Inspire 1 in 2020

[homecookedfilms]

I am an intermediate drone pilot and filmaker looking for a way to elevate my footage.

I have a few questions for the forum.

1. Am I experienced enough?
I have flown the following drones: Parrot Bebop 2 FPV, Lumeneir QAV-X, Syma toy drones, Dji Mavic 2 Pro
and a few rc helis.
2. Is the Inspire worth the hastle?
Would an Inspire 1 t600 with zenmuse x3 be worth the hastle over the mavic and it's massive size to carry around. This would be well worth it if the footage is better.
3. Is it better than the new Mavic Air 2?
Is the old Inspire worth buying used over a new Mavic air 2

Thanks in advance!

 

[niki]

Mavic 2 Pro is better than all drones you listed, so just keep it and focus on what you want to shoot instead.

Inspire with X5 camera is the big difference as the camera is with interchangable lenses which will be a huge step toward professional photography also a team of two is needed to operate such a system. But be aware that in 2020 there are no batteries for inspire 1.

 

[The Editor]

I am an intermediate drone pilot and filmaker looking for a way to elevate my footage.

I have a few questions for the forum.

1. Am I experienced enough?
I have flown the following drones: Parrot Bebop 2 FPV, Lumeneir QAV-X, Syma toy drones, Dji Mavic 2 Pro
and a few rc helis.
2. Is the Inspire worth the hastle?
Would an Inspire 1 t600 with zenmuse x3 be worth the hastle over the mavic and it's massive size to carry around. This would be well worth it if the footage is better.
3. Is it better than the new Mavic Air 2?
Is the old Inspire worth buying used over a new Mavic air 2

Thanks in advance!

Another thread.....

Inspire 1 v2.0 in 2020

I've got a fleet of DJI portable drones (Tello, Spark, Mini and Air) and a Parrot Anafi. I've been considering dipping my toe into a more professional drone (taking my 107 test on 1/25/20). Budget is a major consideration at this point. Can I get some opinions from this group on whether it's...

inspirepilots.com

 

[Donnie Frank]

I am an intermediate drone pilot and filmaker looking for a way to elevate my footage.

I have a few questions for the forum.

1. Am I experienced enough?
I have flown the following drones: Parrot Bebop 2 FPV, Lumeneir QAV-X, Syma toy drones, Dji Mavic 2 Pro
and a few rc helis.
2. Is the Inspire worth the hastle?
Would an Inspire 1 t600 with zenmuse x3 be worth the hastle over the mavic and it's massive size to carry around. This would be well worth it if the footage is better.
3. Is it better than the new Mavic Air 2?
Is the old Inspire worth buying used over a new Mavic air 2

Thanks in advance!

What's your objective? What are you going to be shooting? This is like going into a camera forum and asking, "What's the best camera?" As a filmaker, you should know better than to ask such broad, open-ended questions regarding equipment.

D

 

[Chipdji]

Keep your Mavic 2 Pro. The inspire 1 Batteries Are hard to find new. If you can they jacked up the price big time.

 

[Charles R.]

I have an inspire 1 and it is a beast. Flies like no drone that I have ever owned. The I1 is rock solid even in 25 to 30mph winds. A Mavic is a great product but would feel like a toy to me I could see the wind blowing it around like a kite. Yes, it's more to carry around and the batteries may be harder to find. There are plenty of them still being used, The X3 is a very decent camera I also use it on an Osmo. I just can not part with it. My issue with the X5 camera @1,000 is the weight and cost for only 16MP it also cuts the flight time even more.

 

[Donnie Frank]

I have an inspire 1 and it is a beast. Flies like no drone that I have ever owned. The I1 is rock solid even in 25 to 30mph winds. A Mavic is a great product but would feel like a toy to me I could see the wind blowing it around like a kite. Yes, it's more to carry around and the batteries may be harder to find. There are plenty of them still being used, The X3 is a very decent camera I also use it on an Osmo. I just can not part with it. My issue with the X5 camera @1,000 is the weight and cost for only 16MP it also cuts the flight time even more.

