Put the Alpha's on the controller, it's worth it. Fly slow and steady until you get the feel for your drone, but your right, do not fly it with the gimbal on without a camera in there, not good for the gimbal. Make sure that you designate the "A" button to fly "manual". Pressing "fly" is NOT manual mode (I've seen posts by newbies who thought it was). Doing a factory reset will not harm your drone, it's only in certain circumstances that it's not a good idea (upgraded to a green cube without loading open solo for instance). There's lots of info on the forums and some of them deal with "worthwhile upgrades" to purchase. Still, get a camera as soon as possible, it's what makes it all worthwhile.
If you're flying out in the open with no tree's or buildings around, you should maintain a good GPS signal, but just be aware of your surroundings at all time and practice landing in manual mode (the autoland on the stock software wasn't always the best).
Good luck flying and enjoy!