Starter before the P3?

[johnmcgartland]

What happens when the "smart " fail safe tech stops working and they have no clue how to fly without it. I bought a $80 andromeda omni (I think that's the name ) and really learn to fly. All manual control and get really good with that. Then if something ever happens you know how to control it. Not to mention if you decide to park it in a tree you're out $80-100 instead of 1k.

I have flown it only for a short time compared to most and have panicked a few times but the info even blind on the app you simply cant go wrong if you keep it in P mode, ground height and direction are on your map as long as you take it slow you should be fine the only time ive found it nerve racking is indoors I chose to learn on P3 because I wanted something that could give me more and more over time as I learned to pilot it and so far I have tried it in 2 modes but living in a place with a lot of wind the drift made me sweat so back into P mode for me

 

[Bret Lucas]

Learn to fly in manual agility mode first with a Blade Nano QX. It'll teach you to fly and once you master it, the P3 will feel like a bus. Then once comfortable with flying the P3, then move to understanding shooting stills and video. It's a fantastic learning curve. Enjoy!

 

[ThirstyRaven]

I just ordered, on the helpful advice of this forum, a Syma X5C and 4 extra batteries. Better to lose $100 than $1500!

I did pay a little extra to get it from a Canadian supplier rather than China - couldn't wait the extra 12-20 days shipping !

 

[RiZe-TommyGun]

I honestly can not stress enough how important it is that you should start with a Hubsan X4. I personally, did not. First quad I flew was a Phantom 1. And it was scary cause it wasn't calibrated correctly, it didn't fly like the ones in the youtube videos, and i broke a few props and almost **** my pants in the process. It wasn't till later that I bought my Hubsan X4 (cause I didn't want my friends flying the Phantom).

I've learned all of my skills from the hubsan. I am very confident that I could maneuver a P3P in the same manner if I had to. In fact, over 4th of July I was at the beach and got attacked by a flock of seagulls. If i didn't have my hubsan experience, i may have panicked and increased my altitude and went right into their dive bombing. Instead, I got fighter pilot with it and tried to shake em off my tail. And I did. It was fun.

 

[MPD352]

I just ordered, on the helpful advice of this forum, a Syma X5C and 4 extra batteries. Better to lose $100 than $1500!

I did pay a little extra to get it from a Canadian supplier rather than China - couldn't wait the extra 12-20 days shipping !

Ehh? A previous Canuckaidian mentioned something called the "Charlie Farquardson's Canadian Dictionary" Could would tell me where aboot I might find dat ting?

 

[S5S5G6]

Learn to fly in manual agility mode first with a Blade Nano QX. It'll teach you to fly and once you master it, the P3 will feel like a bus. Then once comfortable with flying the P3, then move to understanding shooting stills and video. It's a fantastic learning curve. Enjoy!

This is how I started. I bought 2 QX's and a stack of batteries, and flew indoors for a few hours, then moved outdoors. After that for awhile I moved to the Blade 200qx (more power to weight than P3 or Nano) and finally the P3.

If you want to learn how to take great video and pictures safely (to humans and your wallet) - it helps if flying part is second nature already. It's not about learning how to fly, it's about learning how to fly backwards, sideways, tapering altitude, and most importantly - NOT hitting stuff and being prepared for the unexpected.

Once that part is down pat, you can focus more on your photographers eye and start hitting switches. You'll appreciate that the resultant video won't make you car sick and pics that aren't blurry.


Now I'm also going to make a probably unpopular statement:

If you want a flying camera that's easy to look good with, P3 all day. So glad I finally got one.

If you want to whip around the sky or your backyard and just like flying with an occasional gopro video of the flight, there are many cheaper solutions with sharper handling.

I still spend as much time wringing my blade 200 out as I do my P3 except it costs about 20$ to put into a tree sideways. Likewise it prevents me from doing the same with my P3 id like to think


Good luck and go destroy that hubsan/syma/blade!