is the only draw back it has. I would trade a smaller screen any day for a 300% brighter screen because I fly far more in bright conditions and when there is a very bright condition, you can't even see an iPad or phone very well without a shade and even those don't help very much. If size is your only need then yes get the largest iPad you can find/afford. But if you want to be able to see the picture in bright sunlight, have a very quick start up, have no extra cables and mounts to fiddle with each time you want to set up to fly with a long battery life, then get the SC and learn to live with the size.

 

[RobW01]

The new ipad mini 4 is only 450nits, where the Smart Controller is almost 300% brighter, and the Feelworld monitor is 2,200nits, so either screen when compared to any iPad (and the others are all 415 to 425nits, so the new mini 4 is their brightest offering) is far superior in brightness. Plus the ipads can suffer from overheating when used in hot weather, plus you need yet another charging device to keep around, as well as your controller.

Of course people say the screen on anything they are using is bright enough for them, just like someone who has a crap $400 car might say it does everything they need, but in true comparison to other modern cars, it is a non contender in real life. Therefore those who say their phones or iPads is bright enough for them, that's great, stick with it, but if they were to compare it to the brightness of the SC or the CS or the Feelworld monitors, they would see a shocking difference.

Yes I will admit that it would be very nice to have a larger screen size on the SC and that is the only draw back it has. I would trade a smaller screen any day for a 300% brighter screen because I fly far more in bright conditions and when there is a very bright condition, you can't even see an iPad or phone very well without a shade and even those don't help very much. If size is your only need then yes get the largest iPad you can find/afford. But if you want to be able to see the picture in bright sunlight, have a very quick start up, have no extra cables and mounts to fiddle with each time you want to set up to fly with a long battery life, then get the SC and learn to live with the size.

Attaching something like the Feelworld monitor to the SC via HDMI gives the best of both worlds.

 

[RetiredInFL]

The new ipad mini 4 is only 450nits, where the Smart Controller is almost 300% brighter, and the Feelworld monitor is 2,200nits, so either screen when compared to any iPad (and the others are all 415 to 425nits, so the new mini 4 is their brightest offering) is far superior in brightness. Plus the ipads can suffer from overheating when used in hot weather, plus you need yet another charging device to keep around, as well as your controller.

Of course people say the screen on anything they are using is bright enough for them, just like someone who has a crap $400 car might say it does everything they need, but in true comparison to other modern cars, it is a non contender in real life. Therefore those who say their phones or iPads is bright enough for them, that's great, stick with it, but if they were to compare it to the brightness of the SC or the CS or the Feelworld monitors, they would see a shocking difference.

Yes I will admit that it would be very nice to have a larger screen size on the SC and that is the only draw back it has. I would trade a smaller screen any day for a 300% brighter screen because I fly far more in bright conditions and when there is a very bright condition, you can't even see an iPad or phone very well without a shade and even those don't help very much. If size is your only need then yes get the largest iPad you can find/afford. But if you want to be able to see the picture in bright sunlight, have a very quick start up, have no extra cables and mounts to fiddle with each time you want to set up to fly with a long battery life, then get the SC and learn to live with the size.

Not picking nits here (pun intended ) the NEWEST iPad is the Mini 5 not 4 and is spec’d at 500 nits but when I compare the SC and my Mini 5 SIDE BY SIDE outside there is no way I can really say one is XX times brighter. Specs are meaningless. What counts is how it looks in real world use and the 5.5” screen vs the 9+” screen IMO makes up for any supposed brightness difference.

 

[Deleted member 133794]

Not picking nits here (pun intended ) the NEWEST iPad is the Mini 5 not 4 and is spec’d at 500 nits but when I compare the SC and my Mini 5 SIDE BY SIDE outside there is no way I can really say one is XX times brighter. Specs are meaningless. What counts is how it looks in real world use and the 5.5” screen vs the 9+” screen IMO makes up for any supposed brightness difference.

Specs are not meaningless....when comparing screen brightness. I have used all
the screens available to us as pilots from the iphones to the Feelworlds and the difference in brightness from the bottom end of the range to the top end is significantly different. How can 500 nits in full sunlight possibly be compared
to 1500 nitts for the Tripltek or 2200 nitts for the feelworld they are worlds apart.
With the 500 nitt screens i just cannot see the thing properly
on a sunny day. The size of the screen for me makes no difference 5 or 9 inch it's
just not visible. I realise the higher nitt screens are more expensive but for me there is no point buying a cheaper lower nitt tablet if i can't see it.

 

[Cymruflyer]

Specs are not meaningless....when comparing screen brightness. I have used all
the screens available to us as pilots from the iphones to the Feelworlds and the difference in brightness from the bottom end of the range to the top end is significantly different. How can 500 nits in full sunlight possibly be compared
to 1500 nitts for the Tripltek or 2200 nitts for the feelworld they are worlds apart.
With the 500 nitt screens i just cannot see the thing properly
on a sunny day. The size of the screen for me makes no difference 5 or 9 inch it's
just not visible. I realise the higher nitt screens are more expensive but for me there is no point buying a cheaper lower nitt tablet if i can't see it.

