Just curious ................

1-  The Phantom 4 is being dropped and there will now be a Phantom 4 Advanced AND Phantom 4 Pro

2-  Unless I am missing something, DJI will continue to offer the Phantom 3 - Phantom 3 Pro - Phantom 3 Advanced - Phantom 3 4K  ............ why? How has the Phantom 3 line survived so well???

Aloha tvl,

     It is also curious to me.  Where did DJI say that they are discontinuing the P4?  If they have not said they will discontinue the P4, why would people think they were going to discontinue the P4?  As far as I know, the P4 Series will continue intact.  Each P4 in the Series has a market niche and each niche has value for DJI sales.  Unless DJI says they will discontinue the P4, I would not put very much stock in the suggestion by others that they might discontinue the P4.

     Even the P3 series has not been completely discontinued.  The P3P and P3A have been discontinued but not left unsupported.  (Even the P2 is still supported.)  DJI implies that the P3P and P3A are still sold in some countries.  The P3 Standard is still sold in the US, although the P3 4K does not appear to be sold anywhere anymore but it is still supported.  I am sure the P3 Standard will be discontinued in countries when the stock runs out but it will still be supported like the other P3s.

     The P4 uses DJI GO 4, the same app as the rest of the P4 Series.  The P4 is also $1200 new.  If you look at the numbers, DJI usually does not discontinue a high performance product (a Phantom) until the price gets well below $1000.

     This is the second time I have heard this mentioned in a thread.  Where did this idea come from?  It does not make any sense.

Aloha and Drone On!

I believe the P3 4K was dropped a while back...

The P4 is now listed as 'out of stock' on the DJI UK website, although still listed on the US website. I also notice for the first time that a UK national retailer (John Lewis) is stocking the P4 for the first time. And only the P3 Standard showing on both sites and retailer. So P3 Pro and P3 Advanced have disappeared, and they might be winding down stock on the P4. Although the camera on the P4 Pro & Advanced is very good, the camera on the P4 can still produce excellent results (So keep P4 as more 'entry level', or as a product does it compete too much with the newer models ? ).
No doubt we will have all the answers very soon.

The P4 itself hasn't been 'dropped'. In regards to the P3 Series, they are discontinued manufacturing wise but they are still supported via after-sales. DJI will continue to support their products for as long as parts are still available.

DJI-Jamie Posted at 2017-4-14 15:46
The P4 itself hasn't been 'dropped'. In regards to the P3 Series, they are discontinued manufacturing wise but they are still supported via after-sales. DJI will continue to support their products for as long as parts are still available.

Well I bought my P3S as my learner drone and having fun with it.  It's done 123 flights and 121 miles covered so am happy with it.  Got it end of January 2017

blackcrusader Posted at 2017-4-14 16:13
Well I bought my P3S as my learner drone and having fun with it.  It's done 123 flights and 121 miles covered so am happy with it.  Got it end of January 2017

I'm glad to hear you're having fun with it.

"2-  Unless I am missing something, DJI will continue to offer the Phantom 3 - Phantom 3 Pro - Phantom 3 Advanced - Phantom 3 4K  ............ why? How has the Phantom 3 line survived so well???"

That's the part you're missing.
Except for the Standard, the P3 line was discontinued a few months back.

DJI-Jamie Posted at 2017-4-14 15:46
The P4 itself hasn't been 'dropped'. In regards to the P3 Series, they are discontinued manufacturing wise but they are still supported via after-sales. DJI will continue to support their products for as long as parts are still available.

DJI-Jamie,

Several sites I have visited in the past 24 hours are indicating the following:

"With the announcement of the Phantom 4 Advanced, the original Phantom 4 is being phased out on April 30th, 2017. But DJI is promising that it will continue to provide support to owners of the Phantom 4"

To me, phased out and dropped are the same. If this is indeed a true statement, I'm simply curious as to how the Phantom 3 series survived so long and the Phantom 4 is already on the chopping block?? Are/were there some issues with the P4 Std model that caused such an early demise?

tvl Posted at 2017-4-14 18:33
DJI-Jamie,

Several sites I have visited in the past 24 hours are indicating the following:

" I'm simply curious as to how the Phantom 3 series survived so long and the Phantom 4 is already on the chopping block?? Are/were there some issues with the P4 Std model that caused such an early demise?"

It's not the demise of the P4, it has simply been improved and called a P4A to distinguish it from the earlier models.

Labroides Posted at 2017-4-14 22:21
" I'm simply curious as to how the Phantom 3 series survived so long and the Phantom 4 is already on the chopping block?? Are/were there some issues with the P4 Std model that caused such an early demise?"

It's not the demise of the P4, it has simply been improved and called a P4A to distinguish it from the earlier models.

I guess what I'm trying to say is this:

1- For quite a long while there were 4 different P3 models to choose from. For the most part, it seemed DJI wanted to offer something to suit the price range of their prospective customers. Each model offered something extra with the "STD" being their stripped down version.

