Hi, I want to buy Mavic 2 pro and found out i would also need fly more kit, landing pad, memory card and the care refresh. But i have never owned/used a drone before, so i dont know if i will regret spending about 1980 euro (2200 usd) on it as i have no idea if i will find it fun to use or not. as most of you here have experience with drones and might have been in the same situation as me once, do you have any tips/know if i most likely will find it worth the money?
(I'm pretty much always at home so it might actually make me go outside and do stuff) :p

I used to love photography a few years ago, so i dont really want a drone with worse camera either even its cheaper.

Hello and good day LightningDark. Welcome to DJI Forum and thanks for reaching out. I amd sure that our valued DJI co pilots and DJI members will be able to provide you the best feedback you may need to decide if you would like to purchase the DJI Mavic 2 Pro. Some of our DJI co pilots uses there drone for business like aerial surveying and aerial photography. In addition owning a drone, you will be able to explore different places with different aerial views. For reference I will be posting a link where in you can find the overview, the specifications and the frequently asked questions for the DJI Mavic 2 series drones. Thank you for your continued support.

https://www.dji.com/mavic-2?site=brandsite&from=nav

Highly recommend it but if budget is a concern then look at the Mavic Air to start out.

A J Posted at 8-19 11:11
Highly recommend it but if budget is a concern then look at the Mavic Air to start out.

Thanks for the reply, I can afford it. but i just got interested in drones a few days ago (spent 12+ hours on youtube videos) but if i end up not using it then the money wasted will really hurt.

Hi there.
Good question.
Buy only what you 'need'.
But what do you need?

I spend a lot of time figuring this out.
But it is a hard thing to figure out.
Mainly because you can't find that out until you have used it and know if you will use it again (and again and again).
Camera wise, I would suggest you check the dji phantom 4 advanced (it is almost the same as the Phantom 4  Pro but much cheaper.
That still outperforms the Mavic 2 Pro if you ask a lot of reviewers (not that I believe all of them ) and from what I have seen it is a little bit better indeed.
But portability might be an issue (I'm not sure how you feel about that)

But the M2P (Mavic 2 Pro) is also a great camera and will give you decent quality.
(remember, it has a plastic lens and not a super large sensor, so it won't match your DSLR )

And for the 'need' part. No, you probably won't need it.
But yes, you will probably have a lot of fun flying it and capturing the world from a different perspective.
If that is worth all that money is up to you of course!
I bought a second hand Mavic Pro (not as good a camera, but I use it mainly for video and AEB stacked HDR photo's and it does that job well) so you might try to find a 2nd hand one if that is available and try if you like the concept of flying a drone. I see fly more combo's (Mavic Pro) for around € 500,- here in NL second hand.
And for the accessoiries . I would skip all of them and only buy them when you really need them.
- I have a landing pad, but never use it really (there is usually a place to start from, and landing on your hand is not that hard)- I have ND filters, but rarely use them. (only good for video, but I also do photography, my opinion)
- I have a sun hood, but never use it (one more thing you need to put on before you can fly)
- I would reconsider Care refresh. Why? If you are careful, you probably won't do damage to your drone.
If you are not careful, you should probably not buy a drone in the first place
And if you use it, it will still cost money to 'refresh', so in effect you have already paid for 1/4th of a new drone probably when you do)
But that is just my opinion of course!

One last thing : Make sure you are allowed to fly in most of the place you want to fly, because regulations can be quite strict (and will change in the EU soon).

Good luck with the choice!

LightningDark Posted at 8-19 11:15
Thanks for the reply, I can afford it. but i just got interested in drones a few days ago (spent 12+ hours on youtube videos) but if i end up not using it then the money wasted will really hurt.

Check out flight locations in your area - if you have to drive for hours to fly it then you will probably get bored or use it as a holiday camera - if you have nearby areas where you can fly then you'll be more inclined to take it out more often. I've been flying drones for three years now and have covered nearly 2,000 miles in that time in several hundred flight hours with 11 different DJI drones from the Spark to the Inspire - it's quite addictive and great fun but a lot of money if you're not going to get much use out of it.

