DJI Phantom 3 vs 3DR Solo Specs

[Casper2015]

Or ... maybe there is loss.
Here are specs for the Hero 4 Black photo resolution from the Gopro website

Gopro doesn't have a zoom lens that will fill the sensor at different focal lengths.
The medium setting simply masks the outer part of the image to leave a smaller image in the middle - sort of a digital zoom. This leaves an even smaller image to stretch and crop if you want to remove the fisheye distortion.
Since no-one whats the fisheye effect and they all convert to flat-field anyway, it's a better solution to shoot with a rectilinear wideangle and keep all of the image up from rather than cut it down later.


If you are going to shoot Gopro in medium it's pointless to try to claim that the Gopro has superior image quality.

Ouch .. just saw the cost of a Hero 4 black - add that to the Solo + gimbal and you could buy two P3 Advanced !! Good luck 3DR with that value proposition.

These are photo resolution figures, not video. With photo, you always take full resolution then defish.
Video is different, the main limiting factor with processing video is the processor speed, so taking video at medium or narrow is sensible as it gives a sharper result with a higher fps.
Time will tell how the Phantom 3 camera stacks up against the Gopro with still pictures, the limiting factor here is likely to be the lens quality on such small cameras.

 

[Meta4]

These are photo resolution figures, not video. With photo, you always take full resolution then defish.
Video is different, the main limiting factor with processing video is the processor speed, so taking video at medium or narrow is sensible as it gives a sharper result with a higher fps.
Time will tell how the Phantom 3 camera stacks up against the Gopro with still pictures, the limiting factor here is likely to be the lens quality on such small cameras.

I used stills because that's what I shoot but it's a similar story for video ... you toss away a chunk of your image by shooting in Medium
Better to be able to keep all your image.

 

[walko]

I like PHOTO+VIDEO mode gopro has...
I don´t understand why phantom 3 hasn´t.

 

[Casper2015]

I am sorry, but quoting resolutions is not a good way to compare cameras. Gopro made their reputation on being the first company that was able to make small go-anywhere cameras with acceptable quality despite the high field of view. Take a look at the prices of lenses from any major manufacturer, it is much more difficult to make a quality fish-eye or wide angle lens than a standard or telephoto. I will look forward to true controlled side by side camera tests using properly sampled products. (i.e. Not specially manufactured review samples.)

 

[Mal_PV2_Ireland]

The gopro just can't compete with a phantom for stills since dji introduced raw shooting.

 

[fastsmiles]

DJI is closing the camera gap, now I wonder if GoPro is going to start competing with their own drone

 

[Meta4]

I am sorry, but quoting resolutions is not a good way to compare cameras.

I didn't show Gopro resolutions to compare cameras.
They are to show how much of the original image is thrown away when you shoot in Medium.
Gopro 4K Ultrawide = 3840 x 2160 = 8.3 Megapixels
2.7K Medium = 2704 x 1520 = 4.1 Megapixels (50% thrown away)

But now I will compare cameras
P3 video = 4096 x 2160 = 8.8 Megapixels
Because the P3 flyer doesn't have to shoot Medium or defish, he's using the full original image while the Gopro user is only using part of his.
You often hear Gopro owners proudly saying their image quality is superior to the Phantom.
That may have been true when we were comparing with the P2V+ but it's hard to see how it can possibly be true now in the age of the P3.
factor in the cost advantage and it's obvious that 3DR must really be hating DJI for the features and price of the P3. It's an unbeatable advantage to DJI.

On a side note

Take a look at the prices of lenses from any major manufacturer, it is much more difficult to make a quality fish-eye or wide angle lens than a standard or telephoto.

OK .. Nikon 16mm f2.8 fisheye (a fabulous lens) is not particularly expensive and falls toward the cheaper end of the Nikon lens spectrum.

 

[ianwood]

2.7K medium is the mode I used to shoot the video I posted earlier. Very little video I've seen yet from the Inspire shot in 4K compares favorably. I could shoot 4K but really the imager isn't fast enough to do it justice. 2.7K is the sweet spot.

You may get to use more sensor without fisheye but the LOG mode is not nearly as good as Protune. There are macro blocking artifacts, I frame jumps, exposure issues, and significant over-sharpening. All from the same sensor so it goes to show that the firmware on the camera makes a big difference.

DJI wasn't even calibrating the sensor for hot spots when they first shipped. DJI is not an imaging company and though they've come up with a decent GoPro knock off, the quality is not the same.

 

[Meta4]

Right ... and the Gopro is so good that 4.1 megapixels (fisheye) from it are going to be better than 8.8 megapixels (flat field) from the P3?
I suspect the Gopros flying days are numbered now. Fisheye was an early evolutionary stage we went through but better things are here now.

 

[ianwood]

Megapixels, are you talking about photos? I have no idea about photo capabilities. I never shoot photos.

As for the fisheye, it's a non-issue. It's so simple to remove with no noticeable softening. Meanwhile Inspire cam has numerous issues. DJI's new firmware did nothing to address them. The only thing limiting the GoPro's flying days is the new Black Magic.

 

[Meta4]

Megapixels, are you talking about photos? I have no idea about photo capabilities. I never shoot photos.

No .. these numbers are for video.
They are to show how much of the original image is thrown away when you shoot in Medium.
Gopro 4K Ultrawide = 3840 x 2160 = 8.3 Megapixels
2.7K Medium = 2704 x 1520 = 4.1 Megapixels (50% thrown away)
If you shoot in Medium you are tossing away half the image that gets masked by adjusting FOV.
In full resolution the Gopro would capture 8 million pixels per frame but in Medium it halves that to 4.1 million pixels.
You are going to have an uphill battle convincing anyone that you can get better image quality than the P3 when you are shooting in Medium.

