Why Did You Buy Your P3P?

[Flipsonic]

Hello all this is my 1st post in this forum. I'm from Northern California (Bay Area) and seriously thinking about pulling the trigger on a P3P. I've never owned a drone before except for those small helicopters from Brookstone. Just flew them inside the house for fun. My reason for wanting to buy a P3P is:
1. I've always wanted to be a pilot but never got serious about it. So this is the next best thing (for me).
2. Made a few movies & montages mainly for the family. I thought this would take it to the next level. We have a family reunion coming up in July and it would be an awesome tool to create another masterpiece.
3. For now it's just a hobby. But if I get really hooked, I may consider using it for a side business (whatever it may be).
4. Just very curious to be able to play with it and enjoy this wonderful piece of technology. My son and I can fly it and would be a great bonding experience (not that we don't bond now).
5. Another good reason to upgrade my TV to 4K. Wait until my wife hears that.

I've been watching many YouTube shorts about this. Each time I finish watching, I get closer & closer to pulling that trigger. I just don't want to find out later that it wasn't all it's cracked out to be and it ends up on a shelf in my garage. First, I thought of just starting out with a P3S. But knowing myself, I will want to upgrade to something better later. So why not get the best one now (under a P4)? I am technically inclined so not afraid of that (not like this is rocket science). What I am afraid of is add more accessories and before you know it, I've sunk my entire 401K savings to it (ha! exaggeration...but you know what I mean).

Anyway, just wanted to hear from noobs like me why you bought your P3. Also, what was your reason for choosing that model?

 

[kenjancef]

My first ever quad was a P2 Non-Vision, only because I had a GoPro and it came with the H4-3D gimbal. I was instantly hooked. I loved that it was easy for a beginner to fly. but also that it could be put into manual mode. In the next few months I put in close to $400 on an FPV setup (tx, rx, antennas, etc..) and it worked well. Then after a few months I actually built my first quad from scratch, a huge 500mm build, but loved it. Since then I've built 2 more racing quads and getting parts in today for a 3rd... lol...

As for getting the P3P... I felt it was time to upgrade, and wanted the ability to shoot 4k when I need to (even though it might not be often), and the Lightbridge for distance flying. I am a photographer so I am hoping to get the P3P into my workflow. I do have my 333 Exemption, but still waiting to see if they remove the "licensed pilot" requirement from the rules.

Still being new to the P3P, other than long-range antenna mods, I'm not sure what other add-ons there are that would cost lots of money, short of batteries and maybe a case/backpack... but I'm sure other experienced users here can answer that better.

If you REALLY want to empty your 401k, try getting into building your own... man-oh-man... there are SO MANY options... lol... but it's so much fun...

Hope this helps...

 

[Wolfiesden]

Reason? Well, the initial reason or "excuse" if you will was to be able to video my Christmas lights display without the neighbor's annoying truck parked in front of my house and not having to stand in the middle of the street.

I have found soooo many other uses for it.

I have used it to show the neighbor (not the annoying one) that his roof had lost shingles in a storm. I used it to monitor work on the roof on my house in Florida as the roofers were working on it. I have used it to shoot video for a website. I have used it to survey a creek before I let the girls swim down it.

As for bonding..sure. Granddaughters, one of their schoolmates, and a neighborhood friend...

Seeing things that you CAN'T see from the ground (this flag on the roof is only visible from the air)...


Getting a different view for vacation photos..


Seeing things you usually only get to see out an airplane window...



Once you buy one. You will find excuse after excuse to go fly it.

 

[dtviewer]

You listed a lot of good reasons (or excuses) to get one. Im sure your son would love it just as much as you would.
I would skip the PStandard and instead look at the Advanced (or Pro if youre really drawn to 4K). I believe the Advanced is the best value for the money right now.
Make sure whichever you choose you leave some room in the budget for an extra battery or two. It really takes the fun away to drive 30 minutes to a cool place to fly and then only have enough battery for one 18 minute flight.

 

[CCDD]

All valid reasons, in fact, it almost makes me want to buy another.

