P3 Professional: still worth it?

[KiryuSan]

Hi everyone, I'm about to buy a Phantom 3 Professional from Amazon, which is a bit discounted right now. I already have a bit of experience with drones, I regularly used a P3S until last month, and occasionally a friend's P4 Pro. My aim is to expand my videomaking skills and make it become (step by step) a regular job.

I know this is a good drone, but thinking about the price... 870€ (920$). The Mavic Pro is 1.199€ (1.270$) here in Italy. That's 300€ of difference, but I'm kinda short on money right now, and I want to get started asap to improve my skills. Since this will be my very first drone that I will use for work and not only for hobby, I'm not quite sure if I should wait to have more money for the Mavic or just get the P3P now. What would you suggest?

Another question: If I get the P3P, should I update to the latest firmwares right away? I use an Nvidia Shield K1 Tablet, by the way.

Thanks in advance

 

[ferraript]

if you don't need all those super cool features of P4, P4P or Mavic, go for it, it's great machine
just remember, that if you crash it, there may be problem of getting spare parts in the future, so fly carefully

firmware, well, many people will tell you "yes, do the upgrade" and many people (like me) will tell you "don't upgrade unless you have problem with current firmware"
it's up to you...

 

[Numone]

if you don't need all those super cool features of P4, P4P or Mavic, go for it, it's great machine
just remember, that if you crash it, there may be problem of getting spare parts in the future, so fly carefully

firmware, well, many people will tell you "yes, do the upgrade" and many people (like me) will tell you "don't upgrade unless you have problem with current firmware"
it's up to you...

Its only just been discontinued and there will be plenty of spares for a long time. You can still get spares for the P1.

 

[redbusdriver]

I had the same decision to make, but between the P4P and P3P. The P3P won out on cost as well and I love flying it. It has the same camera as the regular P4. The P3 is missing the collision avoidance of the P4 & P4P but still has great range and flight time.

Comparing the P3P to the Mavic Pro is a bit different. You need to determine how much extra you are willing to pay for the much more portable form factor. If you want to back pack it with you and fly while hiking or being out with friends at the ocean, the Mavic may be worth the additional cost.

In my case it was just learn drones and eventually use it for a commercial operation back up, the P3P was a happy choice, it is just not as portable as the Mavic. Either way you chose you will have a fine drone to fly. Spare parts are readily available for the P3 series as well as the others.

Ciao!

 

[KiryuSan]

Good to hear! Didn't know the P3P and regular P4 had the same camera, that's nice. Portability would be a plus, but not a necessity. Seems like there's no huge difference between these models in terms of functionality (for me, at least) so I'll go with the P3P

As for the firmware, I'll see what to do... if it works good out of the box, I'll just keep it like that, I guess.

 

[Phantom Voyager]

Hello.
I am in the exact same position as you and with a lot of reading I think I am going with P3P.
I would like the collision avoidance as I have no experience but I believe that the P3P wins.
I am in the USA. Good Luck and have fun.


Sent from my SM-G930V using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[KiryuSan]

Hello.
I am in the exact same position as you and with a lot of reading I think I am going with P3P.
I would like the collision avoidance as I have no experience but I believe that the P3P wins.
I am in the USA. Good Luck and have fun.


Sent from my SM-G930V using PhantomPilots mobile app

The collision avoidance feature is indeed nice, but with a bit of care I think we can make less of it. Good luck to you too!

 

[Teamfour]

Consider a refurbished P3P if money is tight. They can be had for $699 with full warranty. Mine has been flawless and that is with the most recent firmware. That being said, I have a P4P coming so the P3P will be backup.

 

[photoz01]

I am always checking Slickdeals website.
Last month newegg had p3pro for 569 refurbished, it seems brand new. It was a one day sale

Sent from my SM-G928V using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Phantom NSX]

Got a p3 4K couple weeks ago for $499 -B&H had a 24 hour sale.... loving it!!!


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

 

[Andy-M]

The latest firmware update for the P3P was in November 2016 afaik.
So if you buy a new one it should be running that firmware which is the most recent.
And there probably won't be any further updates now anyway.

 

[kennedye]

In addition, apps like Autopilot and Litchi can bring some of the extra functionality of the P4 like tracking and so on to the P3 family.

 

[MassDrone]

Just yesterday I pulled the trigger and bought a new P3P from Amazon. I'm still flying my P3S regularly, and I even still have my old P1 in a closet somewhere. I chose the P3P because I already have 4 batteries - now I'll have 5! I don't want to pay hundreds more for obstacle avoidance systems - I can do that with my controller.