It will certainly make you go out, it’s really the only place you can use it, lol .
Is it worth it, I think first it’s almost 1 year old so I expect to see a drop in price pretty soon maybe €100/€150 , and if this is the case, yes it’s very much worth it.
As a consumer drone it’s by far the best drone on the market from a point of view of flying safely ease of use noise level flight time, this and Mavic zoom are exceptional.
As a flying Camera it carries a 1 inch sensor which for me anyways it has the best camera of all dji drones with 1 inch sensors.
As a general piece of camera tech it has heaps to offer, footage and photos will depend on the photographers, I have seen some terrible footage from inspire top of the range xs7 camera and some great footage from dji spark camera, M2 has everything you need to shoot great photos and great footage and unless your thinking of buying an inspire then this is the next best drone dji have .

By far and away the best drone I’ve had. Mavic Pro was phenomenal at the time, Mavic in some respects built on that but being honest it wasn’t as good in many ways. The Mav Pro 2 is like best of both but in every way just better. Blow he budget. Part of me wishes I’d not wasted money on the Air really.  

I was in your shoes once and the way it worked out for me was that my first drone was the DJI Spark, which is an awesome, ir not the best, first starter drone that will give you a preview of what to expect with all the other DJI consumer drones. The Spark has a two axis gimbal but compensates for the 3rd axis by using digital stabilization and it works remarkably well. The drone is not difficult to learn how to use, it is super small and portable, but most of all it is super affordable and you can spend a fraction on it as compared to the Mavic 2 Pro, which can do more than the Spark and really well too but I appreciated my start from the Spark to the Mavic Pro to the Mavic 2 Zoom. At $399 for the Spark with the controller I'd buy it and fly it for a month if you love it then quickly buy the Mavic 2 Pro and you won't regret it. If you don't like or think the Spark is something you're interested in spending time flying and recording things are you by flying to them then all it cost you was $399 but you have a really fun device that may take up dust in your camera that someone close to you can always decide to play with?

All the other drones do not provide the photo colors better than the M2P.  Long-distance sharpness, the P4PV2.0 is better but if the shutter speed is too slow the M2P wins as it's more steady in the air therefore at Night the M2P is the best.  Elitecaptures7.com for my pictures for examples.

If you have the money and like photography, you cannot find better than the M2P.  I have to constantly edit M2Z and P4 photos to make the colors better but can't do it as quick as the M2P.  Everyone else verifies the colors are vivid with the M2P than the rest too.

Montfrooij Posted at 8-19 11:15
Hi there.
Good question.
Buy only what you 'need'.

So theres no point in buying any of the extra stuff at first? (not even the fly more kit for extra propellers, batteries and a bag to have it in as i don't have anything to carry it in)

I´m not 100% sure about the refresh care, but as i have watched some drone crash videos on youtube then it kinda seems like a good idea to have one. but I'm 100% sure that i need a memory card and a card reader for my desktop. But i think you are right that the landing pad might be a waste of money even its cheap. most other sites just said its a good idea to have so it don't get stuck in grass/get dust inside of it.

I dont like the size/look of the phantom 4 advanced and they cost about the same in Norway. (and i guess magic 2 is more quiet wich is good if i want to take it for a short trip around my house on a day with bad weather) :p

I don't know much about cameras (except how to use them) so plastic lens or not doesn't tell me much. But i have a canon eos 40d if i want to take photography on the ground. I won't buy nd filters either unless i end up going out of the house often to use the drone.

i checked a Norwegian map with fly zones, but i don't exactly understand what everything means. i can see the red circle right around the airport where it says no flying drones, but theres another red circle above/around that one again where I'm not sure if i can fly or not.

