Author Topic: Johhny Appleseed - Drone  (Read 1383 times)

Offline Rodd

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Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« on: May 01, 2020, 09:47:32 AM »
I just want to give everyone the heads up for this weekend. Johnny Appleseed has a Labour Day sale with 15% off across the board. I have bought some camera stuff in recent weeks and have been researching a 'drone' purchase and have been monitoring pricing (from many sources, not just Johnny Appleseed). I have been pleasantly surprised at how efficient they have been with their deliveries (quick to post), and postage price has been quite reasonable. I have actually received some items the very next day after an afternoon purchase. Although, in these cases I have used priority post I have found many eBay sellers take a few days just to post the item.
 I made a purchase last night of the DJI Mavic Mini combo pack (the combo pack cost a $200 more but includes 2 extra batteries, a multi-charger, extra spare blades, a case and some other bits). The standard pricing for this drone pack is $799, but I saved $119 due to this sale. It's hard to find DJI stuff below their standard pricing, so to get it $119 cheaper is a big discount. Johnny Appleseed also sell the more expense motorbike camera and phone mounts, so now is the time to buy from them if you want the good quality stuff.

https://www.ja-gps.com.au/DJI/mavic-mini-fly-more-combo/

The fantastic Insta360 R One camera that I bought from them a few weeks ago would also now be 15% cheaper. My recommendation is to buy the twin pack so that you can choose between the 360 degree camera function and a 4K camera function. I bought the selfie stick that belongs to that camera but realised that the selfie stick from the previous model Insta360 X is a fair bit longer, but both are well made and will give more camera angle options for bike videos.

The sale only lasts this weekend.

Why I bought the DJI Mavic Mini Combo pack. I do a lot of research on 'stuff' before i buy. I would have liked a 4K camera BUT to edit 4K you need a powerful computer. At the moment I don't have one that powerful. DJI sells two cameras (closest in price to their Mavic Mini) at the moment that are 4K. The Mavic Air (superceded) and the just released Mavic Air 2. The Mavic Air 2 can shoot video at 4K and 60 fps but try editing that on a home computer! The Mavic Air combo pack (superceded) is currently still available at Hervey Norman for a fair price of $1199, but the new Air 2 combo pack is $1799.

The cheaper Mavic Mini is tiny and folds nice and small and is ideal for carrying on a bike, but it's video quality is surprisingly good (2.5K, 30 FPS). It is quieter than the Mavic Air (superceded).
Both of these points are important because the small size means that you are more likely to be able to carry it with you, and the low noise gets less attention and if you're a nervous flyer then you will be more likely to want to fly it.
DJI has a reputation for building quality drones that fly very well and the Mini is no exception.

I have no association with JA other than being very happy with my purchases.

Regards
Rodd
 
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Online Brock

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #1 on: May 01, 2020, 12:17:10 PM »
I have a Mini, bought in Jan. Its an excellent machine and takes great video and is very stable.

Do not fly too high, as it can be caught by strong upper winds and be very difficult to recover. There is a great app called Airdata UAV, that can get a lot of information of the operation of the drone. Where it has been, explanation of error codes ( that you may not even have noticed)

I will link to a fun shot a little later when I find it, but in the mean time here is an unedited video

https://youtu.be/pf_nDZVc8GM
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Offline Rodd

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #2 on: May 01, 2020, 12:30:31 PM »
Thanks Brock. Yes, that is quite nice video quality.

I watched a video this morning where a fellow took his out into strong winds of 15 to 25 or 30 mph. He had some scary moments and it is something to be aware of with such a light weight drone.
 

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #3 on: May 01, 2020, 12:44:15 PM »
I bought my Lexin bluetooth headset from them. They had the best price at the time and delivery was also pretty quick... :thumbsup


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Online ruSTynutz

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #4 on: May 01, 2020, 02:06:08 PM »
I just want to give everyone the heads up for this weekend. Johnny Appleseed has a Labour Day sale with 15% off across the board. I have bought some camera stuff in recent weeks and have been researching a 'drone' purchase and have been monitoring pricing (from many sources, not just Johnny Appleseed). I have been pleasantly surprised at how efficient they have been with their deliveries (quick to post), and postage price has been quite reasonable. I have actually received some items the very next day after an afternoon purchase. Although, in these cases I have used priority post I have found many eBay sellers take a few days just to post the item.
 I made a purchase last night of the DJI Mavic Mini combo pack (the combo pack cost a $200 more but includes 2 extra batteries, a multi-charger, extra spare blades, a case and some other bits). The standard pricing for this drone pack is $799, but I saved $119 due to this sale. It's hard to find DJI stuff below their standard pricing, so to get it $119 cheaper is a big discount. Johnny Appleseed also sell the more expense motorbike camera and phone mounts, so now is the time to buy from them if you want the good quality stuff.

https://www.ja-gps.com.au/DJI/mavic-mini-fly-more-combo/

The fantastic Insta360 R One camera that I bought from them a few weeks ago would also now be 15% cheaper. My recommendation is to buy the twin pack so that you can choose between the 360 degree camera function and a 4K camera function. I bought the selfie stick that belongs to that camera but realised that the selfie stick from the previous model Insta360 X is a fair bit longer, but both are well made and will give more camera angle options for bike videos.

