Where to go Next?

[GBPTechForester]

Hello everyone. I've been flying DJI drones for about 5 years now and was recently hired at a timber management company. I handle GIS work and am in the process of trying to expand our drone usage in the field. We use drones occasionally for inspection of individual trees, but primarily for orthomosaics using SiteScan so that we can estimate acreage that needs to be planted/fertilized etc. Before I joined this company, they had 3 mavic 2 Pros which they had been using. Its a good platform and I've gotten a lot of use out of it, but I'm in the process of training new pilots to fly, and we're going to need more drones. With the mavic 2 pro being out of production, what do you guys recommend we move to? I am currently considering the Mavic 3, when DJI finally releases the SDK, but I can't wait around forever and I don't know when it will drop. The mavic 3 mini looks like a potential option, but I am concerned about the lower image resolution, and I don't know if it will be compatible with Orthomosaic software. At this point I'm considering switching away from DJI entirely, but virtually all of my flight time is on DJI products, and I would really rather not switch. I appreciate any help you guys can offer!

 

[Skywatcher2001]

Welcome to the forum!!

I'm sure others will chime in. I would seriously look at the Mavic Air 2s . . . it supports SDK, it's stable (even in moderate wind). It has a 1" sensor for imaging. Not sure if SDK support will ever come to the Mavic 3. The Mavic Air 2 is compatible with Orthomosaic software so I can only imagine the Air2s is too.

Good luck pilot!

 

[Meta4]

Welcome to the forum!!

The Mavic Air 2 is compatible with Orthomosaic software so I can only imagine the Air2s is too.

It's not supported by DroneDeploy or Pix4D:

https://help.dronedeploy.com/hc/en-us/articles/1500004964842-Recommended-and-Supported-Drones

https://support.pix4d.com/hc/en-us/articles/203991609-Supported-drones-cameras-and-controllers-PIX4Dcapture

 

[Skywatcher2001]

It's not supported by DroneDeploy or Pix4D:

https://help.dronedeploy.com/hc/en-us/articles/1500004964842-Recommended-and-Supported-Drones

https://support.pix4d.com/hc/en-us/articles/203991609-Supported-drones-cameras-and-controllers-PIX4Dcapture

noted.

 

[GBPTechForester]

Welcome to the forum!!

I'm sure others will chime in. I would seriously look at the Mavic Air 2s . . . it supports SDK, it's stable (even in moderate wind). It has a 1" sensor for imaging. Not sure if SDK support will ever come to the Mavic 3. The Mavic Air 2 is compatible with Orthomosaic software so I can only imagine the Air2s is too.

Good luck pilot!

Thank you for the advice! I appreciate your input. However, the Air 2 is something that I've been considering and it seems like a step down in terms of image quality. Image quality is not a concern for some of our projects, but we are considering seedling survival projects, and I am afraid we would suffer for the lower megapixels.

 

[Skywatcher2001]

Thank you for the advice! I appreciate your input. However, the Air 2 is something that I've been considering and it seems like a step down in terms of image quality. Image quality is not a concern for some of our projects, but we are considering seedling survival projects, and I am afraid we would suffer for the lower megapixels.

The Air 2 is DEFINITELY a step down with its 1/2" cmos sensor. But the AIR 2S is superior (but it does not support the software you are looking for). My apologies pilot . . . I hope you can find what you need (or support is given to the Air2s).

Good luck to you sir . . .