Hey guys,

I just wanted to ask your experiences using the Mavic Air 2, specifically its OA and AT features. I'm planning to get another drone in the future as a more capable companion or upgrade to the mavic mini I already have, and just wanted to know how good the OA and AT in the Air 2 is, which are key features not seen in the mini series. Also, will the OA in the Air 2 be sufficient for most applications, or do you guys recommend getting a Mavic 2 Pro or Zoom?

At this point I wouldn't buy a M2P,  Id wait for the 3.   I love my M2P but one thing I do usually have to do is turn off OA as bright sun will confuse it and its too much stress.  

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 01:02
At this point I wouldn't buy a M2P,  Id wait for the 3.   I love my M2P but one thing I do usually have to do is turn off OA as bright sun will confuse it and its too much stress.

Oh I see, are the sensors IR based? If so yeah I guess the sun will surely mess that up and use will be very limited then. Ultrasonic sensors would be nice solution against sunlight but it can be quite noisy I heard, don't know if DJI plans to introduce a newer technology for OA.

ranrick Posted at 3-8 02:37
Oh I see, are the sensors IR based? If so yeah I guess the sun will surely mess that up and use will be very limited then. Ultrasonic sensors would be nice solution against sunlight but it can be quite noisy I heard, don't know if DJI plans to introduce a newer technology for OA.

On the M2P they are cameras but bright sun can trigger them which in turns stops the drone dead.

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 02:44
On the M2P they are cameras but bright sun can trigger them which in turns stops the drone dead.

I see. Yeah that would still be a big issue. Are there options to turn off the sensors on specific angles of the drone? Like can you turn off the camera sensor on top of the drone that handles avoidance for objects above it, or is it all or nothing?

I bought the Air 2 for the AT feature. I started riding my MTB again and I wanted footage. This video I'm linking, I shot on Saturday from my road riding. I've linked it to the start of the riding. This is only the 3rd or 4th time I've used it for real vs. just testing. The conditions were optimal. No telephone wires, barely any trees, and some light posts. It was a 3/4 mile strip. You'd think this was a walk in the park. It's not. AT is super finicky. It only FOLLOWS, it doesn't shoot from the side (even though there is a parallel option), and is incredibly hard to get it to shoot from the front. I had to stop several times over 2 passes to get this footage from it not being able to navigate around a light post or tree. The dynamic nature of this shot is only achieved because I'm controlling the drone via the controller while tracking. If I left it alone, you'd only see my back. AT is definitely the future and a highly desirable feature. The Air 2 though is only marginally good at it. I'm actually re-looking at the Skydio 2.

ranrick Posted at 3-8 02:49
I see. Yeah that would still be a big issue. Are there options to turn off the sensors on specific angles of the drone? Like can you turn off the camera sensor on top of the drone that handles avoidance for objects above it, or is it all or nothing?

All or nothing,  for the most part when high up its not really needed.    Its only if your lower where there are obstacles it becomes a concern.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 03:29
I bought the Air 2 for the AT feature. I started riding my MTB again and I wanted footage. This video I'm linking, I shot on Saturday from my road riding. I've linked it to the start of the riding. This is only the 3rd or 4th time I've used it for real vs. just testing. The conditions were optimal. No telephone wires, barely any trees, and some light posts. It was a 3/4 mile strip. You'd think this was a walk in the park. It's not. AT is super finicky. It only FOLLOWS, it doesn't shoot from the side (even though there is a parallel option), and is incredibly hard to get it to shoot from the front. I had to stop several times over 2 passes to get this footage from it not being able to navigate around a light post or tree. The dynamic nature of this shot is only achieved because I'm controlling the drone via the controller while tracking. If I left it alone, you'd only see my back. AT is definitely the future and a highly desirable feature. The Air 2 though is only marginally good at it. I'm actually re-looking at the Skydio 2. Active Track in ideal conditions

Curious, AT on my M2P will do the side view and will 360 around as well as long as youre not going to fast.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 03:29
I bought the Air 2 for the AT feature. I started riding my MTB again and I wanted footage. This video I'm linking, I shot on Saturday from my road riding. I've linked it to the start of the riding. This is only the 3rd or 4th time I've used it for real vs. just testing. The conditions were optimal. No telephone wires, barely any trees, and some light posts. It was a 3/4 mile strip. You'd think this was a walk in the park. It's not. AT is super finicky. It only FOLLOWS, it doesn't shoot from the side (even though there is a parallel option), and is incredibly hard to get it to shoot from the front. I had to stop several times over 2 passes to get this footage from it not being able to navigate around a light post or tree. The dynamic nature of this shot is only achieved because I'm controlling the drone via the controller while tracking. If I left it alone, you'd only see my back. AT is definitely the future and a highly desirable feature. The Air 2 though is only marginally good at it. I'm actually re-looking at the Skydio 2. Active Track in ideal conditions

Woah nice video btw!

