Phantom 4 for $1150, better deal than H?

[Dragonflyerthom]

The H definitely has more of a wow factor. The Phantom series look like toys. Best to keep them at altitude and launch from somewhere private to avoid open laughter

Wow is a very good way to put it in the design of the DJI phantom series has been beaten to death. Everyone is copying that Design. I have an AUtel XStar premium basically it's a copy of the Phantom three pro. And they did a very good job of copying it. Only thing not on this the XStar premium is obstacle avoidance.

 

[Ted]

These are directly out of the camera, shot soft and a bit underexposed intentionally. Obviously some of this is trash but there are several useful clips in here. Both shot using Litchi waypoints on a P4. Waypoints allow me to set the camera path. While moving I only have to worry about controlling speed along the cable, yaw, and gimbal tilt. Do remember the TH is limited to 11MPH in CCC, so it would have to be flown manually for these shots due to the speed.

My point is just don't disqualify the P4 based on the lack of a 360 degree gimbal pan. It isn't necessary when the aircraft can yaw that same 360 degrees.

Nicely done JMK.

Watch 1:14 - 1:48. I don't think a P4 could do that.

I don't trust the OA systems from Yuneec at all really and I do everything with the sticks manually. Have not used smart mode once and never tried the cable thing on my H (too slow).

 

[RiverRunner]

I can see merit in this point if you're willing to put your faith in the OA systems. Personally I trust none of them at this point. Run them at a chain link fence, power line, or tree branch with no leaves and you will most likely by crying "fly away" on the forum shortly after

Course lock works fine for me in the way I described. Never tried home lock on DJI. I have yet to be in a situation where I feel it would offer any benefit, same as smart mode on the H.

When the RealSense module is released, I'll be very keen to test it out. Maybe it can achieve the vision resolution needed to reliably navigate. I did see in a recent demo video that the H equipped with RealSense will yaw automatically to keep the vision system facing forward. Currently my H isn't smart enough to do that when in follow me mode.

It is yet to be seen how well these OA systems work, hitting something while flying backwards is a pretty common error.
Looking at course lock/home lock on the new Phantoms, I do see that they have changed the way it works. Now course lock orientation has to be set in the air after launch rather than using the compass heading at launch.
On the older Phantoms without a screen app, home lock was a great tool for steering the bird home when it was too far away to see its orientation.

 

[jmkreege]

Nicely done JMK.

Watch 1:14 - 1:48. I don't think a P4 could do that.

I don't trust the OA systems from Yuneec at all really and I do everything with the sticks manually. Have not used smart mode once and never tried the cable thing on my H (too slow).

Thanks!

That shot from 1:14-48could be accomplished with the P4 using waypoints. If you attempted to fly that route manually, it would be incredibly difficult to achieve smooth motion without the 360 gimball pan of the H or Inspire. My personal preference is not to free-fly this type of shot if I'm trying to hit certain marks. I do still manually control the aircraft yaw and gimbal tilt because you can't achieve smooth accuracy otherwise on DJI hardware. The H actually seems to do a better job with automated gimbal control but admittedly I haven't given given it a fair shot yet to know for sure.

I don't consider myself in either the DJI or Yuneec camp. Owning a mixture of both, I think I can give fair feedback on the comparison. I do have high hopes still for the H with a little firmware polishing and a better charger.

If you run with dual operators, the 360 gimbal can be great. I'm really waiting on the next Inspire version hoping it has a fixed FPV camera for the pilot while the cam operator is free to look about.

 

[Dragonflyerthom]

JMK just admit you like to fly and it probably doesn't matter what you like to fly. I know I enjoy remote control and i also enjoy the kind you can sit in and land.

 

[Ted]

Thanks!

That shot from 1:14-48could be accomplished with the P4 using waypoints. If you attempted to fly that route manually, it would be incredibly difficult to achieve smooth motion without the 360 gimball pan of the H or Inspire. My personal preference is not to free-fly this type of shot if I'm trying to hit certain marks. I do still manually control the aircraft yaw and gimbal tilt because you can't achieve smooth accuracy otherwise on DJI hardware. The H actually seems to do a better job with automated gimbal control but admittedly I haven't given given it a fair shot yet to know for sure.

I don't consider myself in either the DJI or Yuneec camp. Owning a mixture of both, I think I can give fair feedback on the comparison. I do have high hopes still for the H with a little firmware polishing and a better charger.

If you run with dual operators, the 360 gimbal can be great. I'm really waiting on the next Inspire version hoping it has a fixed FPV camera for the pilot while the cam operator is free to look about.

I shot that single operator.

The logical next step for me is an Inspire 1 v2 with the X5. That fixed FPV idea is a winner. You must have the drone fairly close when attempting these types of shots as you can't use your screen for orientation really. You need to see both the drone and the screen. Having the FPV cam just for the pilot would be ideal.

I've only been at the sticks of a quad since last December, so less than a year. I have maybe 150 hours in so far. Have not taken the plunge with a DJI product yet, but the Inspire1 v2, especially after the recent price cuts, is very attractive.