I have been using an old Mavic Pro from like 2019. It's technically owned by my work, but I'm the only one who uses it, mostly for my poor attempts at landscape cinematography and documenting trips to Iceland. Sometimes I just fly for fun. Well, that drone has had a crash and never came back quite right after repair, and now there's some issue with the gimbal (probably just a wiring replacement needed) that I'm not wanting to do myself since, technically, it's not mine and I'm not spending my own money on parts, nor my time.

So I'm looking to get my own personal drone and the Google said that finding a US-made drone is basically a no-go unless you want something industrial. I didn't see too many quality options on Amazon aside from DJI. Ruko is another brand that comes up.

I'm assuming avoiding Chi-com all the things is impossible. Which ones are the least worst and won't run afoul of FAA registration?

I'm looking for around $500-600 with a pack including 3 batteries. Ideally the drone is smaller/lighter than the old Mavic I have (shouldn't be hard, given better tech now). I want a good camera for landscape video and preferably one that can stand up to high winds, since much of my flying time will be in Iceland or Norway in the winter. Follow mode is a must.

Suggestions from the hive mind?

Following. Wife and I have talked about buying one in this price range.

Buy one in Norway.

In the US, there's a 25% tariff on Chinese drones under 55lbs. Under other rules, DJI has been blocked from importing new drones since last year.

There are several DJI forums that offer classified sections.... Mavicpilots.com is one, and there are numerous drones/accessories, etc available now, often in the price range you're seeking.

If you want a DJI you better hurry up. There’s a lot of regulations that will be in play in a very short time and any China made drones are illegal to import. You can buy existing DJI stock and that will be it for now.

Thanks for the heads up. I thought there was something I remember about regulations on the Chinese drones coming up soon.

Every time I ATTEMPT to fly my Mini, my distain for DJI grows.

quote:

Originally posted by cas:
Every time I ATTEMPT to fly my Mini, my distain for DJI grows.

Why is that? I’ve been flying several different DJI drones over the past 10+ years and I’ve never had a problem.

Some of my grievances?
Things like "can't fly more than (low number) feet off the ground because you're not logged in." But I can't log in because I'm in the middle of nowhere.

Last weekend was "can't fly more than (low number) feet off the ground because you don't have satellite lock". Which I can't get because I'm in a small clearing in the middle of the woods (trying to take pictures of said clearing from the air. Eventually managed to make that work.

They've nannied it to death.

I was "lucky" enough to buy an original Mini, about a week before they released the newer version. DJI sold the "fly more" kit, with the case to keep the drone in. But if you use the case, it ruins your props. "Fly less kit." They stopped supporting it, you can't buy props for it. (in theory you can, in reality you can't, only available once in a blue moon at scalpers prices) So they sold me a thing that ruined my drone, but won't sell me the parts to fix my drone. Nice.

I swear every time I try to use it the batteries are dead. So I can't fly. So I charge them. Next time I go to use it, they're dead. I swear 80%+ of my charge cycles have been without actually using it. If I look at my log, 90% of my flights are under two minutes because there was some reason I couldn't do what I intended to. Six years of ALMOST getting to use my drone more often than not.

Last Friday, after I managed to get it to go more than 20 feet off the ground, I went up, took the pictures I needed and brought it back down. Maybe 5 minutes of flight? Got the "aircraft battery low, returning to home point in ten seconds" (WTF? Already!?) And then it immediately flew into a tree. It was two feet off the ground. The home point was 2o yards straight ahead of it, nothing in the way. But it turned right and flew into a tree trunk. lmao

I don't know if it's broke and at this point I don't know that I care.

The RTH function got me once. I knew my battery was low, but I figured it would be fine for a couple of minutes inside my pool cage. It decided it was time to RTH and flew straight up, bounced off the cage, and crashed next to the pool. There's an altitude setting for the RTH function that I had set too 200' while in MI to clear the trees.

You can thank our government for the nanny features.

I was very into drones, getting my first GPS drone, a DJI Phantom 4, in ‘16. When the Mavic Pro was released, I snapped one up as soon as I could.

I got the Mavic Pro a little while before Christmas, but I didn’t open it until Christmas morning. When I did, I charged it, updated the software, all the while hoping I could fly it before we left for church.

I got it up in the air with the intention of just flying it around a large water tower on the other side of the golf course we lived on. It was about a mile away.

After it rounded the back side, it lost connection, going into RTH mode. Its crash avoidance cameras couldn’t detect any contrast on the smooth white side of the water tower, so it crashed into the side. It fell quite far, crashing onto the ground.

Luckily, it was still broadcasting its location. I arrived shortly thereafter, finding the gates to the water tower property, secured. I was able to squeeze under the gate and retrieve my drone after a short search in the scrub.

I was full of dirt and stickers, but after a little brushing up, I was ready for church. However, the drone was way too damaged to fly, so I sent i5 back to DJI for repair.

A time went by, and I received a refurbished Mavic Pro back, and with the original battery, complete with the scratches from the crash.

After 10 years, the drone is still flying AND with that original battery. I did have a minor crash since then, which did require a replacement of the camera and gimble.

As many of my hobbies, drones began taking a second seat, so I didn’t continue upgrading with the new and improved models as I had planned earlier.

In reference to the other brands out there, I’m so far out of the hobby that I just glance at the ones on display at Best Buy, not even remembering the names of the companies.

If I got back in hot and heavy as I was, I’d begin with a ton of YT videos and a ton of time on the forums I had spent so much time on. Good luck with the search.

DJI is still the way to go. I fly 70-80 times a year as part of my job.
If the OP is considering buying a used unit, the Mavic 3 series has been excellent.
You can still buy new DJI models-they just can’t introduce new models beyond what existed on Dec. 23, 2025 in the US as I understand it. So, we are effectively stuck at the Mavic 4 model level until the .gov has a change of heart.
Multi-billion dollar companies that use these for mapping and measuring work will be pressed to update their fleets soon. Should get interesting.

I still don't understand why someone in the US cant make a competitive drone ?

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin101:
I still don't understand why someone in the US cant make a competitive drone ?

DJI has 10+ years head start and millions of flight hours experience under their belts.

quote:

Originally posted by VictimNoMore:

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin101:
I still don't understand why someone in the US cant make a competitive drone ?

DJI has 10+ years head start and millions of flight hours experience under their belts.

I realize this but we have some pretty smart people out there. Musk or someone like him needs to make this happen. I imagine it would be quite lucrative with military contracts and the civilian market. They would clean up with no tariffs.

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin101:
I still don't understand why someone in the US cant make a competitive drone ?

You have heard of Skydio, right?

If you are looking for a budget minded option, I have a Potensic ATOM 3 that is good for someone like me who barely uses it and doesn't want to lose a $1,000+ drone.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
If you are looking for a budget minded option, I have a Potensic ATOM 3 that is good for someone like me who barely uses it and doesn't want to lose a $1,000+ drone.

How are the pre-programmed flight options? Does the object follow mode work well?

quote:

Originally posted by 357fuzz:

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin101:
I still don't understand why someone in the US cant make a competitive drone ?

You have heard of Skydio, right?

Skydio left the consumer market about 3 years ago. Their current focus is public safety/industry.

quote:

Originally posted by Oat_Action_Man:

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
If you are looking for a budget minded option, I have a Potensic ATOM 3 that is good for someone like me who barely uses it and doesn't want to lose a $1,000+ drone.

How are the pre-programmed flight options? Does the object follow mode work well?

I've only done test flights with it, lost my prior generation one in the Philippines. Then next trip back there I was sick or raining the whole time.

The prior model would lose lock on the subject depending on geography and shadows this one is supposed to be improved.