 

[BVC]

P3A or P3P are both solid choices.

P3A if having a hard time justify the added cost for 4k. The faster charger is a nice perk tho.

 

[dtviewer]

P3A or P3P are both solid choices.

P3A if having a hard time justify the added cost for 4k. The faster charger is a nice perk tho.

Good point on the faster charger.

I had originally convinced my self that the only accessories I really needed were extra batteries. Then I found that a carry case (even a cheap $35 backpack off ebay) was a MUST have. Makes a world of difference not only for transport but also for keeping all the drone related stuff together when its at home.

Now, I am thinking the blue charger that keeps getting talked about on here is in my future. It charges 3 batteries at a time I believe.
Oh...almost forgot. Probably will be picking up a hoodman with extension to finally solve the glare on tablet problem.

Then I'll be done....maybe....

 

[RedHotPoker]

In the early days of my Phantom 3 interest a P3A was in the cards. But as I looked further into the interesting details, soon realized, 1080P was already getting old, and high technology moves at the speed of light today. So I opted for the P3P. Plus the video transmission back to the device was much faster on the Professional model. I was mildly concerned about the 4K video playback on my computer, and was quite nervous transferring that first large file over. But it played marvelously, so no worries there.
It's better to be slightly ahead of the curve, than following from behind, & always playing catchup. ;-)
Having bought myself a second 100w charger has been a blessing as well. In having the ability to charge two batteries at a time. (I have 4) or a flight battery and top up the RC...


RedHotPoker

 

[Bigskyflyer]

Hello all this is my 1st post in this forum. I'm from Northern California (Bay Area) and seriously thinking about pulling the trigger on a P3P. I've never owned a drone before except for those small helicopters from Brookstone. Just flew them inside the house for fun. My reason for wanting to buy a P3P is:
1. I've always wanted to be a pilot but never got serious about it. So this is the next best thing (for me).
2. Made a few movies & montages mainly for the family. I thought this would take it to the next level. We have a family reunion coming up in July and it would be an awesome tool to create another masterpiece.
3. For now it's just a hobby. But if I get really hooked, I may consider using it for a side business (whatever it may be).
4. Just very curious to be able to play with it and enjoy this wonderful piece of technology. My son and I can fly it and would be a great bonding experience (not that we don't bond now).
5. Another good reason to upgrade my TV to 4K. Wait until my wife hears that.

I've been watching many YouTube shorts about this. Each time I finish watching, I get closer & closer to pulling that trigger. I just don't want to find out later that it wasn't all it's cracked out to be and it ends up on a shelf in my garage. First, I thought of just starting out with a P3S. But knowing myself, I will want to upgrade to something better later. So why not get the best one now (under a P4)? I am technically inclined so not afraid of that (not like this is rocket science). What I am afraid of is add more accessories and before you know it, I've sunk my entire 401K savings to it (ha! exaggeration...but you know what I mean).

Anyway, just wanted to hear from noobs like me why you bought your P3. Also, what was your reason for choosing that model?

Go for it, you won'the regret it. I bought my P3 pro a year ago just to fly around my house, I live in a rural area in sw montana. The scenery from up their is amazing compared to from the ground. By the way, I am originally from up in Redding and we considered everything south of Sacramento southern CA. Lol.

 

[BVC]

In the early days of my Phantom 3 interest a P3A was in the cards. But as I looked further into the interesting details, soon realized, 1080P was already getting old, and high technology moves at the speed of light today. So I opted for the P3P. Plus the video transmission back to the device was much faster on the Professional model. I was mildly concerned about the 4K video playback on my computer, and was quite nervous transferring that first large file over. But it played marvelously, so no worries there.
It's better to be slightly ahead of the curve, than following from behind, & always playing catchup. ;-)
Having bought myself a second 100w charger has been a blessing as well. In having the ability to charge two batteries at a time. (I have 4) or a flight battery and top up the RC...


RedHotPoker

This is not true. Data doesn't travel any faster.

