I'd love a better camera on the Phantom 3, but already have one on my other UAV.

The VPS system for my uses is worthless. After having to turn off VPS for the months that DJI couldn't get it to work right, it's not a feature I need.

A P4 as a sport quad? Why would a want that when I can build a 250 racer for a lot less? The Phantom has never been a sporty kind of unit.

I like the idea of the avoidance system, however that comes at the cost of geo fencing and DJI flight restricted areas. My preflight check list has me entering my RTH altitude. It gets set for 75 meters as I don't have anything around me requiring more height than that.

The new gimbal looks nice. how crash resistant it's going  to be is yet to be tested. The 120fps video recording is good. The 12mp for stills, not so great.

If I presently didn't have a P3P or my Align,I might have given the P4 a look. However having purchased my P3P directly from DJI, that won't be happening.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-4 16:54
Different lens with 8 elements.
The Phantom 4 camera has been improved in terms of image quality.  ...

Does that mean that the P3P's camera is capable of 120fps with a firmware update?

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-4 16:55
The Phantom 4 features dual compass modules and dual Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) that allow  ...

So how does this manifest in flight? What exactly does it mean and would we notice anything different in flight? Thanks.

gregg1r Posted at 2016-3-5 01:37
I'd love a better camera on the Phantom 3, but already have one on my other UAV.

The VPS system fo ...

With all the new features on the P4, personally I think it's a awesome aircraft.
And although the camera is still 12mp, it has greatly improved photos/video.
An aspherical lens with a 94° field of view (FOV) reduces distortion by 36% and chromatic aberration by 56% when compared to a Phantom 3. A hyperfocal length of one meter allows you to get closer to objects while keeping them in pin-sharp focus.

Tintin Posted at 2016-3-5 02:13
So how does this manifest in flight? What exactly does it mean and would we notice anything differ ...

For what's noticable, I guess it equates to more precise flying and better positioning

I have a question for you I am in canada yesterday i try a fly and my guimbal will not respond and i got a message that says you should consider a repair. What should i do

mrGREEK360 Posted at 2016-3-3 13:16
Im not envious, i got my phantom 3 pro tuesday and knew the p4 is coming out. I ended up spending  ...

The first 10 words of his post,  says is all !!!!

Im not envious, i got my phantom 3 pro tuesday

Well P4 is all good but how about DJI fix the bugs for the P3 first... I got my P3P 4 months ago... Updated to 1.5 from 1.4 and got insane amount of gimbal vibrations.. I tested a flight indoors after the upgrade so there was no wind etc....
Downgraded back to 1.4 but still have the vibration which i NEVER had before....
Also i have a tilted horizon issue like many others out there.. You can tell me to re-flash fw, calibrate IMU, compass etc all you want, i''ve done it all many times yet the problem has not gone away.
Seems fishy that DJI "brought" in these problems shortly before releasing a new Phantom!

WHY DOESNT DJI ADDRESS THESE ISSUES?

Redundancy, dual IMU's and compass's

If the reports of P4 crashes and flyaways drops significantly, it might be a good feature and something I would like....IF I continue in the hobby given all the hysteria and rapidly decreasing flying places as local governments add their restrictions on top of the FAA's and the Geo fencing systems.

OTOH, if the crashes and flyaways continue or increase with the P4......it could spell big trouble.    We wont know for about 6 - 8 months.

I've never understood why someone finds the need to take the initiative to publicly decline something.  It's like me calling all my friends and telling them that I'm not going to try the new Doritos.  I'm sure they may be interested in this in the right setting, but.....

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-3 11:07
Better camera features, incredible clarity and crisp photos and videos.
Redundancy, dual IMU's and c ...

Hi DJI-Ken,

Is there anyway you could upload some more stills?

Flyin'Bryan Posted at 2016-3-7 23:19
Great...Dual IMU's ., so now when I need to calibrate the IMU, it'll take 40 minutes instead of 20 ...

I did the cold IMU process and startup time from powering on the P4 until  Safe to Fly (GPS) literally took under 20 seconds.

Cessna172 Posted at 2016-3-7 23:25
Redundancy, dual IMU's and compass's

If the reports of P4 crashes and flyaways drops significantly, ...

Show me one P3 that was a flyaway, I do not know of a single case of a flyaway that didn't have something to do with user error.

Just ordered a P3adv. The price difference did it for me. And the fact that I already have an I1. I personally think we are going to see more crashed with the P4. People actually think there's nothing to it flying this bird. Curious what will happen if they actually have to take control when something goes wrong ?

FlyGuy Posted at 2016-3-8 01:02
Just ordered a P3adv. The price difference did it for me. And the fact that I already have an I1. I  ...