I fly my Inspire 1 three times a month. It has generated a little more than $2K/month revenue for the past 2.5 years. In all honesty, I could probably use a P4P, but I'm of the mind set "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." So I'll continue to use the Inspire 1 until she no longer flies.

D

 

[SPS]

I've owned an Inspire 1.2 RAW for four years, and still fly it regularly. For many of the things I do it is the perfect system, and I have even been hired by other drone pilots in the area to fly missions that their P4P or Mavic just could not accomplish with the results their clients expected. There have been times, however, when I was flying a P4P and was very glad it was not my Inspire. Sometimes, an Inspire is just too much, and flights can get a little nerve-wracking. If you are going to be flying indoors, or in an area where there are a lot of obstacles, this is not for you. If you are going to be flying missions that require extended time in the air, don't even think it.
If I could own more than one aircraft I would, but I am sliding into retirement now and cannot really justify a fleet. Like others have said -- you need the right tool for the job you are wanting to do....

 

[Zach_S]

I have a M2P and an Inspire 1 with an X5. If you are choosing which one to buy, I would say go with a M2P. It does great in the wind, is easy and convenient to fly/deploy, and takes fantastic photos/video. I personally still used the Inspire and X5 quite a bit as I really like the photos the larger sensor takes on the X5 camera, despite it only being 16 MP's. The X3 on the Inspire is not worth getting, you can get better photos and video on the M2P versus the X3.

 

[Donnie Frank]

I have a M2P and an Inspire 1 with an X5. If you are choosing which one to buy, I would say go with a M2P. It does great in the wind, is easy and convenient to fly/deploy, and takes fantastic photos/video. I personally still used the Inspire and X5 quite a bit as I really like the photos the larger sensor takes on the X5 camera, despite it only being 16 MP's. The X3 on the Inspire is not worth getting, you can get better photos and video on the M2P versus the X3.

Does the MP2 have the 1" sensor? If not, the X5 would definitely be better in low-lighting situations.

D

 

[Zach_S]

Does the MP2 have the 1" sensor? If not, the X5 would definitely be better in low-lighting situations.

D

The Mavic 2 Pro has a 1 inch sensor. I believe the X5 has a Micro 4/3 sensor, which is larger.

 

[Donnie Frank]

The Mavic 2 Pro has a 1 inch sensor. I believe the X5 has a Micro 4/3 sensor, which is larger.

Well...it's 1/3 larger. HA! I'd forgotten the X5 has the MFT sensor. Thanx for the reminder.

D

 

[niki]

X5R have smaller sensor but it shoots raw video which makes it possible to get very nice looking night shots. Sometime I need to denoise them a bit, but this combined with 25mm or 45mm lenses is unbeatable by M2P or even X5S with Prores.And the osmo handle converts that camera to the samllest cinema camera with gimbal on the market. Of course the price of X5R is pretty steep compared to M2P. As aways it ends up to what one need to achieve and how much is willing to spend.

 

[Brett8883]

X5R have smaller sensor

Can you please clarify? X5R has a MFT 1.3” sensor. This is larger than the M2Pro, P4P, and is the same size as the X5 and even the X5S (though X5S is higher resolution). AFAIK the only Zenmuse camera with a larger sensor is the X7.

 

[Brett8883]

I am an intermediate drone pilot and filmaker looking for a way to elevate my footage.

I have a few questions for the forum.

1. Am I experienced enough?
I have flown the following drones: Parrot Bebop 2 FPV, Lumeneir QAV-X, Syma toy drones, Dji Mavic 2 Pro
and a few rc helis.
2. Is the Inspire worth the hastle?
Would an Inspire 1 t600 with zenmuse x3 be worth the hastle over the mavic and it's massive size to carry around. This would be well worth it if the footage is better.
3. Is it better than the new Mavic Air 2?
Is the old Inspire worth buying used over a new Mavic air 2

Thanks in advance!

