How many batteries does one really need, and other deep thoughts?

[iflyskyhigh]

Some of you may have seen my post over in the introduction, but I though I would move over here to ask questions.

Just got into the quadcopter game. I ordered a P3 Pro Refurbished from Newegg.com for $569. Consensus was that was the best deal going in the $500-$600 range.

Today I went out on a mission to get some batteries. I saw that Gamestop had the DJI Phantom 3 batteries on sale for $49.97. I managed to get several BestBuys and 1 target to price match for me and ended up with 7 batteries for less than $400.

Do I really need all 7 batteries? My idea was to just keep a couple of the batteries and sell the rest to make a couple bucks to help offset the cost of the drone and accessories.

Should I keep all 7 batteries cause I got such a good deal on them? I'm just going to be flying for fun by myself and with my kids. Sometimes might be everyday, sometimes might be weeks without flying. My schedule is unpredictable.

After doing some searches it seems that the batteries last for 300 charges more or less if cared for properly. Is there a chance that you won't be able to get Phantom 3 batteries down the road (I guess I know there is ALWAYS a chance, but how likely is it)? I used to upgrade tech every time something new came out, but these days I tend to keep things much longer and I want to make sure that I can still fly this thing down the road.

I guess if you have multiple batteries it's wise to get the DJI 4 battery charing hub? I see there are aftermarket ones, but I would assume as with batteries it's safest to go the DJI route? Do you use the 100W charger that comes with the pro to power the hub? It says in the product description that you use the standard Phantom 3 battery charger. So do you have to buy the standard charger if you only have the 100W charger?

 

[With The Birds]

Some of you may have seen my post over in the introduction, but I though I would move over here to ask questions.

Just got into the quadcopter game. I ordered a P3 Pro Refurbished from Newegg.com for $569. Consensus was that was the best deal going in the $500-$600 range.

Today I went out on a mission to get some batteries. I saw that Gamestop had the DJI Phantom 3 batteries on sale for $49.97. I managed to get several BestBuys and 1 target to price match for me and ended up with 7 batteries for less than $400.

Do I really need all 7 batteries? My idea was to just keep a couple of the batteries and sell the rest to make a couple bucks to help offset the cost of the drone and accessories.

Should I keep all 7 batteries cause I got such a good deal on them? I'm just going to be flying for fun by myself and with my kids. Sometimes might be everyday, sometimes might be weeks without flying. My schedule is unpredictable.

After doing some searches it seems that the batteries last for 300 charges more or less if cared for properly. Is there a chance that you won't be able to get Phantom 3 batteries down the road (I guess I know there is ALWAYS a chance, but how likely is it)? I used to upgrade tech every time something new came out, but these days I tend to keep things much longer and I want to make sure that I can still fly this thing down the road.

I guess if you have multiple batteries it's wise to get the DJI 4 battery charing hub? I see there are aftermarket ones, but I would assume as with batteries it's safest to go the DJI route? Do you use the 100W charger that comes with the pro to power the hub? It says in the product description that you use the standard Phantom 3 battery charger. So do you have to buy the standard charger if you only have the 100W charger?

You us the DJI power brick with the hub. It charges one at a time. Decide to fly the next day at 11pm and you have four batteries ready to go when you get out of bed. Good investment.

How many batteries you need only you can answer. Depends on how long you want to fly and how long you will be away from a charging source for.

 

[msinger]

Do I really need all 7 batteries?

You'll need a battery per every 20 minutes you'd like to fly without recharging again. For example, if you'd like to fly for an hour each time you head out, then you'll only need 3 batteries. It doesn't make sense to keep more than you need since you'll have to spend more time maintaining them.

Is there a chance that you won't be able to get Phantom 3 batteries down the road (I guess I know there is ALWAYS a chance, but how likely is it)?

DJI still sells Phantom 2 batteries, so there's a great chance they will be selling Phantom 3 batteries far beyond the time you're actually still flying your Phantom 3.

I guess if you have multiple batteries it's wise to get the DJI 4 battery charing hub? I see there are aftermarket ones, but I would assume as with batteries it's safest to go the DJI route?

I use the DJI charging hub simply for the fact that I like to use OEM DJI accessories for any critical parts of my Phantom. Here are some commonly used 3rd party chargers that should also work just as well:

• Anbee Charging Hub (charge 4 batteries one by one)
• Spinido Charging Hub (charge 3 batteries one by one)
• Blue Charger (charge 3 batteries in 1 hour)
  
• Venom Charger (charge 4 batteries in 1 hour)
  
  

Do you use the 100W charger that comes with the pro to power the hub?

Yes.

 

[Andy-M]

I would say 3 batteries is good to have but 4 would be sweet.
If I had 7 batteries I would definitely sell 3 off and fortunately because you got a great deal there should be some profit in it for you iflyskyhigh.

 

[Jeremy_S]

I have 4, I can't imagine needing more. Sell em for a couple of bucks extra and make some of your cash back.

 

[UpLift Aerial]

I have 2. But would like 2 more. I wouldn't need 7. I only really need 3 but 4 is better, 7 is crazy.

 

[microchips]

Are all the batteries original DJI ones or are some copies? The reason I ask is I have shopped everywhere and could only find the cheapest £70 ($87) if you have purchased copies please be careful as there are well known complications associated with them!! Otherwise bargain and happy flying[emoji4]

 

[msinger]

Are all the batteries original DJI ones or are some copies?

