DJI Phantom 3 Standard Quadcopter Drone with 2.7K HD Video Camera

THE GOOD: To anyone thinking the Standard is substandard - LOL - I own one and love it. It is the perfect drone for a first time pilot, and I know several experienced pilots who buy the Standard as back up drones. The main limitation of the Standard is that the range it can fly is about half of the higher up models, and it uses fewer GPS signals and has no downward looking visual "eye" like the advanced and pro, so it will drift more up down and sideways (but not a whole lot) and not land quite as accurately at the take off point automatically. I give mine a 15 foot radius for safety in landings and sometimes it will land 10-12 feet from take-off point on auto-land. Advanced and Pro stay within 2-6 feet usually. The controller is more limited with older technology. BUT the standard flies just as fast, and as high, takes just as good video and pics and is just as much fun as the $1000 models for 1/3 the price. In the beginning you always want to fly within line of sight (Standard's limitations keeps you there) and legally you are ALWAYS supposed to fly line of sight.THE BAD: DJI leads a new user to believe all the built in guidance system will do everything for you from takeoff to landing. And it will, until it doesn't. That WILL happen, not an IF - it is a WHEN... You have 3 sensitive components talking to each other (controller / drone / smartphone) using both Wi-Fi and radio, plus very sensitive onboard compass and GPS. This overly complicated plumbing will fail at some point and it can happen even a few feet away. At that point, you need to switch to manual control immediately - and hope you have time. I have had compass errors happen 3 feet off the ground in auto land and the dreaded "crazy flying meat slicer with 4 exposed blades" needed to be grabbed by the landing gear to stop it from hitting things as it got confused and would not respond to the controller. BTW: A pair of chef's slice proof gloves is a great idea at take offs and landings, don't ask how I know.RULE NUMBER ONE: Always be prepared for the unexpected! Like flying a private plane the phrase "hours of calm punctuated with seconds of panic" applies here. Best advice for new pilots - learn to do everything manually first - especially landing - because at some point you will need that skill and need it FAST! Also never ignore the long boring preflight compass calibration. I do it every time I set up for flight, but my terrain is always varied from flight to flight. DJI says it isn’t necessary unless you move the unit over 100 miles – or change terrain dramatically, which I do almost every session, from lake, to desert, to high mountains. I like calibrating because not only does it re calibrate your compass - more importantly - it warns you if there are magnetic disturbances. If there are anomalies showing in the software messages - my advice is pack it up and move elsewhere, or fly totally on manual control. Ignore any of those warning at your own risk. Compass or GPS warnings for a new pilot mean WAIT or RELOCATE.SAFETY: Never forget how dangerous these machines are. 3 pounds with spinning blades plummeting from 400 feet is a deadly weapon. Don't fly over people or roads. Warn folks nearby to be aware of the drone. A drone, under the right set of circumstances with a simple malfunction could kill a pet or a human. It's like owning a gun, be responsible or don't own it. Never do like these YouTube folks and fly it miles away to see how far it can go or push the limits to see how fast you can swoop over a crowd of people. That is inviting disaster.THE MIDDLING - should the worst happen with the Standard, and you make a fatal flying error - more likely when a new pilot – then you are out only $400 or so max, instead of a grand, and actually less if you sell the remaining controller and battery etc. on eBay. Every piece of a DJI is worth money and easy to sell, so pick up the pieces if you can. If you can find your crashed drone DJI may fix it under warranty if it was the drone's fault, but don't count on it. DJI at this point in time has horrible support, if that changes, it would be wonderful. I would buy a 3rd party crash warranty over DJI's coverage any day of the week, if that is important to you. They are sold here on Amazon BTW...NICE PART: Battery lasts longest of all the DJI P3 models in the Standard version by 2 - 3 minutes because of fewer sensors. If you step up to a P3 Pro - batteries and case can come along (But not P4) and at $100 plus per battery, that is good news. Eventually you will want 3 or 4 batteries so you can fly about hour with juice to spare for landings, trust me.BOTTOM LINE: Most of the "Bad" I listed applies to any drone, from $49 to $5000. You can watch at least 3 videos on YouTube of folks crashing $3000 DJI Vision Drones on their very first flight, despite the Vision having much more tech and more sensors and collision avoidance. Sensors or not, if you tell it to go into a wall because you are disoriented and unfamiliar with the controls, it's going to do what you say. This sad story happens every day. This is why I don't encourage a new drone pilot to drop a grand or more on a first drone. Fly a while first and you will never get that disorientation that can cost you a fortune. Instead you will understand the controls and the principles and react instinctively to the inevitable unexpected situation. In my opinion at this time, most any drone any cheaper or similarly priced as this is not a "real" drone, so you can't take as many of the skills with you when you step up. Many drones in this price range have nothing better to step into. Once you learn to fly a DJI and get familiar with their software and controllers - you can fly their whole line pretty much. I haven't yet mentioned the excellent camera that makes me often joke "for the price of a GoPro, I got a comparable camera with a stabilizing gimbal that flies." Put all this together and that is why, in my opinion, this is the BEST DEAL in drones right now - by far...If this review was helpful to you, it is much appreciated if you would [...]