1. Probably, that’s really up to you. The I1 flys roughly the same as the M2Pro, though, it isn’t as nimble and lack of sensors means it doesn’t hold a hovering position as well nor avoid obstacles.

2. Depends on the camera you get. The X5R runs circles around any Mavic or Phantom. It’s actually a huge jump from even the X5 and is more comparable to the x5s than any other DJI camera (x5s is the upgraded version of the X5R but is only for inspire 2)

3. Yes especially with the X5 or x5R. You have to keep in mind though that the Inspire 1 is a two pilot drone. It’s extremely difficult to get usable footage wit a single pilot. Now having said that you can hand off some of the work to automated flight systems instead of a human pilot. I get good results using Litchi focus, Waypoints, and most of the Hanger Autopilot modes which to my knowledge is the only app that specifically accounts for the 360 degree gimble movement

 

[African Bush Pilot]

Hi Guys, we've been using a loaned Inspire 1v2 with the X3 and XT Thermal camera for some research work. The thermal has worked well and so has the X3 to an extent. The X5 range would be ideal but beggars can't be choosers. We only operate with as one pilot system which has been adequate for our needs.

 

[homecookedfilms]

Sorry for the slow reply, my password needed a reset before I could continue the thread (gmail issues).

The main reason why I am now in the market for a new drone is the fact that I am now a part of the dreaded M2P falling from sky group. Was filming a barge in the hudson river and then...battery went from 53% to 1% and video cut out....a dreadful splash followed.

Given that I do not have a P.107, my drone budget is entirely driven by short films I make in my free time, and thus do not turn a profit. My business that provides my day to day income has had a wild ride for the past 6 months, so my budget fluctuated accordingly. I can now confidently say that with the return of the P4P V2.0 to the DJI store, a refurb or new P4P might be the compromise as the P4Ps flatter, cleaner look is closer in look to the A7r ii and bmpcc4k I shoot my ground shots on than the 8 bit on the M2P.

My initial response was to buy a Mavic Air 2 due to the hype surrounding it's release. Having browsed ebay and DJI refurb stores, I found several inspires that where similar in price (somewhere between Ma2 and Ma2 FMC) to the air 2.

Still kind of love the badass look of the inspire, but sounds like it may be more trouble than it's worth (BTW, I intend to buy an x5r or buy a refurb I1 pro that comes with it). LMK if you guys think the P4P or another M2P is close enough to the X5r to discourage that purchase.

 

[homecookedfilms]

Hi Guys, we've been using a loaned Inspire 1v2 with the X3 and XT Thermal camera for some research work. The thermal has worked well and so has the X3 to an extent. The X5 range would be ideal but beggars can't be choosers. We only operate with as one pilot system which has been adequate for our needs.

Agreed, if I had my way, an I2 with X7 pro bundle would be coming in a B and H box to my doorstep. Unfortunately, 20k is a lot more than I can justify spending on something which is essentially a tool in a toolbox for me. Buyers can't be choosers either....unless they happen to be the air apparent to the sheikh of Dubai

 

[Donnie Frank]

You can't beat RAW. And the X5R is, hands down, the most cost-effective way to capture RAW aerial footage. Also, the I1 can shoot dual operator. That's a deal-maker for me. That said...

If you generally don't shoot RAW or need dual operators, then the Inspire 1 is kind of a dinosaur.

D

 

[homecookedfilms]

You can't beat RAW. And the X5R is, hands down, the most cost-effective way to capture RAW aerial footage. Also, the I1 can shoot dual operator. That's a deal-maker for me. That said...

If you generally don't shoot RAW or need dual operators, then the Inspire 1 is kind of a dinosaur.

D

Another option for me is buying an I2 used from adorama ($1999) in "E" Condition (Basically like new) and an x4s for $599. Just another idea...does that seem worth it (obviously would buy a warranty as well)?