I foresee crashes from new users flying in Sport mode. There's no avoidance in Sport mode and it flies like a wild banshee.
Users who only fly in GPS mode and get scared when it goes into ATTI and cannot control the drift will have an issue in Sport mode.
Although GPS works in Sport mode, I highly advise for anyone who's not fully experienced to fly sport mode ONLY in a huge field. The speed is very fast and the controls are very sensitive.
In GPS mode the angle of the aircraft only goes about 15 degrees, but Sport mode gives you just about 45 degree angle.

leanlinao Posted at 2016-3-3 18:55
To be honest the camera isnt much different and without zoom in the 4k is not in its potential

I may be wrong but I don't remember a movie or documentary with aerial images being zoomed while recording : the quad itself is the zoom.
When I bought the P3P back in April, it was for taking picture. But the quality is so bad that I turned to video (I didn't take more than 20 pictures since I have my P3).
I'm not sure of course but I hope the P4 will be far better with its new lens.

Redundancy is a great safety feature. And even if I'll almost never use obstacles avoidance (because I always plan my flights in deep detail - at the time I takeoff I know exactly the path, height, camera tilt for all the flight phases), I'm sure the P4 will be really better than the P3.  

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-7 09:13
I foresee crashes from new users flying in Sport mode. There's no avoidance in Sport mode and it f ...

Yeah I think we will see this also.


Dave

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-4 18:18
Here's a photo straight from the camera I took yesterday when playing around. It was too exciting  ...

Seems better than the P3 but bottom corners are still a pixel soup ! And the noise is still too much visible. What are the picture values ? (ISO and shutter speed)

Why am I not buying a P4!
I'm sure it has new more powerful processors and a new firmware.
The P4 has a lot of advantages over the competition but mainly for distance and speed
If you are looking to get a drone then I'm sure the p4 would be the one to go for, but...

1. The firmware has yet been tested by people out there - I await to see if there are no forum posts saying my P4 crashed, dropped out of the sky or flew away
2. Top half looks new, but the landing gear looks if it's come from the P3, no real improvement, no real 360 degree shooting
3. Sports mode, if think a bit of a gimmick, if a wanted a racing drone I'd buy a Storm racing drone
4. Tap to Fly, another gimmick, the fun for me is flying, tap to fly takes that away as you can auto start, tap to fly, then return to home without doing a lot. May as well make a cup of coffee and sit down!
5. I'm old and fat and have no use for visual tracking.

I think owning a P3P it will be better to skip this version and wait to see what 2017 or 2018 brings.

CFM01 Posted at 2016-3-8 04:10
Why am I not buying a P4!
I'm sure it has new more powerful processors and a new firmware.
The P4 ha ...

At least take the time to look through the FAQ's.
To you the Sports mode Active Track TapFly may be a gimmick, but to others it's exactly what they want.
besides that, the obstacle avoidance is HUGE.
I think a huge part of crashes is due to pilot error and not setting the RTH altitude for their flight environment and the aircraft ends up losing signal behind a building or something and it crashes on it's way home.
Now with avoidance, that will no happen anymore.

I had a P3P and loved it, it was my first big boy drone.   But the more I read about the 4 the more I wanted one.    I was lucky and got most of my P3P money I spent (still trying to sell 1 battery with 2 flights on ebay).   

But I am happy with my decision now I can try the latest and greatest in Phantom series.   For me with getting most of my money back was a nobrainer.  Only thing bad is I don't have a drone right now.   There are 1 or 2 I also have my eye on that might make it into my fleet.

My favorite feature P3 and P4 have is lightbridge.  Being on a farm with lots of fields to go over..... it is a lot of fun being able to make it long distances.   So far no one has been able to compete with lightbridge.  So DJI still has a huge advantage I think as far as people getting a new drone.

4StateFlyer Posted at 2016-3-9 05:59
I had a P3P and loved it, it was my first big boy drone.   But the more I read about the 4 the more  ...

True, I don't think for the price of the Phantom series you will find anything RTF out there that has the range and quality at Lightbridge.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-4 02:34
As with anything brand new it's possible something may arise, but I got my P3 Pro a year ago and h ...

Have no interest at this time but I'll let the dust settle along with the pricing structure, just as it's done already for the P3 line up. The P3Pro is already $259 less than it was less than 2 months ago so this will happen with the P4 in due time as well. I'm the type guy that waits for a Box Office hit to make it on Blu-ray instead of rushing to the theatre so I can wait this one out too. I hope to learn from my past mistakes instead of just repeating them.

Hard pass here
1. P3A/P3P is enough for anyone that uses common sense when flying
2. IF you own a P2 then the P4 is an upgrade
3. No retractable landing gear (360 camera, thermal imaging)
4. I have 3 batteries for the P3, not compatible with p4
5. Who cares about computer tracking and avoidance (its not perfected yet)
6. If you own a p3 i would wait for the p5, unless you are wealthy and having money to burn.

Flyin'Bryan Posted at 2016-3-8 00:30
You act like someone's forcing you to read people's posts.  They aren't.  Kindly move along.

No, I'm not being forced to read anyone's posts, even when I feel compelled to do so, lol.   I'm simply making an observation.  I get up every morning and read the whole internet.  I see this a lot.

bobasbury Posted at 2016-3-9 05:44
No, I'm not being forced to read anyone's posts, even when I feel compelled to do so, lol.   I'm s ...

Don't respond to him.  Flyin' Bunion is this forum's over-zealous, self-appointed, anti-spam enforcer.  He thinks he's being 'edgy'.

