Torn on buying a Standard or Advanced... New pilot

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I'm a long time hobbyist landscape photographer who just got a itch to get into aerial photography to spice things up a bit.

I'm looking at buying a phantom as they seem like a solid photography platform, but I really can't figure out if its worth pushing my budget (and angering my wife) to get the P3A or if I should get the nice P3S package on amazon that comes with lots of accessories for much less than the advanced drone alone.

I will be using this mostly for coastal photography, often over water, in very rural areas with little or no wifi interference. With some parabolic reflectors could I get respectable wifi range on a standard in these conditions?

The idea of flying 1-3km with the advanced fascinates me, as I could fly it from my deck at home and explore a lot of coastal coves and islands. Do you need perfect line of sight for Lightbridge to work properly?

Any advice on if I might regret getting the standard instead of going right to the advanced? Thanks for any input.
 
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Hi Skyrim.

I played sensible 4 weeks ago and brought a Standard. Its fantastic, the latest update to the firmware means I can fly out of sight and maintain a video signal.

The photos are great and the video better still IMO, more than good enough for mere mortals.

However, I cant get over a local lake without loosing signal and for this alone I am now looking at the advanced for the extra safety distance.

My advice and if you can afford it, get the advanced. Its black Friday soon ;-)

Good luck and whichever way you go, I don't think you'll be to disappointed.
 
Take it from me, I own a Standard, an Advanced and a Pro. I also have a P4 on it's way. I am well versed in all of them. Because I repair these I know them inside and out or at least I think I do!!. If you have a problem the Advanced and Pro are the easiest to fix. The Standard is a pain in my butt. I never fly it anymore and just keep it because I repair the cameras. Spend the little extra and you will be glad you did.
 
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BTW...Lightbridge has nothing to do with light and very little to do with a bridge. It's just a DJI proprietary protocol for communications between the RC and the P3......:)
 
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The P3A is the most bang for your buck. I don't know of anyone who has bought an Advanced (or Pro) and later said, "I wish I would have bought a Standard instead". But I have seen quite a few people who bought a Standard and wished they had gotten an Advanced or Pro and many who ended up moving up into an A or P.
 
If I had the money id go for the advanced for the range. The 4k camera is ok you wont be missing out much if you got the standard and the 2k camera in my opinion, To me the advanced is more about range.
 
There is a black friday deal for the Phantom 3 4K, but is that just a standard with an upgraded camera?
 
Black friday deals on the Standard, 4k and Pro, ****. Advanced is probably the sweet spot. I assume the pro is overkill if my main goal is still photos?
 
I think it's always a good idea to buy the newest technology if you can afford it - and if you can't afford it, then buy the previous technology. But don't go any further back than that because technology improves too fast and your purchase will be obsolete before you know it.

P4 = newest technology - 2016

P3A = previous technology - 2015
 
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@skyrim56 I had a standard. Loved it until I learned to fly it . what i mean by that is i definitely wanted more distance. So I added an argtek that added about 1000 ft.. I want to be able to go at least 1 mile with decent signal so i boosted my argtek and viola... i got a little over a mile.(flight here) I was happy..then it crashed.. ( wife held on to to it and when she let it go into a tree it went ) . made attempts to repair but ecided to sell for parts .. I upgraded to the advance.... WHOA!!! What a difference. with no mods i ve been able to do almost 2 miles (advanced flight here). so to that I say ,ask yourself , do you really "NEED" to go that far cause a good LOS and can get you at least a 1/2 a mile the camera is still good on the standard. One thing I like about the advanced is I can just swap the camera and upgrade firmware if i ever really needed to upgrade to 4k and I am looking for a good camera in decent working order for under $200
 
I think you should buy a refurbished Phantom 3 Advanced. The refurb units come with a full warranty and they are in better condition than new because the common problems are fixed i.e. cracked shell, gimbal tilt etc
Buy Phantom 3 Advanced (Refurbished Unit) | DJI Store

Interesting thanks. These seem to be a decent deal from Canada as they include duty and taxes. Anyone else had good experiences with refurb?
 
Interesting thanks. These seem to be a decent deal from Canada as they include duty and taxes. Anyone else had good experiences with refurb?
I would buy one, new parts inside at a discount price and if you have a problem its covered under warranty, id pull the trigger on one if you are looking to go that rout.
 
Interesting thanks. These seem to be a decent deal from Canada as they include duty and taxes. Anyone else had good experiences with refurb?

Check out bestbuy.ca, the advanced is currently on sale for $800 until Thursday, might be cheaper this weekend for Black Friday sales.


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots
 
Check out bestbuy.ca, the advanced is currently on sale for $800 until Thursday, might be cheaper this weekend for Black Friday sales.


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

Tried but they are out of stock everywhere.

I just bought the Advanced refurb from DJI direct. Came out to $885 after exchange rate, no taxes or shipping.

Thanks all for the great responses. I think I'll be visiting this forum a lot in the near future.
 

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