You will need to download the User Manual from the DJI.com website under the Specs & FAQ link. You will refer to it often in the beginning and it will answer all of your questions regarding the operation of the Phantom and the Remote. Download the .zip file and extract it, as the .pdf file does not seem to want to download. You will also need to download the DJI Go App using the QR code inside the front cover of the quick start guide as the one you get by going directly to the Google Play Store will not contain your Phantom's serial number and you will not be able to register your drone or use the app. to fly it. It would have been nice if DJI had provided these essential items or at least the instructions on how to obtain them but they don't. You will also need to have an A/C usb charge cube. DJI provides the usb/mini usb cable but not the cube. If you already have one make sure it is a 5v-1amp charge cube. If not Rayovac makes a set of 2 cubes. One is for AC the other is 12v DC for you vehicle for $6. I got mine off the battery rack at Walmart but I'm sure Amazon has them too. It is a good charger and will charge your Remote battery to 100% in about 2 hrs. The flight battery comes with it's own charger and will charge in 1 1/2 hrs. The good news is the charge on the remote battery will outlast at least 2 flight battery charges. It would be my suggestion to also purchase a second flight battery if you can afford it . The flight battery will turn off when it is fully charged and the remote will show a green status light. Be patient and fully charge the batteries while you are reading the User Manual. The other recommend accessories that are very affordable and well worth the money is a back pack case. Amazon sells the Senka DJI Phantom 4 backpack for $35 and it fits everything perfectly and is well made and does not cost a lot. I would also recommend the Summitlink prop guards ($ 15 on Amazon which will repay you many times over the cost of replacement props when you are learning. Another $15 will get you a Skyreat Copper Parabolic antenna from Amazon which will double you range both sending and receiving radio signals from the drone. Another very useful and inexpensive item is the DJI Phantom 2cm remote control strap. It is a nice white neck lanyard with the DJI logo and attaches to the lanyard loop on the remote $5 on Amazon and allows you to hold the remote and removes the strain on your hands and arms when flying for extended periods of time. The Phantom 3 is the finest drone I have ever flown. It will take off smoothly with a touch of the button on the app. and hover steady as a rock about 4 ft. off the ground awaiting your next command. It responds instantly and accurately to all of you commands and can be flown by anyone. It acquires a lock on the GPS satellites in seconds and the app. works flawlessly. It give visual and audio alerts for low battery and even instructs you on how and when the compass calibration is complete. A great drone for advanced as well as beginning pilots. The camera on the Phantom 3 Standard is amazing. I can take a picture of my house from 400 ft. and put the micro sd card in my computer and enlarge the photo and see individual blades of grass on my lawn! I can not imagine what the camera on the Professional model can capture! If you are debating whether or not to spend the extra money on a Phantom I would encourage you to go for it. You will never look back!

