Taking Off With Less Than 100% Battery?

[SpaceDan]

In the manual for the P3A, it says "Don't take off with a battery less than 100%" (or something very similar to that).

So am I really risking something if I take off with a battery at 70% or 65%? Does the take-off portion of a flight strain a battery so much that it is particularly dangerous to take off with a battery closer to 50% than 100%?

So I often will put the craft up and fly / photograph one side of a park quickly, bring the bird down, walk it over to the other side of the park, and then put it up again. So that second time I put it up, I will be taking off with 60% or 70% battery life.

Thanks in advance.

I've taken off over 100 times with less than 75% battery, and I've never had a problem. I think DJI's statement "Don't take off with a battery less than 100%" is just DJI covering their butts. If you followed the 100% rule, you could charge to 100%, power on (draining 1% battery) and immediately power off, power on again...now you're at 99% and you can't take off? I say, that's baloney.

 

[Cactus Wren]

That's the limit of current (affordable) battery technology.
It's not like other manufacturers are offering 30+ minute performance.
When the P2 was released with 20 minute flight times, it was a breakthrough.

I understand the concept of technological limits. My point is that they're charging SO much for those batteries. At that price point, I'd hope for at least 45 good minutes of air time.