P4 vs. P3 Comparison Thread (Title Changed)

[Josh Curtiss]

So this comparison is very interesting.
7 Days With The Phantom 4: Day 3

I'm not hatin' on the P4, but there were 3 things for me that differentiated the P3P and P4: (a) Obstacle avoidance, (b) Subject tracking, (c) Battery life. People have pointed out good apps that let you do subject tracking with a P3, and no the real-world battery comparisons leave me glad I didn't decide on a p4 for that! I would've been sorely disappointed. 5 minutes I'd be happy with but 1-min real-world difference is very meh.

Josh

 

[Rotofan]

For what it is worth here are my thoughts as I have both a P3P and a P4.

Camera

• About the same, but I do think the color is more natural looking on the P4 (color saturation lower)
• Has a better lens but I cannot tell the difference (not a professional photographer)

Gimbal Performance

• About the same as DJI always has great gimbals
• I was actually dubious about the integrated gimbal being too stiff but it performs very well (no vibrations that I can see)

Fit and Finish

• P4 feels more solid and the fit and finish is great
• The plastic does seem to be thicker which of course does add weight (I think they were addressing the motor mount crack issue)
• I like the looks better of the P4 when you have it in your hands but that is a personal preference

Stability in the air as an AP platform

• Hands down more stable in the air than my P3P
• Much easier to get smooth pans (of course I am sure there will be arguments about changing PID settings which I have already done on my P3P)

Flight Characteristics

• I always felt the P3P to be a little choppy in flight as compared to my other quads and a hexa that I have. The P4 handles smoother in the air which I like for taking videos
• The P4 is just rock solid when stationary in P mode, even as compared to P3P which is also good at this
• Also sport mode is fun if you are into that

Obstacle Avoidance/Active Track

• OA is not a necessary feature if you are a more experienced pilot but this feature is an insurance policy in my mind for emergency RTH (granted you can always adjust RTH height)
• Have not played around with active track yet

Overall I am very happy with my purchase but I understand why others will be holding off on upgrading from the P3 series (I still have my P3P). However, if this is your first higher end multi-rotor, you can't go wrong with P4 IMHO. Of course early adopters always pay the price

 

[Jack1926]

 

[sebastianshaw]

So, what now? Any thoughts about P3SE vs P4P V2.0?

 

[GadgetGuy]

So, what now? Any thoughts about P3SE vs P4P V2.0?

All the thoughts you need are already in your current article. This dead thread is over two years old. Nothing more to say here...

 

[John Locke]

I agree, this thread is irrelevant today. P3SE is a trainer IMO, P4P with 1.3.509 is awesome, but not so sure about V2 as much.