DJI Mini 4 Pro Drone questions

[EddieWalker]

Thank you everyone for the comments. I only have one neighbor, and his house is about a mile away. No worries about him. I'm nowhere near an airport or military base. Now power lines either.

Reading the comments and looking at the pictures really has me wanting to buy it.

The kit I'll probably buy is the one with 3 batteries, extra blades, and the built in screen on the control. Plus a lot of other stuff that might come in handy if I ever figure it all out.

 

[old and tired]

Costco for Mini 3; for $299 is easier to swallow after it crashes vs. crashing $1000 - ALSO, Costco will (or at least did) refund my money since I crashed it within 3 months!!!

I did not like DJI since I was not allowed to replace the camera gimbal (which broke). I was able to buy one and replace it but since the serial numbers did not match up in the tiny computer on board. It would not work. Bottom line, DJI - you do not own the drone, if you break it, you send it back to the mother company to be repaired. You can not repair it yourself.

Don't get me started with how you connect to the network, all your flights are recorded and sent to the mother company.... (Guessing, no proof of this but pretty sure it happens).

 

[RandyT]

Not sure about this… That is not my understanding of the rules.

The rules are kind of wishy washy, but gives strong hints that since Google places ads on youtube videos, monetized or not they may/could consider it commercial use. So maybe able to post drone footage on Youtube, but if the channel is ever monetized all the prior footage now becomes commercial use without a license because there is no grandfathering for recreational video.

The issue is the video obtained considered recreational for personal enjoyment when posted to a public site that may contain ads even though the operator never received compensation for their video they posted.

 

[John0829]

I have the Mavic Air 2 fly more kit and I am more than pleased with it. Average close to 30 minutes of flight time on each battery (varies due to weather and conditions). Anything goes wrong it comes home on its own. They are not quiet, even at 400 AGL which is max altitude for a personal use license, you can still hear the "buzz" of the props. Automated flight can be achieved by using way points and it has a follow me mode where you pick a target and it will follow he/she/it wherever the target goes. I have flown it just over a mile away from my location just to see how far out I could send it and still have signal/control.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Thank you everyone for the comments. I only have one neighbor, and his house is about a mile away. No worries about him. I'm nowhere near an airport or military base. Now power lines either.

Reading the comments and looking at the pictures really has me wanting to buy it.

The kit I'll probably buy is the one with 3 batteries, extra blades, and the built in screen on the control. Plus a lot of other stuff that might come in handy if I ever figure it all out.

I have the 3 batteries. I bought the crash warranty with it, but that has expired, so was a waste of money. I'm tempted to upgrade to the one costco has. I have only replaced blades once. I have the guards, but have never used them, they are a waste, just adds weight and reduces run time.

 

[LittleBill21]

I have a Air2 DJI, does everything I need it to. if you think china is uploading 4k video from your drone your nuts, the air 2 can't even do it without the drone being powered on the entire time or the sd card being removed and uploaded. what exactly is china going to do with a picture of my house, that google maps doesn't already accomplish...

and i have read multiple comments that if youtube video's are monetized, then you need the commercial license, as there have been incidents of people being tracked down from youtube video's

 

[Rock Crawler]

Eddie,

You will need to study and get you FAA Part 107 pilots license to use the drone for YT video. The FAA does look for drone footage used by non licensed pilots in a for profit way. If your YT account is monetized and has adds, your a prime target for the FAA to come at you with charges and fines. That is why I do not use my drone at all for my YT content, I am a hobby licensed drone pilot (DJI Maverick 2 Zoom), and I am monetized. The cost of getting caught and burned can be significant.

The hobby license requires that you take and pass an online FAA computer based test, and re-take it every 2 years. The license cost is $5 per license period. The FAA Part 107 is a VERY different ball game, you will likely need to pay for a Part 104 training program unless you are already an airman who can read the air maps and know the regulations and more. The following link should get you started, there are additional links on the left side that you can follow to read more.

To use content for monetized YT video, you are commercial.
https://www.faa.gov/uas/commercial_operators
https://www.faa.gov/uas/commercial_operators/become_a_drone_pilot

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Eddie,

You will need to study and get you FAA Part 107 pilots license to use the drone for YT video. The FAA does look for drone footage used by non licensed pilots in a for profit way. If your YT account is monetized and has adds, your a prime target for the FAA to come at you with charges and fines. That is why I do not use my drone at all for my YT content, I am a hobby licensed drone pilot (DJI Maverick 2 Zoom), and I am monetized. The cost of getting caught and burned can be significant.

That’s crazy

 

[riptides]

The IRS should give flight hour/milage deductions since the FAA is collecting fees. It's a business after all. At least you can deduct the drone using 179.

 

[Gem99ultra]

I've never had a drone. I've never seen a drone in person. I don't know anybody that has a drone. I think it's time that I bought a drone.

From watching YouTube, I think the DJI Mini 4 Pro is what I'm going to buy. Does anybody know anything about this drone? Or do you know of a better drone to look at?

My goal for the drone is to be able to look over my land real fast after a storm, or if we hear something that we can't identify. We seem to live in a pocket that carries sound that doesn't have any explanation, so being able to send a drone out to look around would be nice. We've also started filming stuff around the farm, and posting it on YouTube, TikTok and FB Reels. Being able to get drone footages would improve our videos.

Here is the basic package that I'm looking at for $1,169.

Amazon.com

And here is a bigger package, with more stuff for $1,269.

Amazon.com

So for $100 more, there is a lot more stuff in that package. Do I need any of that stuff? How often do you have to replace the blades? I'm guessing that I'll probably crash it a few times, so having extra blades might be a good idea.

You thoughts?

I have the DJI Mini 3 Pro, for about 2 years now. I did buy the extra package but so far haven't needed it. It's good to have around though. I did break the gimble once due to poor handling . Local (in USA) fast repair was available for $69. My only negative is having only 3 batteries I run out of juice long before I run out of 'fun'.
I say - Go for it. You'll have many hours of great fun, and some surprising views of surrounding property.