Completely agree, though is you compare the price of a new iPad Mini 5 to the low cost of the 2,200nit Feelworld, then you are saving money because you can get the Feelworld monitor for about $235. from B&H or could the last time I looked. I got mine as an open box on ebay and paid just $177. I don't understand how people can say their 425 or 500nits screen is just as good in bright sunlight as a 1,500 or 2,200nits screen, unless they have really never seen one to compare, which I suspect is the case.

 

[Terry63]

Hi, lots of good advice in the previous posts to help a person decide which is best for them.
There is one consideration that has not been touched on yet.
I recently took on the challenge of learning dronelink .
My old galaxy tab A tabled did not have enough processing speed to run a mission. Fortunately my new galaxy A20e phone did. In the on line instructions for dronelink they tell you that the DJI smart controller and Crystal sky monitor don't have enough processing power to run their app.
So if you may be considering using dronelink go the more flexible route.

 

[Barbara]

I have no problem discerning the the difference in brightness between my iphone 6s (550 nits) and my Crystalsky 5.5" or 7.85" at 1000 nits. The phone is simply impossible in bright sunlight. The CS is easily read, though I could wish for them to be just a bit brighter when the sun is directly overhead.

 

[Negoti8r]

I have both and prefer the smart controller.

 

[Ttb3526]

Good afternoon to everyone,

1000% newbie sucking in all the information. I have a question to toss out and hope I don't get chewed up and spit out.

If you type "1000 nits" in the search field at "Alibaba" several Rugged type tablets come up that "look" exactly like the Tripltek tablet everyone is talking about. There are a few sellers that will ship one or two tablets for a range of $250 to $350.

Someone out here in Drone land has had to buy one of these $250-$300 knock off tablet and tested it. Something tells me its probably the same tablet that Tripltek is putting there name on and marking it up a couple hundred. I know that's a bold statement, but that is the MO of the industry via China and its competitors.

For a newbie buying up all kinds of stuff $250 vs $550 is a big difference.

One of them ever comes with a charging stand.

This is one example of the several tablets listed. Some you can order as little as 2.

T70(2020) explosion-proof tablet rugged android PC 7 inch 1000 nit 4G lte GPS NFC RFID Reader tablette IP67 waterproof​

• 10 - 99 Units
  $285.00
  
  
• 100 - 499 Units
  $265.00
  
  
• >=500 Units
  $245.00

 

[Barbara]

Good afternoon to everyone,

1000% newbie sucking in all the information. I have a question to toss out and hope I don't get chewed up and spit out.

If you type "1000 nits" in the search field at "Alibaba" several Rugged type tablets come up that "look" exactly like the Tripltek tablet everyone is talking about. There are a few sellers that will ship one or two tablets for a range of $250 to $350.

Someone out here in Drone land has had to buy one of these $250-$300 knock off tablet and tested it. Something tells me its probably the same tablet that Tripltek is putting there name on and marking it up a couple hundred. I know that's a bold statement, but that is the MO of the industry via China and its competitors.

For a newbie buying up all kinds of stuff $250 vs $550 is a big difference.

One of them ever comes with a charging stand.

This is one example of the several tablets listed. Some you can order as little as 2.

T70(2020) explosion-proof tablet rugged android PC 7 inch 1000 nit 4G lte GPS NFC RFID Reader tablette IP67 waterproof​

• 10 - 99 Units
  $285.00
  
  
• 100 - 499 Units
  $265.00
  
  
• >=500 Units
  $245.00

Couple red flags there:

First, the Trpltek, far as I know, is American. Their offices are in Florida, though that doesn't mean they manufacture them there.

Second, the Tripltek is rated at 1200 nits, not 1000.

Not saying these knock-offs aren't good, but typically, you get what you pay for. The Tripltek is advertised as compatible with DJI Apps, actually one of their selling points.

 

[JoostGT3]

Ha @Gentry1, your question is a simple one, but as you see, there are a lot of factors involved. In my experience, the Smart Controller is an absolute no-brainer, and a gamechanger when it comes to flying our precious Mavics. I came from the original Mavic Pro, then bought the Spark, then bought the Mavic 2 Pro and when in the shop, I decided to get it with the Smart Controller rather than the regular controller. When I started flying the new toy, I found that the biggest step up, the biggest "novelty feeling" was the Smart Controller. Of course, the M2P is miles ahead of the M1P, but most of that you don't really notice. What I hadn't realized until I started flying with the SC, is that getting ready to fly your drone is a bit of a hassle:
1. Switch on Mavic
2. Switch on controller
3. Fire up the app on your control device
4. Put control device in controller and connect it
5. Pray the connection between app and controller is successful
6. Fly.