2- I would have assumed that with the introduction of the P4 Advanced, the P4 would still have remained in the product lineup. This too would have given customers choices similar to the P3 lineup, with the P4 being their stripped down version.

3- I have read where the controllers between the P4 and P4 Advanced are not interchangeable. I'm also assuming there are other changes/improvements that make the two models even more dissimilar.

I don't wish to get bashed by my posting, but I'm still baffled as to why the P4 was removed from the product lineup so quickly. I'm sure DJI will not care to respond, but were there issues surrounding the P4 that led them to this decision .......................... maybe not, but I'm still somewhat baffled.

I do hope this makes sense!

tvl Posted at 2017-4-15 07:12
I guess what I'm trying to say is this:

1- For quite a long while there were 4 different P3 models to choose from. For the most part, it seemed DJI wanted to offer something to suit the price range of their prospective customers. Each model offered something extra with the "STD" being their stripped down version.

"3- I have read where the controllers between the P4 and P4 Advanced are not interchangeable. I'm also assuming there are other changes/improvements that make the two models even more dissimilar."

You read wrong.
The P4A controller is not compatible with the P4 pro
But it is compatible with the P4 and P3 Adv and Pro.

It still looks like they just upgraded the base model P4 and called it a P4 Advanced.

It's technology that keeps advancing and it makes sense for DJI to rationalise the number of models they are selling by removing those that are superceded by similar models.

Labroides Posted at 2017-4-15 21:51
You read wrong.

Labroides, this is where I got my information regarding the controller:

http://www.dji.com/phantom-4-adv/info

2. What aircraft in the Phantom 4 series are compatible with the Phantom 4 Advanced remote controller？

Currently, the Phantom 4 Advanced controller is not compatible with other Phantom 4 Series aircraft.


Regarding my query, you also stated: "It still looks like they just upgraded the base model P4 and called it a P4 Advanced."  
What I've attempted to convey in my post, was that up until recently, there have been four P3 models to choose from ..........  enough bells & whistles between each model to give the customer what they truly wanted, OR in may cases, what they did NOT want to pay additional cash for. Doing away with the P4, has taken away an option in the P4 series. Now, there will be no stripped down version or basic craft which can save some folks some serious cash. This is what makes no sense to me, unless there were "other" reasons for the P4's removal from the product lineup.

In any case, my query was simply out of curiosity and had me somewhat baffled since this is a move that is much different from than that of the past. But, whatever the reason, it is what it is!

tvl Posted at 2017-4-16 09:50
Labroides, this is where I got my information regarding the controller:

http://www.dji.com/phantom-4-adv/info

Having numerous options in a Phantom series wasn't a consistent trend. I wouldn't use that as a basis for what is expected to be in production at one given time. The original Phantom series only had two units in its line up (Phantom 1, FC40), the Phantom 2 series had three (P2, Vision, Vision +) The Phantom 3 series had the most variations available with four (Pro, Advanced, Standard, 4K).

When the P2V+ came out, the P2V also got phased out manufacturing-wise quite quickly. While the P2V and P2V+ had the same camera quality, the P2V+ offered a 3-axis gimbal and extended range which were becoming the new standard. The same thing can be said for the P4 and the P4A. They offer the same type amount of OA sensors and VPS, but the quality of those sensors have been improved along with a better camera. Once there's a new 'standard' established, most electronic companies aren't willing to keep using older variations of hardware if they want to keep up or stay ahead of competition.

In addition, there were only a finite amount of RTF series aircrafts that DJI offered in general up until this point. The RTF product line only consisted of the Phantoms (P1-P3) and the Inspire 1 for a good while. Ever since the P4 came out, DJI has come out with new product series in general that will provide price point options. They don't necessarily need to have four different products under one series in future iterations.

Again, stopping 'manufacture' does not mean stopping 'support'. The P3 series was discontinued once the P4 came out, the P3 series looks like they're still 'going strong' because there are still plenty of dealers that have them for sale and the repair facilities have plenty of parts to continue repairing them. The P4, in turn, is still available to purchase on the DJI website and through dealers. It will continue to receive aftersales support for a long time, as there are still ample parts to repair.

DJI-Jamie Posted at 2017-4-17 07:03
Having numerous options in a Phantom series wasn't a consistent trend. I wouldn't use that as a basis for what is expected to be in production at one given time. The original Phantom series only had two units in its line up (Phantom 1, FC40), the Phantom 2 series had three (P2, Vision, Vision +) The Phantom 3 series had the most variations available with four (Pro, Advanced, Standard, 4K).

When the P2V+ came out, the P2V also got phased out manufacturing-wise quite quickly. While the P2V and P2V+ had the same camera quality, the P2V+ offered a 3-axis gimbal and extended range which were becoming the new standard. The same thing can be said for the P4 and the P4A. They offer the same type amount of OA sensors and VPS, but the quality of those sensors have been improved along with a better camera. Once there's a new 'standard' established, most electronic companies aren't willing to keep using older variations of hardware if they want to keep up or stay ahead of competition.

Thanks for the follow-up! I really do appreciate it.