Hi,
I about reday to invest in a drone and my last reservation between a spark and mavic is the airplane travel situation. Should I be worried about carrying on a mavic with me in my backpack as compared to the spark?  I will be using these for travel mostly and want to make sure i wont be in a bad spot trying to get through security.

Suggestions for better travel drone?


Thanks

no problems with the security ...but i definitly chose Mavic, batterys must be discharged to 30% when you are in an airplane and must be in your louggage with the drone, Mavic props must be in you check-in baggage, you cant carry your blades in your louggage because they are sharp and you can cut someone, those in security assimilate them with knives and they confiscate them.

anyway you must read FAA/IATA rules on how you cand carry Li-Po batterys

IATA Rules about Litium Batterys

I just got rid of the spark this week.and ordered the mpp. I think the dimensions are about the same ( when mp is folded) for traveling, but ofcourse mp has better camera,gimbal, longer range, longer battery power and shooting video ,4k ,2.7k . Spark only 1080p and only 30fps. As i live in europe where its better to shoot footage in 25fps. If you have extra money to dpent, i definately would go for mp.

Mavic props in checked luggage? Never heard about this?
I hve got the p4p , i hve never put the props in the hold bagage , always handluggage never had problems at security. I work in the airline business ad alwys travelled with the full drone gear as cabin bagage. Also previous with spark and they have about the same blades as mp

I've had both the Spark and MP.  Seems like nothing but issues with the Spark and the MP has yet to disappoint.  I did lose 1 Spark, only flew my 2nd about 3x, I feel much more comfortable flying the Mavic.  

The drone itself can go into "Checked" baggage, but unwise. Just put all in your carry on. But the batteries and the controller must be in your carry on.
Discharge the batteries, and cover the contacts with a few strips of black tape to prevent shorting the terminals.

Tealk Posted at 2017-10-26 11:28
no problems with the security ...but i definitly chose Mavic, batterys must be discharged to 30% when you are in an airplane and must be in your louggage with the drone, Mavic props must be in you check-in baggage, you cant carry your blades in your louggage because they are sharp and you can cut someone, those in security assimilate them with knives and they confiscate them.

anyway you must read FAA/IATA rules on how you cand carry Li-Po batterys

I've taken my MP in my carry-on through security in the USA five times with no problems. Batteries discharged and in Li-po pouches and the MP and controller in shell cases. No problem with the props either. TSA x-ray folks apparently see a lot of them.

Spark:

Fun simple drone to fly, agile and can fly in those little spaces that mavic is just a bit too big to fit.

Video out of it is perfect for youtube/instagram and trip style memories - a little bit over saturated by amazing if you don’t want to colour grade it.

Handles well but keep it low and slow, I don’t take it more than 500/600m away from me as its so small you lose sight of it otherwise.

Annoying things I've found, Yaw/panning and video isn’t smooth enough without the 3 axis gimbal. Handles a bit lightly in the wind.

Mavic:

Stable, higher quality video and photos, louder. Generally I have to think more about the shots I'm going to take (colour profile, exposure/ focus etc) but more cinematic shots.

Mavic all the way and don't look back.

Thanks for the answers above. For travelling, learning the regulation of other countries and area will also be significant. You can get the info here: http://www.dji.com/flysafe

If you have the money, go for the Mavic. That's not to say the Spark is a cheap drone, it's very well made when I flew my friend's Spark, but in terms of camera, flight stability, battery, etc., Mavic is more worth it. You shouldn't have a problem with travel for either as they're relatively close in size, especially since the Mavic can fold up.