I was chatting with a DJI dealer recently and asked him if he could sell me a couple of batteries. He told me he had no more stock and noticed that prices were beginning to slowly go up. I asked him if it was due to exchange rates and he said that was minor. He suspects that what could be causing a price increase is diminishing stocks. According to him, DJI has mentioned that production of batteries for older models will be discontinued in the near future. When this happens, the existing stocks would likely start to cost more.
Of course, there will then probably be more third-party suppliers but personally, I trust only original products, especially mission-critical items like batteries which cannot fail when you are in the air. I would not buy a non-DJI battery for that reason.
In the auto industry, carmakers generally provide replacement parts for at least 10 years after the last production of a model. But I guess in the drone and electronics industry, the rate of change is very much faster - and the volumes are much higher - so the same principle probably can't apply.
It's a disturbing thought for me and though it may mean that I have to get a new drone in future, I might hate doing so. Noe because I have to spend money again but sometimes, like software, what you have has reached a point of being stable and near-perfect and you can really enjoy using it. Getting a new one means going through all the bugs again.
Of course, there will then probably be more third-party suppliers but personally, I trust only original products, especially mission-critical items like batteries which cannot fail when you are in the air. I would not buy a non-DJI battery for that reason.
In the auto industry, carmakers generally provide replacement parts for at least 10 years after the last production of a model. But I guess in the drone and electronics industry, the rate of change is very much faster - and the volumes are much higher - so the same principle probably can't apply.
It's a disturbing thought for me and though it may mean that I have to get a new drone in future, I might hate doing so. Noe because I have to spend money again but sometimes, like software, what you have has reached a point of being stable and near-perfect and you can really enjoy using it. Getting a new one means going through all the bugs again.