Well, I have one major reason not to buy a P4, it's called $$$$. Since I am retired and on a fixed income there's just no reason at all to go out and buy one. My P3A is just fine and does exactly what I want it to do. Now if I had not bought my P3A a few months ago and didn't have anything to fly, the P4 would be on my list to buy.

flormo2002@yaho Posted at 2016-3-8 21:40
Have no interest at this time but I'll let the dust settle along with the pricing structure, just  ...

Oh, I see.
I won't pay $9.00 to see a movie, that I can buy for $20.00

kjmarsola@gmail Posted at 2016-3-9 21:57
Oh, I see.
I won't pay $9.00 to see a movie, that I can buy for $20.00

Actually, I rent Blu-rays from Netflix then make an illegal copy for my own personal viewing.

Flyin'Bryan Posted at 2016-3-9 22:14
I theory yes, but if youre gonna go to the movies, ya gotta do it right.
Movie $9
Popcorn $3.50

The movie theatre analogy was probably the wrong one to use but you get my point. In reality I'm not a rich man but if I had additional money to spend on hobbies than I do now, I would probably get the P4 with no hesitation but not before I bought a new Indian Chief to go along with my Harley Road King. Sometimes it just comes down to priorities

TapFly and Active Follow were implemented by Vertical Studio (working in P3P as far as i can test, i don't have the other variants)

Flyin'Bryan Posted at 2016-3-9 08:18
What I do 'think ' is that too many of you on here are overly sensitive to nonsense.
Ligten up a b ...

Well, I must admit that I didn't expect this kind of response.  Thank you for that.

The reason I posted as I did was mostly because of some of your past remarks that were not easily misunderstood.  But I must ask, who among us is truly in a position to determine what is really nonsense and what isn't?

Anyway, no harm, no foul.

Happy flying, Brian.

Flyin'Bryan Posted at 2016-3-9 21:17
I dont think im being anything. Thats just how I am. :-)

You can say that again.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-3 14:27
I can imagine you'll hear nothing but amazement on how crisp and clear the photos and videos are, a ...

DJI!!  Hire this guy as your sales rep. Im sold!   ;)

kowssarie Posted at 2016-3-10 22:43
DJI!!  Hire this guy as your sales rep. Im sold!   ;)

The P4 will sell itself, it's not going to need any help. I just know that whomever flies a P4 is going to want one FOR SURE ! ! !

While I have as much need for object avoidance, object tracking and tap fly as I have for a self driving 993 gt2, there are a couple of things that sold me on the phantom 4. The first being a motor attachment that utilizes the top and bottom of the shell in conjunction with each other. Plastic quality aside, not only is this a far stronger motor attachment, it has the added benefit of drastically reducing any workload left to the top and bottom retention screws. The second being, not just the added speed, but DJI touting it as well. While I've never crashed a phantom, 1, 2 and 3, I've cracked them all. But this time they aren't going to ask me if I flew it fast. Also, the extra speeds will come in handy on 120 meter high, long distance flights over ocean. 100% of my flying. So I ordered one. Let's see how it flies and holds up after high speed flying. On paper alone, it should.

Flyin'Bryan Posted at 2016-3-10 02:00
I have a good attitude in life, and I like everybody.  I'm just a smart ass, but that's just my se ...

It's hard to tell how someone is delivering a TEXT message.  Tongue in cheek, sarcastic, demure, etc.

I have no doubt that if all of us were in a room talking eye-to-eye, we'd get along amazingly well!  We're all successful, smart people with something in common.  Why couldn't we?

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-3-4 11:54
Different lens with 8 elements.
The Phantom 4 camera has been improved in terms of image quality.  ...

Isn't the P3P and P3A camera angle 94 degrees?   If so, wouldn't reducing that to 47 degrees enlarge the image somewhat?   I'm assuming the lens focuses on a smaller center section of the sensor. (That's almost a tongue twister)
The smaller APC sensors on DSLR's increase magnification over full frame lenses, would that effect be the same with the new camera.

raveneapoe Posted at 2016-3-12 19:33
Isn't the P3P and P3A camera angle 94 degrees?   If so, wouldn't reducing that to 47 degrees enlar ...

The P4 camera is still 94 degree FOV.
It has an 8 element lens and here's some info from the FAQ's page.
The Phantom 4 camera has been improved in terms of image quality. Chromatic aberration has been reduced by 56% and lens distortion had been reduced by 36% compared to Phantom 3 Professional. In addition to lens improvements, camera firmware has been tweaked to enable the camera to capture 120fps video in full 1080p FHD (the camera’s field of view will be reconfigured to 47° when recording in this mode) for smooth slow motion.

At the end of the day, there is only one reason and don't take this wrong because it's perfectly legit:

1) $

If it wasn't for that, you would buy it if you liked the color better. So the real reason is at this point that you feel the price isn't worth the upgrade which is totally fine.  I'll make a wager that you change your mind. I know because I've seen one in action and I am patiently waiting for mine to fly and the bird alone is worth the extra money to me.