The sale only lasts this weekend.

Why I bought the DJI Mavic Mini Combo pack. I do a lot of research on 'stuff' before i buy. I would have liked a 4K camera BUT to edit 4K you need a powerful computer. At the moment I don't have one that powerful. DJI sells two cameras (closest in price to their Mavic Mini) at the moment that are 4K. The Mavic Air (superceded) and the just released Mavic Air 2. The Mavic Air 2 can shoot video at 4K and 60 fps but try editing that on a home computer! The Mavic Air combo pack (superceded) is currently still available at Hervey Norman for a fair price of $1199, but the new Air 2 combo pack is $1799.

The cheaper Mavic Mini is tiny and folds nice and small and is ideal for carrying on a bike, but it's video quality is surprisingly good (2.5K, 30 FPS). It is quieter than the Mavic Air (superceded).
Both of these points are important because the small size means that you are more likely to be able to carry it with you, and the low noise gets less attention and if you're a nervous flyer then you will be more likely to want to fly it.
DJI has a reputation for building quality drones that fly very well and the Mini is no exception.

I have no association with JA other than being very happy with my purchases.

Regards
Rodd

Looks like there is a bit of a sales push on these as I just received an email from JB HiFi...  :beer

https://tinyurl.com/y99bxqjm


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Offline RubenCan

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #5 on: May 01, 2020, 02:22:18 PM »
I have a Mini, bought in Jan. Its an excellent machine and takes great video and is very stable.

Do not fly too high, as it can be caught by strong upper winds and be very difficult to recover. There is a great app called Airdata UAV, that can get a lot of information of the operation of the drone. Where it has been, explanation of error codes ( that you may not even have noticed)

I will link to a fun shot a little later when I find it, but in the mean time here is an unedited video

https://youtu.be/pf_nDZVc8GM



Wow Brock, that is amazing clarity of video and equally amazing stability. I can just imagine myself riding down the highway whilst being followed and filmed by the drone. Love it, maybe you can showcase it at the next Nat Rally
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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #6 on: May 01, 2020, 03:15:45 PM »
It can only do 17KPH, but a Mini could catch the bikes on certain predetermined places.
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Offline Rodd

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #7 on: May 01, 2020, 03:25:17 PM »
The Mavic Mini doesn't do well with 'follow me' mode I don't think (from the video's that I have seen). The new Mavic Air 2 does, and it does a pretty good job, but in the video that I saw where it was being trialed in 'follow me' mode it ended up hitting a tree. There is another drone called the Skydio 2 and apparently it is excellent at 'follow me'. They sell it in the states, but not here. I have seen comments that they are looking at selling it here. In the U.S. it has sold for around $1000, so that means that in Australia the price will probably be $3 million (Sarcasm). I have seen some impressive videos of the Skydio drones. The Mavic Air 2 is selling for $1899 and if you buy it from Johnny Appleseed I think you have to wait until late June. If I could have got hold of the Skydio 2 then it would have been a hard decision due to the extra cost over the Mavic Mini, but it seemed to perform better than the new Mavic Air 2 in the video that I saw (4k clear video, too) and likely cheaper.
 
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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #8 on: May 01, 2020, 07:45:18 PM »
Mini has no follow me function, it can sort of do it in the circle mode but is easily confused. Its really a high quality entry level drone that is very good at what it can do. It packs down very small, so is perfect for carrying on a bike when travelling and is pretty quick to setup. The ability to edit on the phone is not bad, but its not very easy to see for seamless video.
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Offline West Aussie Glen

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #9 on: May 02, 2020, 09:16:19 AM »
An interesting review:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90M59HSXp3Q

No talk about zoom?
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Offline West Aussie Glen

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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #10 on: May 02, 2020, 09:31:29 AM »
Interesting CASA Drone site:-

https://www.casa.gov.au/knowyourdrone
Glen
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Re: Johhny Appleseed - Drone
« Reply #11 on: May 02, 2020, 11:16:47 AM »
The mini has no Zoom, if you want a close up you fly in. Its a verrrrry easy drone to fly for a first timer.

As for CASA, dont get caught...  Really though, the test is easy, most of the answers are common sense. A drone operators licence can be had for a few grand.
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