Upgrade from P3 professional to P4

I went from a p2 vision and it was worth it. My friend brings his p3 over all the time and he is getting the 4 after using mine several times. It is a nice little unit.


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app
 
I tried out a p4 flew around put in sport mode it was okay did it blow me away compared to a 3 no not at all even seen them having problems at times with gimble so for me wasn't that impressed with it yeah sport mode is fun but for price you cant beat the 3 today
 
  • Like
Reactions: liketogethigh
I have both. There seems to be several nice things on the P4.
It is slightly quieter.
Flight is a bit easier to make smooth transition. eg. while banking and moving forward, change to reversing and banking. The P4 is easier to do smoothly.
The P4 feels more solid.
The forward obstacle sensing is nice as the Go app alerts the PIC at 15m then 10m then 5m and if Im at a distance or angle that is difficult to determine distance to object it helps, even though an observer tells me that info.
Flying inside large buildings eg. arena, the added VPS height (10m versus 3m)helps as there is normally no GPS.
If you can't use any of the improvements they are both great to fly so the P3 works great for most things.
 
I agree with jack1144. The P3 was a giant evolution from the P2. The P4 is a gentle refinement of the P3. If you don't have the P3 you will not miss the P4 as you will appreciate the engineering that has gone onto the P3. If you have the P3 and love the features you will appreciate the P4 for the subtle refinements. It is a matter of personal opinion whether those refinements are worth $$$ upgrade.
 
One thing I have seen little comment on is DJI assertion that the lens is "36%" (or some other silly, meaningless number) better than the P3. The camera guts appear to be the same or very similar. The lens is certainly a weak point on the P3 (the other being the internal bandwidth). There are a number of videos and stills that purport that the P4 takes better pictures and of course, a number of videos and stills that proclaim the exact opposite. The images I've seen are pretty much a wash.

Anybody with P3P to P4 experience want to chime in?
 
I have both a P4 & a P3 Professional, as well as a P3 Advanced, a pair of P3 Standards, & a Vision+. From my perspective, for a new purchaser looking for their first Phantom, the best bang for the buck remains a P3 Advanced. For the price of a P4 they get the aircraft, several extra batteries, a case & sunshield, etc & be all set for lots of fun & adventure.

In your case you already have a P3 Professional. Assuming your P3 Pro is in good shape & performing well, a P4 will add obstacle avoidance, slightly better GPS accuracy, faster speed in Sport Mode (with a corresponding huge hit in battery runtime), & a minuscule increase in flight time in normal modes. P4 range seems to vary with individual aircraft. Mine does well but not as well as my P3s. This isn't because I lose signal but because the P4 batteries provide disappointingly short flight times, far short of the "28 minutes" claimed, forcing me to turn back. While there are occasions where I may utilize OA, I generally turn OA off because of it limiting speed to only 22 mph.

If money isn't an issue & you just want the latest model then go for it. If you are expecting some major increase in performance, image quality, or flight time, then you will likely be disappointed. IMHO there are not enough improvements between the P4 & P3 Pro to justify $1400 merely for the sake of upgrading.

Hi has anyone upgraded from a P3 professional to P4.

Is it worth it?

Rob


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app
 
Last edited:
I upgraded. Love the 4. Heavier and better in the wind, bigger motors, redundant gps/imu. Crash avoidence wasnt the deciding factor, but you have it if you need it. Wider landing legs and the airframe is stouter than the 3.
 
Also depends on your total investment in the P3 kit.

For example, I have two controllers, itelite and FPVLR antennas, 4 batteries, a good backpack, ND filters, props, a Flytrex Live...
And granted, while I can reuse the controllers, the rest would have to be replaced for the transition to the P4. In particular, it's hard to eat the cost of 4 new batteries and a new case.

All for marginal camera improvements, OA, improved VPS, increased top speed, and slightly better battery life.

So for me, I'd rather save the money, and be able to pick up a new P3P for cheap if mine crashes. I also own a P2V+ that's been retrofitted with a H4-3D gimbal and a Gopro Hero 4 black, so already have a pair of good reliable and fault-free craft.

That said, if I was coming from anything below the P3P/P3A, I would definitely jump straight to the P4 (though I might get an older GL300A controller for it).
 
Also depends on your total investment in the P3 kit.

For example, I have two controllers, itelite and FPVLR antennas, 4 batteries, a good backpack, ND filters, props, a Flytrex Live...
And granted, while I can reuse the controllers, the rest would have to be replaced for the transition to the P4. In particular, it's hard to eat the cost of 4 new batteries and a new case.

All for marginal camera improvements, OA, improved VPS, increased top speed, and slightly better battery life.

So for me, I'd rather save the money, and be able to pick up a new P3P for cheap if mine crashes. I also own a P2V+ that's been retrofitted with a H4-3D gimbal and a Gopro Hero 4 black, so already have a pair of good reliable and fault-free craft.

That said, if I was coming from anything below the P3P/P3A, I would definitely jump straight to the P4 (though I might get an older GL300A controller for it).
What filters do you have that can't be used w/ the P4? I have a full compliment of filters from my P3P (both DJI and PP) that work just fine on the P4. Same goes for my backpack (I'm sure this varies pack to pack) I have the Manfrotto/DJI made soft black/red one. Which some people claim doesn't fit the P4 well, and fewer batteries. Not true at all. It fits great, and I can actually fit more batteries in it (8).