Purchased this drone on a boxing week sale after Christmas so I got it for an EXCELLENT price. Due to weather and lack of time, I didn't have time to try it out until this spring. Coming from a similar sized Syma X8G (no GPS, fully manual toy drone), the Phantom is in a league of its own. I can't believe how stable this thing is and am amazed at what it can do. It is an amazing value considering all of the technology packed into this thing. I am a photography enthusiast and I bought it to use as a flying camera and I haven't been disappointed. The quality of images and video from the camera is excellent considering the price paid for the whole package. No, it can't compete on image quality with a DSLR but it was never designed to. Its strength is in being able to get shots or video from vantage points that would be impossible with a DSLR. Yes the features and image quality improves if you get a more advanced Phantom like the P4 but so does the $$$. With the Phantom 3 Standard, I don't feel like I am putting my pay-cheque in the air - damage and repairs can be costly especially to the camera and gimbal.Very satisfied and pleased with my purchase.

El producto me llegó en excelente estado, antes de la fecha programada para su recepcion.Es un excelente aparato que sin embargo no es recomendable para personas principiantes ya que su maniobrabilidad depende de tener ciertos conocimientos. En cuanto a la duracion de la bateria: hay que cargar la bateria del dron durante aproximadamente dos horas y media para tener una autonomia de unos 20 minutos; la bateria del control se cargará por completo en una hora y servira para dos ciclos de carga/descarga de la bateria del dron.Definitivamente es un producto que recomiendo a ojos cerrados que sin embargo no es una buena opcion si este va a ser tu priemer dron.

