So, my first drone was a lava red spark. I enjoyed the drone a lot. I had nearly zero issues with it and was able to fly it consistently over the water surrounding my town. However, I found a great deal on a Mavic Pro and decided to upgrade for three reasons - more battery, better view in the DJI goggles and occusync for range. I live about .9 miles by air from the mouth of the Atlantic by Inlet and the Spark with Wi-Fi would not really make it out that far likely due to interference from all the homes and signals. I am looking for any pointers and tips from anyone that flies both a spark and mavic pro and anything I should watch out for in my first few (close to home) test flights with a mavic pro.

Thanks.

Update: Thanks for the tips and info to all who replied. So, I flew my new bird for about 75% of a full battery charge. I used beginner mode for a good bit of it. Here are my thoughts compared to the Spark. The two drones are way different. nothing against the Spark, it is a great little drone. However, the MP truly lives up to the hype.

--Air Speed, Ascension and forward travel. Wow, I was in normal mode and man this thing is a rocket ship in comparison to the Spark.
-- Battery - holy cow. This thing flies forever on a charge.
-- Wind resistance. I live off the water and very close <1 mile to the Atlantic Ocean. It is almost always breezy here. Yesterday was low breeze, the MP was perfection in the air.
-- Connection/Stability - Again Holy cow. Occysunc is the bees knees. I am sure the MA has a nice solid connection, but the Spark would stutter and felt a little skecthy even at close range. The MP, ROCK SOLID frame and connection to my iPhone X. I went out only 1500 feet in my test flights, but it was stunning how solid it connected to both the remote and DJI GO.

TL;DR - If your a Spark owner looking for more battery, range and solid connection....Look no further than the Mavic PRO. This drone in my opinion is easier to fly than a spark and just oozes quality. I hate to say this, but the MP makes the Spark feel like a really nice toy.

Bonus: I was able to upgrade from Spark to Mavic Pro for less than $200, which is mind boggling considering the difference in the two products. The MP is a keeper. I do not see myself ever selling this drone, but who knows. Perhaps the MAVIC Pro 2 will have those killer features we all just have to have, but the original MP is gonna be a real tough drone to top.

You have made a good choice and Welcome to the Pro family. The Pro is a very good stable drone but like the spark prone to give issues if not used correctly. Although it is a very stable and reliable drone with redundancy on compass, imu you would need to take care. This drone is much faster then a spark and can easily fly into something. I suggest you start your practice in Beginner mode and after a few days of solid flying go into normal. Before you try any distance flying build confidence in your machine and then do some distances but a little at a time.  Also do not play with sport mode immediately  until you get a feel of how the drone moves

I also went from a Spark to a MPP and haven't looked back.  So far I have had zero problems with the MPP.  Enjoy your new drone.

Some very good advice above. Have fun and fly safe.

Suren Posted at 2018-5-10 07:34
You have made a good choice and Welcome to the Pro family. The Pro is a very good stable drone but like the spark prone to give issues if not used correctly. Although it is a very stable and reliable drone with redundancy on compass, imu you would need to take care. This drone is much faster then a spark and can easily fly into something. I suggest you start your practice in Beginner mode and after a few days of solid flying go into normal. Before you try any distance flying build confidence in your machine and then do some distances but a little at a time.  Also do not play with sport mode immediately  until you get a feel of how the drone moves

Spot on advice there mate.
The MP's air speed and range/signal quality make the Mavic and Spark night and day - always small steps. It's like trading in a Mini for a BMW 4-series

Thank you all for the excellent feedback. Looking forward to getting my new bird in the air, building up some in close flight time and then flying up to the beaches and enjoying nature from the camera in the sky.

Excellent choice, you'll be amazed by this drone,  safe flying.

One great tip, don't forget to focus!!!

Watch plenty of the online videos on YouTube.  I did that from day 1 with my MP, and still do.  So many hints and lessons for great picture taking such as tripod and quick shots.  MP is shares space with my P3S, but worlds apart on the picture quality.  Very stable flying bird.  Hope you enjoy!!

Watch out when in Profile or follow modes - NO COLLISION avoidance!... I've eaten trees already because of it.

Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us! We're glad to see you have found the proper one.