RE: The upgrade question, I have both, and I'd agree it's a significant upgrade all around. It just feels more solid, both in build and flight attributes. Whereas the P3P was mostly stable with GPS, wind, etc, it still had moments that felt iffy and had variable performance in different conditions. The P4 just feels like it's on rails.

I also don't plan to really use the activetrack or VPS features, but they are nice to have just in case. I think some shots like circling a moving object, where there's a lot of subject differentiation (such as a kayak on a lake or ocean) it makes it very smooth and easy, but in most land-based non-fast-moving situations I prefer to manually orbit and fly all my routes, it's just too jumpy and bobbing while the drone adjusts and course-corrects... shot-ruining for my needs (especially evident when shots are sped up)

I enjoy the P4's faster top speed, I've now clocked 54mph w/ the wind, which is nice when you just want to get the drone home as fast as possible.

Battery life, I report the same as others, it's a bit longer than the P3P, but both models are about 5-7 min short of the advertised flight time. The best empirical evidence I have of that is simple looking at my flight logs for both drones. I don't always spend the full battery life in the air, but when I do those flights are obvious in the logs, and I would avg 17-19 min w/ the P3P, whereas I'm averaging 21-23 min w/ the P4.

So it depends what reasons you're considering upgrading? I would say don't do it if it's for the camera. Don't do it if you expect longer flights. Don't do it if your P3P is flying reliably. Do upgrade if you feel you'd really use the new VPS features or like to fly manually at top speeds.

Also another reason to maybe not upgrade is the not often mentioned 'props in the frame' issue, which I'm kinda pissed off about. When they first announced the P4 they touted the taller motors and re-designed body as lifting the props higher out of the shot, which is complete bullS$%#. Maybe in default/slower flight mode, but in sport it's just as bad as the P3 at full tilt. Which in case some of you are wondering, the main way to get clean but full speed shots previously was to shoot flying backwards. Which is only a good idea when you have a clear line of sight on what the drone might hit as it speeds away, or you need to go 'scout' the path first w/ the camera, return, and them repeat the line and waste battery time.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: EyesofCanadaGoose
just want to say very good comments from everyone like most of us just depends on what you want if you never had a drone then a p4 is one hell of a awesome machine but flying mine and also a p4 in 20+ winds they seem just the same
 
What filters do you have that can't be used w/ the P4? I have a full compliment of filters from my P3P (both DJI and PP) that work just fine on the P4. Same goes for my backpack (I'm sure this varies pack to pack) I have the Manfrotto/DJI made soft black/red one. Which some people claim doesn't fit the P4 well, and fewer batteries. Not true at all. It fits great, and I can actually fit more batteries in it (8).

RE: The upgrade question, I have both, and I'd agree it's a significant upgrade all around. It just feels more solid, both in build and flight attributes. Whereas the P3P was mostly stable with GPS, wind, etc, it still had moments that felt iffy and had variable performance in different conditions. The P4 just feels like it's on rails.

I also don't plan to really use the activetrack or VPS features, but they are nice to have just in case. I think some shots like circling a moving object, where there's a lot of subject differentiation (such as a kayak on a lake or ocean) it makes it very smooth and easy, but in most land-based non-fast-moving situations I prefer to manually orbit and fly all my routes, it's just too jumpy and bobbing while the drone adjusts and course-corrects... shot-ruining for my needs (especially evident when shots are sped up)

I enjoy the P4's faster top speed, I've now clocked 54mph w/ the wind, which is nice when you just want to get the drone home as fast as possible.

Battery life, I report the same as others, it's a bit longer than the P3P, but both models are about 5-7 min short of the advertised flight time. The best empirical evidence I have of that is simple looking at my flight logs for both drones. I don't always spend the full battery life in the air, but when I do those flights are obvious in the logs, and I would avg 17-19 min w/ the P3P, whereas I'm averaging 21-23 min w/ the P4.

So it depends what reasons you're considering upgrading? I would say don't do it if it's for the camera. Don't do it if you expect longer flights. Don't do it if your P3P is flying reliably. Do upgrade if you feel you'd really use the new VPS features or like to fly manually at top speeds.

Also another reason to maybe not upgrade is the not often mentioned 'props in the frame' issue, which I'm kinda pissed off about. When they first announced the P4 they touted the taller motors and re-designed body as lifting the props higher out of the shot, which is complete bullS$%#. Maybe in default/slower flight mode, but in sport it's just as bad as the P3 at full tilt. Which in case some of you are wondering, the main way to get clean but full speed shots previously was to shoot flying backwards. Which is only a good idea when you have a clear line of sight on what the drone might hit as it speeds away, or you need to go 'scout' the path first w/ the camera, return, and them repeat the line and waste battery time.
 
I have never flown a P3, but bought a P4 a couple of weeks ago, while I really like the thing I don't think there is a big upgrade from what I've seen. I certainly would not upgrade if I had a P3, if only the camera was actually improved I would give it a second thought, but that's not the case..
 
  • Like
Reactions: flpholt

Recent Posts

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
143,066
Messages
1,467,352
Members
104,933
Latest member
mactechnic