Just bought an I1

[IcarusDS]

Ive just took the plunge and bought an I1. I did have a Mavic Pro and although I appreciate the X3 camera probably gives a similar kind of quality to the Mavic Pro, boy is it 10x the drone!

My question is this, is the x5 upgrade worth the investment? Everywhere I look the x5 seems to be greater than the cost of an inspire 1 with the x3.

Is the z3 any better than the x3 and or worse than the x5? I know google can give me the specs but it’s nice to hear it from people who own them and have had experience with them!

Thanks in advance guys

 

[JeffB2002]

I have the X3 and the Z3. The zoom on the Z3 is great! I have an X5 coming next week so I can report on that then. I love my Inspires....Yes I have 2

 

[IcarusDS]

I have the X3 and the Z3. The zoom on the Z3 is great! I have an X5 coming next week so I can report on that then. I love my Inspires....Yes I have 2

I’ve heard reports on the z3 when being zoomed in the footage being real shaken, have you experience this problem? Also how does it compare to the x3 for stills?

Thanks Jeff!

 

[JeffB2002]

I’ve heard reports on the z3 when being zoomed in the footage being real shaken, have you experience this problem? Also how does it compare to the x3 for stills?

Thanks Jeff!

I haven't had that problem, although I have read about people having transmission issues with the Z3. Personally I have not had any of those issues. The Z3 and X3 use the same sensor so the stills are exactly the same.

 

[Florida Drone Supply]

Ive just took the plunge and bought an I1. I did have a Mavic Pro and although I appreciate the X3 camera probably gives a similar kind of quality to the Mavic Pro, boy is it 10x the drone!

My question is this, is the x5 upgrade worth the investment? Everywhere I look the x5 seems to be greater than the cost of an inspire 1 with the x3.

Is the z3 any better than the x3 and or worse than the x5? I know google can give me the specs but it’s nice to hear it from people who own them and have had experience with them!

Thanks in advance guys

Yes, the X5 is a marked improvement over the 12MP Z3/X3 which as others have said is the same/similar sensor. When you use the 16MP X5 you have a choice of supported prime lenses to use ranging from 12mm to 45mm. DJI sells a 15mm lens and Olympus sells the 12/17/25 and 45mm lenses. The X5 is a cropped sensor with about double the focal length so a 12mm will be a 24mm and 45mm will be a 90mm with very good reach to get close to your subject. As others have said using the 45mm for video can create some challenges but many have successfully done so.

All of the lenses supported by the X5 can be used on the Inspire 2 X5S should you ever decide to move in that direction in the future. There are other unsupported lenses that have been used with success but may not have full compatibility with the X5.

 

[adwb]

I have both x3 and z3 and had endless troubles with the z3 camera with lagging transmission on the ipad display. So bad as to be unsafe to fly using the screen to judge distances from things due to the delay. The whole lot is with DJI for fixing as they accept it is a issue.
However from a long time photographer's point of view I think you need to exercise caution before buying the z5,
First there is no decent range zoom lens for it.. The lenses need to be balanced to get the gimbal to work correctly, not major issue but still a issue. The sensor size is in terms of noise and image quality is not, in reality, a great deal better than the sensor in the 3 series bodies. there is a improvement but it's a expensive one.
You cannot crop in that much more than the 3 series images .so not real gain there either.
I would suggest you extensively test the two cameras you have and look at the image quality , for electronic display I doubt you will complain, and for print the x5 image sensor will not give you a much bigger decent print anyway.
just my pennies worth

 

[IcarusDS]

It’s always good to hear from people who own them or have used them first hand. I have seen a Z3 go for £250 and X5 I’m watching go through at between £550 and £700 which is obviously a vast amount more and very close to what I paid for my whole Inspire setup with the X3.

I think I need to get my X3 up on a nice sunny day to see what it really has to offer. The Z3 from a “on paper” perspective appears to be very handy, especially for inspection work if I was to go down that route at a later date.

You’ll have to keep me updated on how the Z3 is when you get it back from DJI!

