Need purchasing help.

[CJ Cregg]

I have wanted to purchase a quadcopter for a long while... and my local retailer has them on sale.
I was looking at the DJI Phantom Quadcopter with GoPro Mount, for $349
http://www.samys.com/p/Quadcopters/DJIPHANTOM/Phantom-Quadcopter-with-GoPro-Mount/122158.html

I already own two GoPros, a 3 and a 4. My goal is to help a friend with one aerial scene in a film two weekends from now.

Here are my questions, if anyone would be gracious enough to give me a few moments.

What is the actual flight time for the Phantom 1? The site says 10-15 minutes, but I've read reviews of 5-6 minutes. What is the time required to recharge the battery?

I've now looked at the Phantom 2 with the 2d and 3d gimbal... What does the original Phantom have? Is it workable?

What other accessories are necessary successfully use this model?

I don't want to break the bank, but I also don't want to waste money and time, and get on set and not be able to record successfully.

Last question... Is it easy enough to use with just one day's practice?

Any help would be TERRIFIC. Thanks,

CJ

 

[Meta4]

Yes .. the Phantom is easy to use
But I think it's unrealistic to expect to be able to film proficiently with one day's practice

 

[Hendricks]

I have wanted to purchase a quadcopter for a long while... and my local retailer has them on sale.
I was looking at the DJI Phantom Quadcopter with GoPro Mount, for $349
http://www.samys.com/p/Quadcopters/DJIPHANTOM/Phantom-Quadcopter-with-GoPro-Mount/122158.html

I already own two GoPros, a 3 and a 4. My goal is to help a friend with one aerial scene in a film two weekends from now.

Here are my questions, if anyone would be gracious enough to give me a few moments.

What is the actual flight time for the Phantom 1? The site says 10-15 minutes, but I've read reviews of 5-6 minutes. What is the time required to recharge the battery?

I've now looked at the Phantom 2 with the 2d and 3d gimbal... What does the original Phantom have? Is it workable?

What other accessories are necessary successfully use this model?

I don't want to break the bank, but I also don't want to waste money and time, and get on set and not be able to record successfully.

Last question... Is it easy enough to use with just one day's practice?

Any help would be TERRIFIC. Thanks,

CJ

Hi,

Just saw your post. I don't have any experience with the earlier versions of the Phantoms, like the original and the Phantom 2.
These were the aircraft that had the attachments for attaching a Go-Pro.
I purchased my Phantom II Vision Plus a year ago and have flown it for probably 200 hours now and have a good bit of My experience with the aircraft. I wanted a Phantom with a factory installed camera and a camera with a 3 point gimbal.
It was the 2nd generation of the Phantom II Vision aircraft that came with the best camera and gimbal to allow me to fly right out of the box. I must say, this would be my advice to you: buy a Phantom II Vision Plus and you'll get a camera that is every bit as good as a Go-Pro, providing you with crystal clear still shots and super video. The gimbal works very well and the camera is isolated from the normal pitch and roll of the aircraft which naturally occurs during flight.
As for flight training, I would say that I spent a few weeks ( flying every day ) to become quite comfortable with operating my Phantom. The truth is that these are expensive things and crashing one usually results in lots of damage or destroying them.
Either way, you are out money when this happens.
My advice is to focus totally on your pre-flight checklist, mastering your flight controls, and getting a feel for how the Phantom flies and learning how to land properly. You should understand how the 'Return to Home' feature operates and test it.
THEN, focus on proper operation of the camera when the aircraft is in the air.
This all takes time.
I would say a MINIMUM of several weeks to get comfortable with everything.
After all, it takes only one mistake and you potentially could be out a lot of money.

One final thought:

Make sure you do your flight training in an area that is wide open with few obstacles......a soccer field is perfect.

If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to email me at the address below:

[email protected]