Spring, time to fly (again)

[SparkyUrs]

I have to confess, I'm not loyal to my ol' Sparky anymore...[emoji25][emoji25][emoji107][emoji107] reading all the positive things about the Mini2 I couldn't resist to buy the combo, bec the Mini2 has a lot of what I'm missing more n more on the Spark: batterie endurance, linkdistance contr-drone, 4K... i still like my Spark n will keep it for limited tasks, but I'm in love with the Mini2, although it has no obstacle detection (which u can 'override' with its incredible longrange transmission with ocusync).
Anyway, here's another short vid on my themes series "small lakes" in Switzerland.
Taken with the Mini2 and edited with Magix.

https://www.mycloud.ch/s/S00A1F18C7361870945F1DF504B50A2FCE16FE6C421

 

[Chrislaf]

I have to confess, I'm not loyal to my ol' Sparky anymore...[emoji25][emoji25][emoji107][emoji107] reading all the positive things about the Mini2 I couldn't resist to buy the combo, bec the Mini2 has a lot of what I'm missing more n more on the Spark: batterie endurance, linkdistance contr-drone, 4K... i still like my Spark n will keep it for limited tasks, but I'm in love with the Mini2, although it has no obstacle detection (which u can 'override' with its incredible longrange transmission with ocusync).
Anyway, here's another short vid on my themes series "small lakes" in Switzerland.
Taken with the Mini2 and edited with Magix.

https://www.mycloud.ch/s/S00A1F18C7361870945F1DF504B50A2FCE16FE6C421

Nicely done! Beautiful scenery to fly in. Enjoyed watching!

Chris

 

[MiragePro]

Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. I have forsaken Sparky for the past year, and yesterday I sold him into slavery to a new master in Guam. I have cheated on him by favoring my Mavic Pro, Mavic Air, and my GoPro Karma. For penance I will say 10 hail DJI's. Sad to see him go, but I think he will enjoy his new adventures.

 

[twickers14]

Very nice vid and love the music, a little bit Harry Potter? I don’t have a problem with “lack of battery time”. I just make sure I have my 4 fully charged and whizz her back when running low for a quick change.

 

[Chrislaf]

@MiragePro, I completely understand. I just had to retire 2 batteries due to swelling, now only have 2 working ones and with price and difficulty of finding replacement batteries, it’s easy to see why people are selling their Sparks and upgrading. Have even considered doing so myself, but with travel being curtailed due to the pandemic, my reasons to upgrade have been too. However, if I lived in an area like the OP, I would probably want to upgrade much sooner!

Chris

 

[Roland]

Everyone makes his own choice according his own needs.
I mostly don’t use obstacle detection either as it keeps the speed too low.
About flight time , 30’ is only important if you are planning a long flight. It was a question for my license : never start a flight if your battery isn’t fully charged. I never would take a drone ( even my MP )in the air if the battery isn’t fully charged .
In practice 12 minutes is enough for most of my needs.
About video quality , if there is enough light, tres bien .
About range , in the beginning I really kicked on this . My max distance 2500 m. ( FCC mode)But when do one really need this ?
I think a mini 2 is a very good drone and now the FCC mod tricks are no more available a good replacement for a spark.
But it is not a bulletproof tank and has a fragile gimbal mechanism and is limited in software .
For me it is not a replacement for a spark running on Litchi .
And having a larger drone too for playing if I have plenty of time, it may easy to say all this.
Just my 2 cents

 

[twickers14]

@MiragePro, I completely understand. I just had to retire 2 batteries due to swelling, now only have 2 working ones and with price and difficulty of finding replacement batteries, it’s easy to see why people are selling their Sparks and upgrading. Have even considered doing so myself, but with travel being curtailed due to the pandemic, my reasons to upgrade have been too. However, if I lived in an area like the OP, I would probably want to upgrade much sooner!

Chris

Totally agree. What with the pandemic and our weather here it is nigh on impossible to get any flying in. Happy to have my Spark here ready to go although an upgrade is on the cards when we can get abroad again.

 

[Chrislaf]

Keeping my Spark flying is a lot cheaper than buying a new drone even if I have to pay more for batteries.

A year ago I bought 2 new batteries for CAN$64 each. @RotorWash recently gave me a link to an eBay auction for a new battery for US$69 plus shipping. This is a lot more than I paid a year ago but is also a lot cheaper than some of the prices I have been seeing. I probably will go ahead and get the battery from the auction.

The Mini 2 looks like a great upgrade to the Spark when the time comes and judging by the OPs video above, it takes excellent quality video . Today, I had my Spark up in windy/gusty conditions. I got a couple of wind warnings and AirData reported a max gust speed of 45.4km/h - not sure if a Mini 2 could handle that seeing how light it is.

Chris