You should be angry- everyone should be.
It is no secret that DJI used a business model that has become synonymous with Planned, and Perceived obsolescence: ever hear of Apple?
Look at the simple, clean, white aesthetic. It screams apple. Look at the constant upgrades and release, with ads that would lead you to believe the newest model is the coolest thing since sliced bread.
Notice the decentralized manner they approach customer support. All that is left is to open satellite retail locations in malls and shopping plazas (DJI Store?) and they will have completed the circuit... except for the massive loss in market share when Android took over a while back.
Basically DJI is purposely doing this, and anyone who likes their products should not be content to indulge in it, and especially should not condone it. I consider it no different than a society that eats it's young.
I liked the simplicity of DJI when I first entered the hobby of multirotors- they made it easy to step into it. My opinion is if they wanted customer loyalty, then they would have not gone down this garden path, and instead been more accommodating to the customer base that established upon entry level purchases (which they do well in marketing) Sure... the profit margins are lower at first- but over time, product loyalty and support would have provided a foundation and solidified thus securing a fixed segment of the market.
What many do not realize, including me upon coming into the hobby is, there is only one part of this whole product that is exclusively DJI, and that is the flight controller- every other aspect of this quad can be made or retrofitted with a part bought outside of DJI. You can also pull the Naza in a Phantom, and set up a different FC- (Naze 32, Flip, KKc, pixhawk, etc) and have the same capabilities, and more.
I was mad at first when my v1.1.1 came, and immediately within a week they had released the P2. Then the issues with the proprietary set up came into play- now, I prefer to have the v1.1.1 as my options for aftermarket stuff is better (you see, DJI saw us all buying stuff from other people so they wanted that market share too- no fault in that)
I say use the Phantom, and promote to others that is an entry level product- don't do anything else other than learn to fly and how the tech works with a Phantom... and then if you are hooked on the hobby and want more, rather than spend a fortune on overpriced, proprietary DJI "upgrades" move to another platform.
I predict DJI's Phantom will reach it's zenith by year's end- the tipping point is now, and with the regs that will come from FAA, FCC, and Homeland Security in this country, I expect the fervor to pass. What then? Margins drop... R&D will slow... and DJI will be left holding a bunch of Phantoms in various marketing configurations. Perhaps I am wrong... but there are competitors out there thinking outside the box... outside of that clean, white, understated box that looks like something apple released.