 

[JeffB2002]

I have both x3 and z3 and had endless troubles with the z3 camera with lagging transmission on the ipad display. So bad as to be unsafe to fly using the screen to judge distances from things due to the delay. The whole lot is with DJI for fixing as they accept it is a issue.
However from a long time photographer's point of view I think you need to exercise caution before buying the z5,
First there is no decent range zoom lens for it.. The lenses need to be balanced to get the gimbal to work correctly, not major issue but still a issue. The sensor size is in terms of noise and image quality is not, in reality, a great deal better than the sensor in the 3 series bodies. there is a improvement but it's a expensive one.
You cannot crop in that much more than the 3 series images .so not real gain there either.
I would suggest you extensively test the two cameras you have and look at the image quality , for electronic display I doubt you will complain, and for print the x5 image sensor will not give you a much bigger decent print anyway.
just my pennies worth

So you are saying that it not worth it to have anything other than the X7 camera on the I2 platform. That is the best image sensor to date on the larger drone platform from DJI. Not saying it is the only camera out there, just saying that for DJI products....That is the best. You also need to keep in mind that you need to balance any gimbal out there. Especially when you have the ability to put different lenses on the camera. That should just be common sense being the fact that different lenses will cause the system to have a different center of gravity depending on lens size. If you are looking for cinema quality, then DJI should not even be on your radar as the platform is limited. If you are looking for great shots and decent video, then the 4/3 sensor will do just fine. The P4P pilots and photographers never complain.

 

[adwb]

So you are saying that it not worth it to have anything other than the X7 camera on the I2 platform. That is the best image sensor to date on the larger drone platform from DJI. Not saying it is the only camera out there, just saying that for DJI products....That is the best. You also need to keep in mind that you need to balance any gimbal out there. Especially when you have the ability to put different lenses on the camera. That should just be common sense being the fact that different lenses will cause the system to have a different center of gravity depending on lens size. If you are looking for cinema quality, then DJI should not even be on your radar as the platform is limited. If you are looking for great shots and decent video, then the 4/3 sensor will do just fine. The P4P pilots and photographers never complain.

Who is talking about inspire2 or X7 camera? Neither the op or I made any mention of them?

 

[JeffB2002]

Who is talking about inspire2 or X7 camera? Neither the op or I made any mention of them?

No....you mention the Z5 which I assume to mean the X5 camera and it not being all that worth it due to the sensor size and capabilities. I respectfully disagree with you about the capabilities and output of the X5. By your standards the X7 would be the only capable camera.

 

[Chipdji]

I have the Z3. I have not experienced any problems with it at all.

 

[DStealth]

Ive just took the plunge and bought an I1. I did have a Mavic Pro and although I appreciate the X3 camera probably gives a similar kind of quality to the Mavic Pro, boy is it 10x the drone!

My question is this, is the x5 upgrade worth the investment? Everywhere I look the x5 seems to be greater than the cost of an inspire 1 with the x3.

Is the z3 any better than the x3 and or worse than the x5? I know google can give me the specs but it’s nice to hear it from people who own them and have had experience with them!

Thanks in advance guys

For me, buying the X5 had one unparalleled advantage ... its massive leap in low light performance from the x3. Great for my trip to Iceland to film the northern lights etc...

 

[ReadyKilowatt]

X5 if you plan on shooting manually. Adjustable iris (F-stop) instead of adjusting shutter speed or ISO (or using ND filters on stills) for correct exposure is much better. Plan on learning how to color grade and correct for white balance. And it severely cuts into flight time both due to weight and overall power consumption. But the pictures and control it offers tip in its favor if you can afford the upgrade.

I also picked up an Osmo handle and adapter which helps justify the cost a little since you can use it for more than just the drone.

But given the state of the industry I wouldn't consider the I1 a professional level drone these days. It's just not stable enough. The GPS and IMU aren't accurate enough for photogrammetry work, and the video bitrate isn't high enough except for real estate. For sure I wouldn't consider it for critical infrastructure inspection. It has been a great trainer for me though, and that's why I bought it over the I2.

 

[Alancctv]

No....you mention the Z5 which I assume to mean the X5 camera and it not being all that worth it due to the sensor size and capabilities. I respectfully disagree with you about the capabilities and output of the X5. By your standards the X7 would be the only capable camera.

The issue is about the inspire 1..the X7 does not fit the inspire 1.