Now, all this is not rocket science, but when you want to fly, you want to be able to take your time to do all the IMPORTANT checks, like removing gimball clamp, battery check, etc. I found that the above mentioned process takes away your focus from the important things. Now, with the SC, the process is hugely simplified to 2/3 steps:
1. Switch on Mavic
2. Switch on Controller
3. Click "Go Fly" and you're set...

I found that this makes me so much more relaxed to fly and much more focussed on the pre-flight checks. In addition, it save me from having to carry an extra device and extra cables, etc... On top of that you get the extreme brightness of the screen which makes that you don't need to worry so much about sun glare anymore. I would never want anything else anymore.

I hope all this helps you make the right decision for you, let us know what you decided on!

 

[Barbara]

Ha @Gentry1, your question is a simple one, but as you see, there are a lot of factors involved. In my experience, the Smart Controller is an absolute no-brainer, and a gamechanger when it comes to flying our precious Mavics. I came from the original Mavic Pro, then bought the Spark, then bought the Mavic 2 Pro and when in the shop, I decided to get it with the Smart Controller rather than the regular controller. When I started flying the new toy, I found that the biggest step up, the biggest "novelty feeling" was the Smart Controller. Of course, the M2P is miles ahead of the M1P, but most of that you don't really notice. What I hadn't realized until I started flying with the SC, is that getting ready to fly your drone is a bit of a hassle:
1. Switch on Mavic
2. Switch on controller
3. Fire up the app on your control device
4. Put control device in controller and connect it
5. Pray the connection between app and controller is successful
6. Fly.

Now, all this is not rocket science, but when you want to fly, you want to be able to take your time to do all the IMPORTANT checks, like removing gimball clamp, battery check, etc. I found that the above mentioned process takes away your focus from the important things. Now, with the SC, the process is hugely simplified to 2/3 steps:
1. Switch on Mavic
2. Switch on Controller
3. Click "Go Fly" and you're set...

I found that this makes me so much more relaxed to fly and much more focussed on the pre-flight checks. In addition, it save me from having to carry an extra device and extra cables, etc... On top of that you get the extreme brightness of the screen which makes that you don't need to worry so much about sun glare anymore. I would never want anything else anymore.

I hope all this helps you make the right decision for you, let us know what you decided on!

I wonder if the OP is actually reading any of these posts. So far no comment from them.

Anyway, I agree with you Joost, the convenience of the SC is a big positive factor. I accomplish much the same with my CrystalSky which is dedicated to the drone. At home it lives mounted and connected to the RC. In the field, I do have to connect it all together, but it never fails and I for one need the larger screen.

Whatever works for you is the best combination.

 

[Platoon]

I comparison Smart controller-ipad mini- TRIPLTEK

 

[Monument.AL]

I’m looking to buy either a smart controller or a tablet. Which one should I Go with?

When it comes to what controller I prefer, I have a foot in both camps. I previously used my Android phone with my M2P Controller; as my Gen 2 Apple iPad was not compatible with the DJI GO 4 app. Then one day my phone ran hot and the GO 4 app kept freezing while my drone was still flying, which really freaked me out. Soon after, and not wishing to have that experience again, I bought the Smart Controller (SC) which as others have already discussed now enables me to get into the air far quicker, is more convenient (no cable connection issues), has a bigger brighter screen than my phone; plus I have never experienced that freezing issue again.

Last year when my old iPad finally needed to be retired I replaced it with an iPad mini, and now I also use that with the original M2P controller as a Secondary Controller to the SC. The iPad allows me to run any Apple-only drone apps that the SC cannot. I run this Secondary Controller setup as a “fail-safe” which can take over in case there are issues while I am flying with the Primary; plus it can be used by a photographer or other interested parties while the pilot in charge uses the SC to focus on flying the drone. I have also used this setup to introduce new users to flying a drone, allowing a trainee to use the Secondary Controller to get a feel for the drone while the Primary Controller can be used to immediately take control back when the need arises.

In summary, I do like the bigger screen when using an iPad with the controller (versus a phone), but I much prefer to use the SC for its convenience and reliability.

 

[RetiredInFL]

Attaching something like the Feelworld monitor to the SC via HDMI gives the best of both worlds.

Yes but it is very heavy, very thick and is Android. Seems to be identical to the Tripltek Pro for a nice amount less.

 

[Platoon]

Yes but it is very heavy, very thick and is Android. Seems to be identical to the Tripltek Pro for a nice amount less.

Freeworld monitor is not an Android device. It is just a monitor, you can not download the DJI APP nor any APP or touch the screen to change any settings on the APP, it is just a display that receives the signal through hdmi from the SC, and it is pain because you also have to carry separated batteries for it.

 

[RetiredInFL]

Freeworld monitor is not an Android device. It is just a monitor, you can not download the DJI APP nor any APP or touch the screen to change any settings on the APP, it is just a display that receives the signal through hdmi from the SC, and it is pain because you also have to carry separated batteries for it.

Sorry. Was thinking of something else I had just seen on Amazon. Not even close.