@AJ i should be able to fly here except in the resident area and maybe the border to the airplane that might be near me. But I should be able to fly most places around me as there are mostly trees/farms and  2-3 small lakes very close to me if i walk for 5-20 minutes into the forest. so there might not be a lot if interesting things to take photos of right here.

@shadydealer yeah, i don't want to spend money on a little cheaper drone if i end up buying another one later anyway

I might order the drone after work tomorrow as they just got a few more drones into their storage (and prob won't take long before they are sold out) But i have to find out if the fly more kit is worth it at first for bag/batteries/propellers or if i should just buy the drone without it at first even i can't fly for long once i try it then.

AntDX316 Posted at 8-19 15:40
All the other drones do not provide the photo colors better than the M2P.  Long-distance sharpness, the P4PV2.0 is better but if the shutter speed is too slow the M2P wins as it's more steady in the air therefore at Night the M2P is the best.  Elitecaptures7.com for my pictures for examples.

If you have the money and like photography, you cannot find better than the M2P.  I have to constantly edit M2Z and P4 photos to make the colors better but can't do it as quick as the M2P.  Everyone else verifies the colors are vivid with the M2P than the rest too.

I thought about the zoom for a while too, but i don't think i really need the zoom feature over quality/colors when i can fly closer to the object anyway with the pro.

LightningDark Posted at 8-19 15:52
I thought about the zoom for a while too, but i don't think i really need the zoom feature over quality/colors when i can fly closer to the object anyway with the pro.

Yeah, you only need the zoom if you want to have fun in the air but if you want to take snapshots then the M2P is better.  You can do a 48MP SuperPano with the M2Z and it looks very similar to the M2P, slightly sharper too but it takes a lot longer to take the shots.

I would suggest the Smart Controller though so you can actually see on framing your shots.  When it's Sunny outside, the phone lowers the brightness significantly to the point of making it very difficult to see.  It makes it more fun to fly.  Turn auto on the photo in Lightroom then adjust it and you should be good or keep it the same and mess with HDR toning in Photoshop.  You can leave everything as it is but it's not As good as messing w/ it in those 2 programs.

Buy a custom signature for your name at https://photologo.co/ then drop it in the bottom right in PSD and you are good to go.  I use Adobe Portfolio and Google Domains to have my own website and e-mail address.  It makes you look more Professional when dealing w/ clients.  It's how people hired me.  They saw my website.

Do not export in JPG, only PNG otherwise you get color banding.  Turn transparency off and preserve details on the export.  The file size has to be under 50MB to upload it though but take into consideration that some people would be viewing it from a mobile device so resizing it down to 10MB or less would be better.  From what I've found, if you lower it at the export it's not as quality as 100% then using Microsoft Paint to save it under 10MB.  Sometimes the file size could be too big that MSPaint wouldn't read it and you would need to lower the export to 75% or less.  Basically you edit with MSPaint, scale it down to say 30% then press ctrl+s, look at the bottom left to see how much the file size is and if it's at your desired file size then you are good if not hit ctrl+z to do it again.

LightningDark Posted at 8-19 15:49
So theres no point in buying any of the extra stuff at first? (not even the fly more kit for extra propellers, batteries and a bag to have it in as i don't have anything to carry it in)

I´m not 100% sure about the refresh care, but as i have watched some drone crash videos on youtube then it kinda seems like a good idea to have one. but I'm 100% sure that i need a memory card and a card reader for my desktop. But i think you are right that the landing pad might be a waste of money even its cheap. most other sites just said its a good idea to have so it don't get stuck in grass/get dust inside of it.

The fly more kit is useful, since that allows you to fly a lot longer (3 batteries), but you can always buy that later. (I have one).
You should read up on the Norwegian rules about where you are allowed to fly in general.
And if there is enough to fly where you are allowed.

Montfrooij Posted at 8-19 22:12
The fly more kit is useful, since that allows you to fly a lot longer (3 batteries), but you can always buy that later. (I have one).
You should read up on the Norwegian rules about where you are allowed to fly in general.
And if there is enough to fly where you are allowed.