I see. Yeah the capabilities of AT for the Air 2 at this point I guess are quite limited then. Still needs some tweaking and upgrades to the software to be more versatile for use it seems.

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 03:32
All or nothing,  for the most part when high up its not really needed.    Its only if your lower where there are obstacles it becomes a concern.

Yeah I guess that's true, never really needed it for my mini when flying high and clear of obstacles, but I'm using the mini merely for sight seeing and photography of the landscape. Planning to get a drone for other purposes and be more versatile like to track me while I'm hiking up a mountain for example and kinda need the OA to make sure it doesn't hit trees or the side of the mountain something like that while it's following me.

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 03:32
All or nothing,  for the most part when high up its not really needed.    Its only if your lower where there are obstacles it becomes a concern.

But yeah, probably good to wait for the next generation and see what dji has to offer next I guess. Who knows, something more capable may be on the horizon.

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 03:33
Curious, AT on my M2P will do the side view and will 360 around as well as long as youre not going to fast.

Maybe because the Air 2 lacks sensors on the sides and top I think? So Dji doesn't enable it to fly sideways or 360 by default or automatically unlike the M2P mabye?

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 03:33
Curious, AT on my M2P will do the side view and will 360 around as well as long as youre not going to fast.

I have documented my tests on my channel. Parallel turns of OA and therefore its use is extremely limited for me and my region, but I did get to try it once and it really didn't do it very well. It was more of a 45-degree angle. For front-facing, forgettabout it. Not if you are doing anything more than walking. It will stay there for a few seconds, then wrap around.

So, like you, I'm curious how you are getting the various views. You talk about being slow enough. For me, on my bike, the slowest I can go is probably about 6-7mph and my normal speed for tracking I'd try to stay about 10mph so as not to overwhelm it. I'd love to know the secret!

I've linked to my best test video. The parallel is @ 2:21.

ranrick Posted at 3-8 05:30
Maybe because the Air 2 lacks sensors on the sides and top I think? So Dji doesn't enable it to fly sideways or 360 by default or automatically unlike the M2P mabye?

Active Track doesn't use sensors. It's 100% visual. The sensors are for avoidance. Because there is no side sensor, it means the Parallel mode tracking turns off ALL sensors, which only makes partial sense. Partial because it can track at (I think) 20mph+ in that mode whereas the normal mode is restricted to something around 16mph.

If you've ever seen Skydio footage, it's a really wild ride. Too much really. But it gets all kinds of angles and from all accounts, if you use the Beacon, it's going to refind you when it loses you. And it does get lost. The follow mode in the Air 2 is very restrictive. You can only have it not too close, not too far, not too high. It's a bit painful. But, as you can see in my video, if you can practice (of which I've had very little), you can get some cool results.

ranrick Posted at 3-8 05:30
Maybe because the Air 2 lacks sensors on the sides and top I think? So Dji doesn't enable it to fly sideways or 360 by default or automatically unlike the M2P mabye?

Here is the other part of the video from another post. It shows the various positions you can track in.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 07:34
I have documented my tests on my channel. Parallel turns of OA and therefore its use is extremely limited for me and my region, but I did get to try it once and it really didn't do it very well. It was more of a 45-degree angle. For front-facing, forgettabout it. Not if you are doing anything more than walking. It will stay there for a few seconds, then wrap around.

So, like you, I'm curious how you are getting the various views. You talk about being slow enough. For me, on my bike, the slowest I can go is probably about 6-7mph and my normal speed for tracking I'd try to stay about 10mph so as not to overwhelm it. I'd love to know the secret!

This was my first go with,  the difference for one is a larger target.  BTW thats a strange bike.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 07:44
Here is the other part of the video from another post. It shows the various positions you can track in.

Active Tracking Positions

Thank you for your insights and observations, will take it into account and study the product further!

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 03:32
All or nothing,  for the most part when high up its not really needed.    Its only if your lower where there are obstacles it becomes a concern.

True, except you can't go up TOO high, otherwise, it says no-no. That was my problem on the bay stretch. I tried to set it to clear those trees and posts from the start. it complained it was too far away! I think you can get it somewhere around 35 feet high before it gets sketchy and complains. You can see from the Sept. 20 video I posted, that just barely clears those light posts!

ranrick Posted at 3-8 05:24
Yeah I guess that's true, never really needed it for my mini when flying high and clear of obstacles, but I'm using the mini merely for sight seeing and photography of the landscape. Planning to get a drone for other purposes and be more versatile like to track me while I'm hiking up a mountain for example and kinda need the OA to make sure it doesn't hit trees or the side of the mountain something like that while it's following me.

Walking is very different from biking. I'll have to see if I publicly posted any walking stuff, but at that pace, 2-4mph, it can track from the front and side. And if you're walking, you have the controller in your hand and you can do more stuff. I have almost none of those luxuries riding a bike. It needs to just work. I have 8 things to look at while I'm riding and up in the sky isn't one of them! The point being, my experience is going to be vastly different now that you're talking about walking.