 

[RedHotPoker]

10~2? No but the amount transferred does though...big difference?
Oh ok. Buy the Standard then, what the heck...
Professional 60 Mbps
Advanced 40 Mbps
Standard not listed
4K 60 Mbps

RedHotPoker

 

[Wolfiesden]

This is not true. Data doesn't travel any faster.

Strictly speaking, no, the data doesn't travel any faster. Approximately the speed of light and thats pretty much it. Unless DJI has figured out sub-space radio.

However there is more of it with P3A and P3P vs P3S.

 

[Wibble]

Good question.
For me it was a childhood vision come true.
I had two visions as a child. To have a globe or map I could see from space and zoom in and in until I could see houses and roads etc - Google Earth!
I also started building R/C models at about 12. I always wished that I could have a camera on there to see where it was going!!!
I bought a p2 V+ which had so many problems. The P3 was such a massive improvement. It never ceases to amaze me just how good it is. Better than I could have hoped for.
Give me a 1hr flight time and a zoom camera I would be in heaven!

 

[BVC]

Strictly speaking, no, the data doesn't travel any faster. Approximately the speed of light and thats pretty much it. Unless DJI has figured out sub-space radio.

However there is more of it with P3A and P3P vs P3S.

It's been noted that so far the data rate (2mbps vs 10mbps) makes no difference. I posted up proof of these findings. No one has yet to post up any evidence that suggests otherwise.

 

[Wolfiesden]

That may be so. The specs say the P3P and P3A have faster data rates. Thats all I have seen, haven't seen your findings/tests. I haven't tested it and don't really care. I don't need high data rates for the screen. All I need is a rough impression of what it sees so I can aim the camera, adjust exposure and not hit anything. Anything else is basically useless to me. The video I care about sits on the uSD card in the bird.

 

[BVC]

The P3a and p3p do have higher quality down link system over the standard, yes.

And foolish to think live feed quality doesn't matter. That's rookie talk right there. But not everyone flies for quality over fun.

 

[TCN Drones]

Case and extra batteries are a must if you are going to transport it anyway other than just out the front door of the house. I got the P3A when it was just released and ordered a hard case and 2 extra batteries. The case fits nicely into the back of my SUV where I have the charger plugged in and can charge while driving from shoot to shoot.
I had flown other smaller quads before and really watched a ton of videos and did reading before the first flight. I bought it for our family to enjoy on our acreage. My two boys were more excited than I was at the unboxing when it arrived.
It has since paid for itself 2x and I developed a side business from it. 1080p is just fine for me and I really did not want 4k and not one person has asked if I can supply 4k.
My 11 year old takes great pictures with it and has even made $$$ taking pictures for people in the area.

Picture below is my 11 year old and I a couple weeks ago testing some carbon fiber props.

Get one you will not regret it!

 

[Flipsonic]

Thanks all for that wealth of knowledge. I pulled the trigger today. I bought a P3P, DJI hard case back pack, and one extra battery (surely I will be buying a few more batteries soon) all for $989 from Amazon. I probably could have gotten a better deal somewhere else but I am ok with this deal. At least I saved close to $300 if I would've bought it all from BestBuy. Best of all, no interest for 12 months. Can't wait to fly it!

 

[RedHotPoker]

The Phantom 3 Pro' is a very Good decision, it's an amazing piece of technological marvelosity. Hahaha
Mine has been nothing short of fantastic, and had never once demonstrated any negative behavior or unexpected flight characteristics. I keep my firmware updated and always do a cold IMU and Gimbal calibration right after. Once you have done a proper Compass calibration, you won't have to worry about that again, unless you fly in another area that is more than 200 kilometers away. After you do your three calibrations, check the MOD values and see what is normal for you. Always see looking at those values as part of your preflight checkup. ;-)

The manual and helpful videos are right there in the app, so is the onboard SIM. They are useful, and be sure to become familiar with them.

Have fun, fly safe happy landing.

RedHotPoker

 

[With The Birds]

Having enjoyed both photography and flying RC helis for many years a quad seemed a very logical choice.

I chose the phantom to see if it really was for me before buying an inspire (same remote layout and app).