Buy it on Amazon - (affiliate link) - The Phantom 4 has some cool new features but is it worth the extra cost over a Phantom 3? I take a closer look and make some comparisons. See more DJI Phantom videos: and subscribe!
VIDEO INDEX:
01:20 - Hardware overview
03:33 - Collision avoidance feature
06:10 - Activetrack (active track) feature following a car
08:32 - Smart autonomous flight modes also found in Phantom 3
09:08 - Camera, image quality and comparison to Phantom 3 camera
11:24 - Slow motion video feature
11:34 - High speed sport mode over 44 MPH
12:20 - Conclusion and final thoughts
See footage from the camera here:
The Phantom 4 is an improvement over the 3 but not a huge one. Camera quality and stability is about the same, with a maximum resolution of 4k at 30 frames per second and a new and somewhat low quality slow motion mode.
The drone has a new, sleeker design that DJI says provides for more stability in flight although it still handles as solidly as the Phantom 3 did.
The biggest changes that I've seen in the new one relate to its added autonomous features that includes a new collision avoidance system.
The Phantom 4 has two sensors on the front that will detect objects in front of the drone. If it gets too close the drone overrides the controls and slows down to a hover before hitting the object in front of it. It also allows for more fine movements when near objects for more precise close-in flying.
The other feature that I found compelling in the Phantom 4 is the ActiveTrack feature. Active track will lock on to objects on the ground and follow them without the need to have the controller or another device communicating back to the aircraft. It's completely optical with the drone's computer keeping track of the object's location. It's not perfect but when it does work it works amazingly well.
But if those two new autonomous features are not needed then the Phantom 3 Professional is still more than adequate for what most consumers might want and now costs less. Like the new Phantom 4 it remains very stable in flight, has a great camera gimble system, and has some autonomous flight modes that may not be as smart as the new drone but still very useful.
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