Poderosa opción para llevar la fotografía y video a otro nivel (bueno, el nivel aéreo que no es menor). He leído en algunos foros/reseñas que a este quadcopter se le da la calidad de juguete, en mi opinión hay que tener presente que los hélices de éste son muy potentes y el peso del PS3 con las hélices y la batería es de 1216 gramos. Por lo tanto si se le llama juguete solo porque pasaremos horas de diversión no puedo más que estar de acuerdo pero hay que tener presente que es un "juguete" que necesita que se tomen ciertas medidas para maximizar la experiencia sin poner en riesgo la integridad de las personas. Entre estas medidas se me ocurre calibrar el Phantom cada vez que sea necesario, evitar volar en zonas concurridas y básicamente leer con detenimiento el manual, sí, sé que suena obvio pero...Ok, si eres "nuevo" en esto de volar drones ten en cuenta que tal vez (ojo, tal vez) deberías empezar por uno de rango inferior como el Syma X5C. La razón es sencilla, con uno más pequeño uno puede cometer ciertos errores que con el PS3 serían extremadamente dolorosos (en términos económicos y hasta físicos) además que esa experiencia será fácilmente 'traducida' cuando uno tome en sus manos una herramienta poderosa como el PS3, pues a pesar de que son muy distintos, a la vez son muy parecidos.Pero supongamos que a pesar de ser 'nuevo' en este punto has decidido adquirir el PS3, espero que te sirvan estos consejos:PROS- Incluye una guía rápida para que empieces a disfrutar el quadcopter lo más rápido posible. Es necesario tener conexión a internet pues deberá actualizarse el firmware de la tarjeta controladora de vuelo. Si eres nuevo por favor que tu primer vuelo sea en exteriores.- Incluye una memoria de 8GB Class 10 para que inmediatamente disfrutes las tomas en alta calidad.- La App de control DJI es tanto para iOS como Android. DJI ofrece muchos tutoriales para sacar provecho de las funciones del Phantom.- La App cuenta con un simulador, de esta forma podremos practicar las funciones especiales. Tal vez lo incomodo es que es necesario tener el drone activo para que se pueda usar.- Al ser un quadcopter muy popular hay bastante información.- El control remoto tiene la capacidad de ajustar la sensibilidad de las palancas de mando.- Fácil de configurar la opción retorno (cuando se pierde la señal durante cierto tiempo entre el control remoto y el quadcopter, este regresará al punto programado, sí, esta función se incluye en el simulador).- El PS3 tiene sensores que permiten saber la velocidad del viento, la altura, la distancia entre el control remoto y el drone y toda esta información se despliega en la app. Además que puedes usar el Google Maps o Google Earth.- 16 m/s la velocidad máxima (sin viento y en modo A)- Velocidad ascendente máxima de 5 m/s- Velocidad descendente máxima de 3 m/s- La batería activando la cámara permite un tiempo de vuelo de alrededor 20-22 minutos. Este tiempo puede variar por múltiples factores, velocidad del viente, temperatura, etc.CONTRAS- En mi caso me costó mucho quitar la protección de plástico del gimbal (el estabilizador para la cámara). Aunque para ser justo, tal vez estoy dramatizando mi torpeza, pero no está de más recomendar tener cuidado ya que el gimbal es el que hace la "magia".- Cuando compres una micro SD primero checa si es compatible. En caso de que no encuentras información te cuento lo que me pasó. En el manual solo mencionan que puede usarse una micro SD a partir de Class 6, y que se recomienda usar una Class 10 USH-1 --- Así que confiado, compré una de 64GB Kingston Class 10 USH-1 ¡y no funcionó!. Simplemente la cámara del PS3 no la detectaba, la razón es que hay que revisar otro parámetro y es el de la Velocidad de Escritura y ese parámetro en la micro SD que no funcionó en el drone (pero sí en otros dispositivos) es de 10 MB/s. Para cámaras de resolución tipo 2.7k o 4k se recomienda una velocidad arriba de los 10 MB/s, en mi caso estoy usando una Lexar LSDMI32GBB1NL300A.- El aterrizaje manual, por favor presta atención a esta parte.En resumen, es una poderosa herramienta que vale cada peso. Las horas de placer están garantizadas, y ahora recomiendo lo obvio: Leer el manual, date un tiempo y disfruta de la maravilla técnica que está en tus manos.Por último y por favor ATENCIÓN:Ten en cuenta al momento del vuelo el Combination Stick Command (CSC). Es un comando que no se puede bloquear y básicamente significa que podemos desactivar los motores en pleno vuelo. La información que detalla el CSC viene en el manual.PDEl INAH tiene reglamentos estrictos acerca del uso de estos dispositivos en los edificios a su resguardo. Para poder realizar tomas en esos edificios será necesario adquirir un permiso. Recomiendo leer las restricciones de vuelo que aplican en México o en el país que lo quieres usar.

Just purchased the Phantom3 Standard from Maple Leaf Photo. Ordered June 14th pm, Shipped June 15th am, delivered June 16th am one day earlier than delivery dates. There are not enough instructions but with a little help from Maple Leaf Photo to sort out the firmware upgrade and wifi connection it is up up and away. I started with a smaller drone to get use to flying and upgraded within a month and I am very pleased with the P3 which I am sure will meet my needs for some time. Advice, do not expect to open the box and fly immediatley, take time to read all the limited instructions and watch a video. Great Quadcopter.I had a problem with the firmware upgrade and contacted DJI who were great. Diagnosed the problem and immediately sent me a shipping label. P3 repaired and returned no charge and is working well. The more I fly it the more fun I am having.

It is a very good drone in my opinion. It is sturdy, has weight to it, and is very stable during flight outdoors. Requires almost a nobrainer to operate this drone. It is loud when flying indoors but outdoors it is fairly quiet. Camera is great.The only issue I am having is only being able to reach 400 ft in height before getting a weak signal. I am sure that I can get a range extender though. The auto landing and auto take off work outstanding. I haven't tested auto return home though I will be soon. The drone has options for how high it goes before returning home as toavoid hitting obstacles.