Yep, it seems like its good to have,  but im starting to think its better to buy it later incase i dont enjoy/use the drone. Then it might not feel as bad that i wasted money on something thats not getting used.

Montfrooij Posted at 8-19 22:12
The fly more kit is useful, since that allows you to fly a lot longer (3 batteries), but you can always buy that later. (I have one).
You should read up on the Norwegian rules about where you are allowed to fly in general.
And if there is enough to fly where you are allowed.

Yep, it seems like its good to have,  but im starting to think its better to buy it later incase i dont enjoy/use the drone. Then it might not feel as bad that i wasted money on something thats not getting used.

LightningDark Posted at 8-19 22:59
Yep, it seems like its good to have,  but im starting to think its better to buy it later incase i dont enjoy/use the drone. Then it might not feel as bad that i wasted money on something thats not getting used.

Yes, that is usually the best way.
Not for DJI
But the Fly more kit is something you can easily purchase later now that it is a separate product (before with the Mavic Pro, you had to buy a bundle)
Have fun with the decision!

A J Posted at 8-19 11:11
Highly recommend it but if budget is a concern then look at the Mavic Air to start out.

Or maybe a Spark.  Some people have reported them being discounted lately.

DAFlys Posted at 8-20 00:04
Or maybe a Spark.  Some people have reported them being discounted lately.

I wouldn't recommend the Spark.

You need to get an e-bike to make the droning worth while.  Also, a backpack for it because it takes forever to walk around.  With an e-bike you can go many many miles w/o even breaking One sweat.  Even setting up a composition with a few feet can make a difference.

AntDX316 Posted at 8-20 01:39
You need to get an e-bike to make the droning worth while.  Also, a backpack for it because it takes forever to walk around.  With an e-bike you can go many many miles w/o even breaking One sweat.  Even setting up a composition with a few feet can make a difference.

Thanks for the tips. I will mostly drive around to find nice locations and walk the rest od the way if i cant drive all the way up to it.

I probably wont make a portfolio/website etc as i want one for fun and had no thoughts about trying to get hired from it (wich is probably time consuming too) :p

LightningDark Posted at 8-20 02:05
Thanks for the tips. I will mostly drive around to find nice locations and walk the rest od the way if i cant drive all the way up to it.

I probably wont make a portfolio/website etc as i want one for fun and had no thoughts about trying to get hired from it (wich is probably time consuming too) :p

I have to turn the Auto feature with Lightroom On for the Photo to make it better.  A lot of good details come out.  I cannot edit it as good as Auto does.

I have never used lightroom before actually, even i had media and communication as education when i went to high school a few years ago. I do have experience with photoshop and adobe premiere tho (will take a while to remember most of it) But lightroom seems interesting to use.

I also looked at the website you posted AntDX and you have some very nice pictures!

My current plan is to "just" buy the drone at first to see if it will be used a lot or not (and care fresh because it costs a lot) And then buy the fly more kit after a few weeks if i enjoy using it. But ofc when i told my mom that I'm thinking about buying a drone (still live at home) then she thinks its a complete waste of money as i "never" go out of the house (i prefer gaming)... I didn't even mention the price which made me become unsure.

i have a few more questions too:
is it fun to use the drone in the winter/can it handle a little more than -10c? (i live in Norway so it can become quite cold here)
how strict are "no flying 150 meters near buildings etc"? like can i fly around my neighborhood if i don't feel like going somewhere else to fly without problems as long as i don't fly up to peoples porch/yard?
does it get boring to fly around farms/forest after a short amount of time or does it keep being fun for you?
it says don't fly after dark. whats the chance of being "caught" doing it if i want a picture of a football field for example.
have you heard about people regretting to spend money on a drone as they didn't get into the hobby/enjoy using it?
is it loud? or is it impossible to hear the drone if it is 50-100 meters above me?