Todd in Chicago
lvl.4
Flight distance : 513757 ft
United States
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Folks….
I received my Crystal Sky 7.85” monitor which I purchased from Drone Nerds (great, fast service btw) with the official DJI mounting bracket. I was a bit concerned about the bracket and wasn’t sure I would keep it. I’ve heard a lot of people saying it might not be the way to go, so I was a bit hesitant to open that box. The other piece about the bracket is that the mount seems to have really been made for the Mavic because it has a regular size USB connector on it instead of the mini-USB that the Spark controller uses. I figured I could probably get an adapter for it if DJI ever ratifies the use of OTG with the Spark.
In-depth reviews have already been given by some really good folks, so I’ll just add my pros/cons.
PROS:
- Big, BRIGHT, really nice display, it’s a beautiful way to fly! It’s really as good as everyone says it is! I’m so glad I opted for the larger version display, well worth the price difference from the 5.5” version IMHO!
- This screen is so nice, I find myself falling into flying a bit FPV
- I love having a dedicated device, I don’t have to worry about my phone running out of juice, and my phone (Galaxy 6 Edge +, Android) never fit in that well anyway because the RC clamp would sometimes press the home button and poof…there goes my DJI 4
- I can easily review my recordings and flights as the CS includes 2 micro SD slots, just pop in your card and get some popcorn
- Battery life is outstanding, and I can’t imagine using 2 (it comes with 2) – I flew through 4 Spark batteries in 37 Fahrenheit weather, then watched all our videos from those Spark flights on the CS, and then watched my brothers flights from his SD card, and then putzed around a bit the day after and now almost 72 hours later I still have 50% battery left
- The DJI bracket is very solid, and nice piece of Engineering, and you pay for the solidness and Engineering
- No connectivity problems (for me), and I’m connecting via wifi to the RC
- Very solid feeling, the build feels really good and one thing I’ve got to say about DJI, they are not the most inexpensive, but their products do not look or feel inexpensive either. Sometimes you get what you pay for. Additionally, it’s not quite as heavy as I thought it might be which is good
- It’s a controlled hardware platform – I know everyone gives DJI a hard time about their app, but man it’s tough to develop for a LOT of different hardware platforms, and different versions of Android on top of that. That’s what makes the Apple platform so attractive – it’s a locked down platform! There are 3 main variables with mobile apps that come to mind: hardware, operating system, other apps. With the Crystal Sky, DJI was able to control all 3 of those, but it became a little too restrictive to customers who wanted to run other apps on the platform, so now DJI has opened up that variable. But they are still in control of 2 of the 3.
CONS (keep in mind some of these are a bit tongue in cheek):
- This screen is so nice, I find myself falling into flying a bit FPV – lol…I also had this listed under the PROS section – with this big, bright beautiful display I find myself looking at the display and flying a bit like FPV more than I should – several times I had to stop and relocate my drone in the sky, not the best practice, but fun as heck!
- I don’t know if the cable that is integrated into the DJI mounting bracket can be replaced, but I worry about the longevity of that piece and would have preferred the cable to be a separate piece
- Another thing about the DJI bracket, it has the incorrect USB connector for the Spark which leads me to think it was not really developed with the Spark in mind
- Overall cost – make no mistake, this is a luxury item costing more than the Spark itself and don’t forget that you’ll need a bracket of some sort and if you don’t have something other than a Spark or Mavic, a charger as well – the battery life is so good, I think I would have preferred a lower price and only have 1 battery included with the option to buy a second battery as 1 battery will last like 4 or 5 hours, not sure how many people will fly that much (maybe I’m wrong there)
- The charging hub can only be charged with a charger from most of the other DJI products, but NOT the Mavic or Spark, I think that was a little bit of an oversight and maybe DJI didn’t expect Mavic or Spark users to be interested in the CS. This caused me to go “off ranch” with a 3rd party charger which was more reasonably priced
- Even though the screen is great, it’s still highly reflective, I’ve purchased an anti-glare covering and can’t wait to try that out
- I’m concerned about how DJI keeps the platform updated with both the DJI app and Android versions, I don’t need the latest Android version, but in IMHO, the latest greatest version of the DJI GO 4 should premiere on the “known good” platform, the Crystal Sky, for DJI’s premium customers who have shelled out some big bucks for this monitor. The other piece is how long will this platform last before it either fails mechanically or becomes too slow/outdated to run DJI Go 4…..5 years, 6 years….that means you are paying about $100 a year to use it
- Ummm...if you are trying to be stealthy about flying….this is not the way to do it!
- You have to mount the CS upside down for Mavic’s and Sparks, but DJI provides a “flip” screen function which with the latest firmware update now saves, so just a bit weird the controls which are normally on the right hand side are on the left hand side
SUMMARY:
If you can afford the investment, just do it! The Crystal Sky does exactly what DJI intended, it provides the optimum experience for viewing DJI Go 4 and your drone flights. After I ordered mine and the necessary “pieces”, it was over $700 (CS, mount, charger) and I was really questioning and sweating my decision, that’s even quite a bit more than the whole Spark fly more combo. I’m glad I did because this increases my enjoyment level immensely. Although I’ve not loaded any other apps on mine, I’m glad DJI has relaxed the ability to do so. I hope that DJI keeps the platform updated. Also, notice I did say “investment”. I do plan on moving up from my Spark (can I get $300 off a Mavic Platinum fly more combo for Black Friday????) and the Crystal Sky will work, as far as I know, with the entire DJI fleet. Additionally, I found that for me, it was not a big deal to have the monitor mounted below the RC and on the same plane (not above) as the RC. It does take two hands to have a good firm grip, but no worries there. In short, really glad I got it! Now DJI, give us a killer Black Friday deal on a Mavic Pro Platinum fly more kit!
Cheers…
Todd in Chicago
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