 

[IronSky1]

Ive just took the plunge and bought an I1. I did have a Mavic Pro and although I appreciate the X3 camera probably gives a similar kind of quality to the Mavic Pro, boy is it 10x the drone!

My question is this, is the x5 upgrade worth the investment? Everywhere I look the x5 seems to be greater than the cost of an inspire 1 with the x3.

Is the z3 any better than the x3 and or worse than the x5? I know google can give me the specs but it’s nice to hear it from people who own them and have had experience with them!

Thanks in advance guys

Ive just took the plunge and bought an I1. I did have a Mavic Pro and although I appreciate the X3 camera probably gives a similar kind of quality to the Mavic Pro, boy is it 10x the drone!

My question is this, is the x5 upgrade worth the investment? Everywhere I look the x5 seems to be greater than the cost of an inspire 1 with the x3.

Is the z3 any better than the x3 and or worse than the x5? I know google can give me the specs but it’s nice to hear it from people who own them and have had experience with them!

Thanks in advance guys

I have a I1 V2 with X3 and replaced with Z3 which works fine like the zoom function. I had a X5 on I2 v2 however ha to remove it was pulling batteries down in 12 minutes. It also had a was causing eradtic video feed to my tablet. I was updated to correct fw however still had problems. I put the X3 or Z3 on everything works fine. Possibly the X5 was flakey or it should have been factory installed. Lot of problems glad it is gone. The X5 was on OSMO before worked fine there.

 

[Donnie Frank]

Ive just took the plunge and bought an I1. I did have a Mavic Pro and although I appreciate the X3 camera probably gives a similar kind of quality to the Mavic Pro, boy is it 10x the drone!

My question is this, is the x5 upgrade worth the investment? Everywhere I look the x5 seems to be greater than the cost of an inspire 1 with the x3.

Is the z3 any better than the x3 and or worse than the x5? I know google can give me the specs but it’s nice to hear it from people who own them and have had experience with them!

Thanks in advance guys

Honestly, I use the X5 in lower light. If you ever shoot at night, you'll be very glad you have it.

 

[Donnie Frank]

I’ve heard reports on the z3 when being zoomed in the footage being real shaken, have you experience this problem? Also how does it compare to the x3 for stills?

Thanks Jeff!

I had the same experience. I had the opportunity to purchase a Z3 at half price, but turned it down after 30 minutes of test footage. There's no way I could hand that off to a client. Combine that with the 12MP photos (so that takes it out of the "photo inspection" game) and < MFT sensor, and the purchase simply didn't make sense. It's a fun toy, but beyond that....

 

[macoman]

X5 if you plan on shooting manually. Adjustable iris (F-stop) instead of adjusting shutter speed or ISO (or using ND filters on stills) for correct exposure is much better. Plan on learning how to color grade and correct for white balance. And it severely cuts into flight time both due to weight and overall power consumption. But the pictures and control it offers tip in its favor if you can afford the upgrade.

I also picked up an Osmo handle and adapter which helps justify the cost a little since you can use it for more than just the drone.

But given the state of the industry I wouldn't consider the I1 a professional level drone these days. It's just not stable enough. The GPS and IMU aren't accurate enough for photogrammetry work, and the video bitrate isn't high enough except for real estate. For sure I wouldn't consider it for critical infrastructure inspection. It has been a great trainer for me though, and that's why I bought it over the I2.

I am thinking in buying one but not because I will use for work, it will be for hobby flying only.

 

[IcarusDS]

For me, buying the X5 had one unparalleled advantage ... its massive leap in low light performance from the x3. Great for my trip to Iceland to film the northern lights etc...

I would love to see some of your footage if you have any to share?

 

[IcarusDS]

I have a I1 V2 with X3 and replaced with Z3 which works fine like the zoom function. I had a X5 on I2 v2 however ha to remove it was pulling batteries down in 12 minutes. It also had a was causing eradtic video feed to my tablet. I was updated to correct fw however still had problems. I put the X3 or Z3 on everything works fine. Possibly the X5 was flakey or it should have been factory installed. Lot of problems glad it is gone. The X5 was on OSMO before worked fine there.

Have you owned or flew a V1 before? If so have you noticed much difference in performance?