Since we're talking about Active Track and bikes, I have one more video that should be of interest. In order to know it's tracking me and not hung up on an obstacle or lost me, I needed a way to see the screen. I found a mount to fit on the bike that holds the controller. It's a lifesaver!  Check it out!

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 07:46
This was my first go with,  the difference for one is a larger target.  BTW thats a strange bike.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-yY0YGvUOM

Well, my bike may be strange but at least I drive on the right side of the road, haha. You're right, you have a much bigger target and your conditions were excellent. A nice dark road with a bright car. Very contrasty and easy to follow. It's clear that we have 3 different conditions between us. Car, biking, walking. Therefore the answer needs to take that into account. I didn't even think about another viewpoint on my first post as I'm very much in the biking world and I see a lot of following on bikes.

As for the bike, you can even buy it in your part of the world. We have riders all over the world. The point of the bike is to 1) simulate running and 2) get rid of the hurt that's put on your bum. Can I ride it everywhere? Definitely. We've had people ride it from top to bottom in the UK. Across Austrailia, and just a couple of months ago a woman rode it 5,000 miles over a few months just to spell the word, KINDNESS!

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 08:47
Well, my bike may be strange but at least I drive on the right side of the road, haha. You're right, you have a much bigger target and your conditions were excellent. A nice dark road with a bright car. Very contrasty and easy to follow. It's clear that we have 3 different conditions between us. Car, biking, walking. Therefore the answer needs to take that into account. I didn't even think about another viewpoint on my first post as I'm very much in the biking world and I see a lot of following on bikes.

As for the bike, you can even buy it in your part of the world. We have riders all over the world. The point of the bike is to 1) simulate running and 2) get rid of the hurt that's put on your bum. Can I ride it everywhere? Definitely. We've had people ride it from top to bottom in the UK. Across Austrailia, and just a couple of months ago a woman rode it 5,000 miles over a few months just to spell the word, KINDNESS!

I think the bike looks very cool,  do they do battery assist models too?

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 09:02
I think the bike looks very cool,  do they do battery assist models too?

That's coming next. They also sell more conventional type bike without a seat. I have their MTB version.  To keep the thread on topic, here is what that looks like while being tracked.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 07:52
Walking is very different from biking. I'll have to see if I publicly posted any walking stuff, but at that pace, 2-4mph, it can track from the front and side. And if you're walking, you have the controller in your hand and you can do more stuff. I have almost none of those luxuries riding a bike. It needs to just work. I have 8 things to look at while I'm riding and up in the sky isn't one of them! The point being, my experience is going to be vastly different now that you're talking about walking.

Well yeah that's true. The scenario will be quite different. Though I do plan to take the drone out to track me on biking tracks too so your videos and insights should still help for those scenarios.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 07:55
Since we're talking about Active Track and bikes, I have one more video that should be of interest. In order to know it's tracking me and not hung up on an obstacle or lost me, I needed a way to see the screen. I found a mount to fit on the bike that holds the controller. It's a lifesaver!  Check it out!

Drone Mount for Bike

And oh yeah, I've been searching for controller bike mounts for a while now too. Planning to use them when I have AT capable drones soon but currently just wanted to have something to hold the controller while I sit on my bike. Since I bring the mini with me when I go on my bike rides around the city and deploy it to capture different areas of the city. Thanks for the showing me that.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 09:40
That's coming next. They also sell more conventional type bike without a seat. I have their MTB version.  To keep the thread on topic, here is what that looks like while being tracked.

MSUB Active Tracking

Some of that tracking looked OK.  Cool place to ride too.

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 10:11
Some of that tracking looked OK.  Cool place to ride too.

It did BUT, did you notice it was all behind me? That's because I can't have the controller on the bike to give any input. The controller is in my backpack. The only way I know it's working is because I can hear it. There are no dynamic angles. Just a simple follow. It's totally better than nothing but I wish I could have a few more angles when off-road.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 10:16
It did BUT, did you notice it was all behind me? That's because I can't have the controller on the bike to give any input. The controller is in my backpack. The only way I know it's working is because I can hear it. There are no dynamic angles. Just a simple follow. It's totally better than nothing but I wish I could have a few more angles when off-road.

Have you thought about a handlebar mount like this - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Flycoo2 ... lebar/dp/B08DFW14DC

DAFlys Posted at 3-8 10:58
Have you thought about a handlebar mount like this - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Flycoo2-Remote-Control-Bicycle-Handlebar/dp/B08DFW14DC

You didn't see my earlier post with a video review of a mount like that.    Scroll up a few posts.

I use that for road biking but NOT off-road. It would never survive the bouncing.

InsaneDiego Posted at 3-8 12:25
You didn't see my earlier post with a video review of a mount like that.    Scroll up a few posts.

I use that for road biking but NOT off-road. It would never survive the bouncing.

Sorry somehow I missed that completely.