 

[750r]

Really guys lets move on yea sure the P3 is the best out their us GoPro users are a thing of the past whatever . I for one will never own a cam that you can not use anywhere but the phantom and I won't ever fly on 5.8 just me . So the P3 dose nothing for me
Let's just say what works for you don't work for me . I only got into the phantom because I could fly my GP so it was just another mount for me

 

[ianwood]

True that. This whole debate will be moot in a few months anyway. Black Magic have completely changed the game.

 

[tedw123]

The biggest downside to Solo is the distance/range, 1/2 mile is pretty bad really. Amazing they put so much into it but crappy range. Think I'll stick with Phantom 3 for now.

 

[Nidge]

Really guys lets move on yea sure the P3 is the best out their us GoPro users are a thing of the past whatever . I for one will never own a cam that you can not use anywhere but the phantom and I won't ever fly on 5.8 just me . So the P3 dose nothing for me
Let's just say what works for you don't work for me . I only got into the phantom because I could fly my GP so it was just another mount for me

I share many of the sentiments expressed by 750r above but with some additions.

I bought into the Phantom platform when I purchased my first multirotor back in November 2013. I didn't feel the need to upgrade when the P2 and Visions were released as these really didn't offer anything that wasn't achievable with the P1 I originally purchased.

Now about a year and a half later the P3 has been announced and again I'm somewhat underwhelmed. I'm also disappointed that they haven't addressed the severe short comings of the Vision Plus by addressing the vulnerability of the gimbal's ribbon cable which has been implemented into the P3.

As well as owning a Phantom I also fly a Hex with a Naza V2, a quad with the 3DR APM2.6, and a fixed wing with the 3DR APM2.5, and based on my experiences I would say that 3DR are light years ahead of DJI in both the technology and customer support. So if I were in the market for a new RTF solution, and had to choose between a P3 or Solo, there would be no contest and I would invest in the Solo.

It's also very reassuring how much confidence 3DR have in their product to offer a no quibble 30day honeymoon period so you can try a Solo and if not happy move to a P3 without losing any of your coin. They also promise that if the craft is lost or damaged due to component failure they will replace the craft and any third party hardware installed - camera, gimbal, etc. DJI can't even agree between themselves as to whether the P3pro is, or is not, going to be shipped with a backpack.

One thing I've noticed with DJI is that when they release a new product, whether it be a multirotor, gimbal, flight controller, or Groundstation, the product it replaced no longer receives the same level of support such as revised firmware/software releases even though the user base is still huge. In contrast 3DR are still more than happy to address any issues I may encounter with my "ancient" APM2.5 even though it has received many hardware revisions.

Regards

Nidge

 

[chapsrlz]

It's a good comparison for new starters - though as noted, for those of us that have already invested in some of the tools (GoPro and fisheye removal aka - Adobe Premiere in my case) the starting position is better.


There's a lot of nice features with the SOLO, really interested in seeing some reviews specifically on the gimbal and camera features (orbit and cable) and now well they perform.

i have tried fisheye removal on premiere and lightroom and i dont like the result...

 

[RichWest]

I'd venture to bet, with all the grumblings about fish-eye and GoPro, there will be an update to what we all know as GoPro. We all understand the fix is easy, new lens. How about a GP Gimbal. Take the GP camera and gimbal off the aerial platform and mount it to a car, bike, board or stick, now you have versatile action camera platform. What is its true value now with this minimal upgrade?

If that was the case, would you still consider DJI's offering of the P3 or Inspire to be the answer? Has their track record for value, quality and service met your expectations? If you've answered yes to both, then you've made the right choice for DJI.

Me, I'm trying to see beyond today's marketing hoopla. I think the Solo is the game changer in the market. It is the Android of the Aerial market and this platform models its hardware like it should be - modular. Further, the 3DR and GP relationship is established. It's "up in the air now" to where they will end up, I predict up rather than down and 3DR is going to warranty that will happen.

WOW, what an exciting time we are in for. Good luck with your choices.

 

[johan]

There are aftermarket lens at 100$ that fix the fisheye, with great results.

Link?

 

[3TailsMedia]

I think if you are primarily in it for the highest quality aerial footage, video in particular, and you don't already own a GoPro, it's a very simple (even cheaper) decision.

Will GoPro offer LOG picture profile, RAW stills, shutter control, sharpness/contrast/saturation adjustment, manual WB, zebras, and AE lock... and change them all "on the fly" in 4+ or 5? Can you wait to find out or do you need something affordable now for your projects? Can you turn off power to your GoPro or will it be a vampire drain on your quad's already deficient battery?

 

[ianwood]

I think if you are primarily in it for the highest quality aerial footage, video in particular, and you don't already own a GoPro, it's a very simple (even cheaper) decision.

Will GoPro offer LOG picture profile, RAW stills, shutter control, sharpness/contrast/saturation adjustment, manual WB, zebras, and AE lock... and change them all "on the fly" in 4+ or 5? Can you wait to find out or do you need something affordable now for your projects? Can you turn off power to your GoPro or will it be a vampire drain on your quad's already deficient battery?

It does most of those things already. The most important improvement GoPro can make is the glass. I'd like to see them come out with a response the Black Magic Micro in a GoPro form factor.

BTW, changing settings in flight is overrated. If you're serious about your shots, you'll have planned them out and set your camera up before you fly.