Best Buy and Target only sell OEM DJI batteries.

 

[microchips]

Ahhh that explains it then, good old Amazon sell anything lol. We do not have Target and Best Buy in the good old " rip off Britain" but that will be coming to an end shortly.

 

[iflyskyhigh]

Great input you all. Thank you very much. They are all OEM batteries. I think I will sell 5 of them. If I can make $50 give or take that means I will have gotten a DJI phantom 3 pro and two extra batteries for $318 out of pocket. I don't feel bad about making a couple bucks, it was a lot work and time driving all over town and fighting with employees to get those priced matched batteries. I figure I can be fair and make a couple bucks and someone can get a great deal on an OEM battery, everyone wins.

I will also go with the OEM charging brick. I don't want to mess around with anything that is involved in keeping this thing in the air. Just not worth it. Again thanks for the feedback.

 

[Not A Speck Of Cereal]

I have 6. I don't always use them all in one session, but I frequently go through 4.

This all depends on your shooting scenario. Consider this two:

• "I'm going out to the park to fly for fun."

This could be 2 to 3 batteries easy and you'll go home happy.​

• "It's going to be sunny tomorrow, so I'm going to charge all my batteries tonight, then go out and shoot several scenes with the intention of making a video".
  
  This means you might drive around to several locations and take a lot of RAW footage to edit into a much smaller final video. If you're looking to make a quality video, you may need to shoot a scene more than once, because the first one didn't go well. Then you'll pack up and go to another location for more footage, at which point you'll start with a fresh battery (see the following "Partly Depleted Battery" section for more on this).

In this scenario, 3 batteries are pushing it, especially of you don't have a "charge in the field" solution. 4-6 is good.​

Partly Depleted Battery: Short version: don't use it.

For any scenario, You generally want to go up and use your battery for as long as you can in that flight, then not use the battery again until it's been fully charged.

For example: In the second of bullet-point scenarios above, you might come down with a 50% depleted battery -- finished with that location and hop in the car to go somewhere else -- and then be tempted to use the rest of the battery at the next location. Don't do it.

Why: it's not the scope of this post to get into the details (there are already long threads about this). Complain about how this doesn't make sense to you, "I've done it before", or that "it's just not right" all you want.

Suffice it to say that after you've read enough "I lost my bird in the ocean today" threads, you'll be wary. If you've had your own bird fall out of the sky because of this (I have, and it cost me a $350 gimbal/camera component), then you will not do it again.

Note: This has nothing to do with temperature (such as low temp conditions).

On-Topic Point of this section: If you follow the rule of not using a partially depleted battery, that means that 6 batteries are not necessarily 20 minutes x 6.

Chris

PS: a helpful companion thread to this is this: Charging in the field.

 

[iflyskyhigh]

I have 6. I don't always use them all in one session, but I frequently go through 4.

This all depends on your shooting scenario. Consider this two:

• "I'm going out to the park to fly for fun."

This could be 2 to 3 batteries easy and you'll go home happy.​

• "It's going to be sunny tomorrow, so I'm going to charge all my batteries tonight, then go out and shoot several scenes with the intention of making a video".
  
  This means you might drive around to several locations and take a lot of RAW footage to edit into a much smaller final video. If you're looking to make a quality video, you may need to shoot a scene more than once, because the first one didn't go well. Then you'll pack up and go to another location for more footage, at which point you'll start with a fresh battery (see the following "Partly Depleted Battery" section for more on this).

In this scenario, 3 batteries are pushing it, especially of you don't have a "charge in the field" solution. 4-6 is good.​

Partly Depleted Battery: Short version: don't use it.

For any scenario, You generally want to go up and use your battery for as long as you can in that flight, then not use the battery again until it's been fully charged.

For example: In the second of bullet-point scenarios above, you might come down with a 50% depleted battery -- finished with that location and hop in the car to go somewhere else -- and then be tempted to use the rest of the battery at the next location. Don't do it.

Why: it's not the scope of this post to get into the details (there are already long threads about this). Complain about how this doesn't make sense to you, "I've done it before", or that "it's just not right" all you want.

Suffice it to say that after you've read enough "I lost my bird in the ocean today" threads, you'll be wary. If you've had your own bird fall out of the sky because of this (I have, and it cost me a $350 gimbal/camera component), then you will not do it again.

Note: This has nothing to do with temperature (such as low temp conditions).

On-Topic Point of this section: If you follow the rule of not using a partially depleted battery, that means that 6 batteries are not necessarily 20 minutes x 6.

Chris

PS: a helpful companion thread to this is this: Charging in the field.

Good info thank you. I'm with you on pushing the limits. As a professional we never push limits, and I'm not going to push the limits with my new expensive drone. Slow and steady, mind my P's and Q's. If I want to get crazy I will look into getting one of those acrobatic/racer drones down the road (which I'm sure is where this is going)

Right now I'm just a guy looking to have some fun with my kids. Maybe take a couple cool little videos and see what I can see. I don't have the first idea about how to edit the videos together to make look awesome (and I've seen some really awesome videos lately). I do use Adobe LR to edit my photography, so I'm sure I can figure it out. Like I said, if I can sell those extra batteries and get into the drone game for $320 with this level of drone, I'm happy.

If I find that I have exceeded the Phantom 3's capabilities, which I can't see happening for quite some time, I will look at moving up and cross that bridge when I get there.