Solo and P3P Owner... Real honest discussion please

[Dunginhawk]

So folks. I want to start a serious (NON FLAMING) thread on the real thoughts of owners of both.
I know at least 2 people (we live within miles of each other) that own both. We are both in roughly the same spot.
So i want to start a valuable discussion to hopefully shed some additional light on things to help me make a decision on which to keep, and perhaps help others.

These are MY opinion today. some may seem harsh towards SOLO and some may seem harsh towards DJI

Solo Pros
- Badass look
- Flight modes (really love these... amazing.... can/will DJI do these modes? how long will i have to wait?)
- Radio Display (this is low on the list, but it will be nice to see some data there vs having to always look at the app, which may allow the app to be less cluttered going foward)
- Battery Location - I really like it up top. First off, it makes the bird a bit top heavy and in roll over crashes (which Rich and I have both had, it lands on its back and does no damage to the quad at all, besides props) . Secondly it will allow for a larger battery in the future.
- Motor Pods - I know Rich and I differ here, but i like the easy removal pods. With the larger battery options, moving up to a larger motor to carry more weight/payload is something im very interested in.
- Accessory bay - IF and this is a big IF right now, they come out with some cool additions (like the FLIR camera, aka bigfoot and ghost hunting device. parachute, etc) it will be a REALLY cool feature.
- Speed - I love the fact that this can be acrobatic. Not that ill ever do flips, or fly it 60mph (or more like Rich) but I like the option. I just hope they open up some GPS modes to be able to use the additional speed and manueverability while still being under GPS control of my quad.
- Speed or lack there of - I love the option to dial down the rabbit to the turtle and slow it down to my full stick up moves it ever so slightly. I think thats an amazing feature.
- Tower App - If they can get it to stop crashing, flying missions, etc will be pretty damm cool.
- BYOC - I love the option to bring my own go pro. I know people look down on this, but I personally dont want to replace my quad each year. Next spring, if my solo (if its the one i keep) is working great and there arent any staggeringly new and awesome features, why would I buy a new one? Ill get a new go pro.
- HDMI Out - Integrated HDMI out is nice - Is going to cost me $150 on the P3P if I want that. For use with my headplay FPV goggles (which ROCK btw)
- Four Legs - Seems minor but landing this thing is 10x more stable than landing the P3P.
- Its Black - You can see it in the air, against clouds 10x better than a white P3P
- Support - Although its often hard to get ahold of them, in the end they do the right thing. Once they clear a massive backlog and get this all squared away, i think support will be a MAJOR selling point for 3dr

I may think of more, and ill edit this then.

P3P Pros
- Solid 3rd generation product - Roll out has been MUCH less buggy than the solo. To be expected, but its un-deniable. Right now its a much more polished Quad.
- Lightbridge - With Lightbridge the range is MUCH greater on the P3P than it is on the solo. To some this doesnt matter, to a lot of us, it does. Ive gone over 1.5 miles stock with my P3P and quite frankly, I dont even look at the controller or get concerned. I know it will be fine.
- Built in camera - Now i know i listed BYOC as a pro for solo and it is, but for those that want a camera included, this is a major pro here too. TCO is much lower on the P3P because of it.
- Built in Gimbal - this should be negated soon. Also, in my con list, I can see this being brought up because of the fragile nature of the gimbal/camera combo, which will lead to massive repair costs.
- Pilot App - The app is good. No denying that. Its a solid app with great features and telemetry.
- Extra part and tool pouch - seems like a minor thing, but I like it
- Vision positioning system - nice for indoor flying etc. - I think currently mine is disabled, but its nice to know its there.
- Torque / zippiness - No doubt about it, this is a major factor for a lot of people. In GPS mode, even with it all the way to Rabbit (the solo), its much more sluggish than the P3P. DJIs quad is snappy, and it just gets out and nails it. Solo can level this, but opening up more power in GPS mode.
- No Fish eye - yes, this is a huge benefit. I cant find a lens for my go pro (for my solo) that I want to use. so right now I'm stuck with Fish eye, and I hate it.

I may add things to the pro list as well, when I think of them.



Solo Cons
- Range - This is first and foremost for me. The range is generally pretty lackluster. Stock, I get around 2000 feet, which is about 4x less than that of my P3P. I have antennas on order, but this is still a concern.
- Torque - Just as torque is a pro for P3P it is certainly a CON here. Even full Rabbit it does not get off the line and go. Its top speed is fine, and it maneuvers very well, but its off the line speed is terrible. This can be changed by 3DR, but will they?
- Bugs - Every newly released product will have some major bugs and issues to work out. 3DR is no different. I would have liked to have seen a 100 person pre-release and they could have likely found many of these bugs.


P3P Cons
- Looks - DJIs phantom look is VERY stale by now. In fact I hate it, with a passion. So much so, that if I do keep it, Im going to skin it with something just so I dont have to look at it in quite the same light.
- Gimbal/Camera combo - It can be a pro, and a con, which it is. Its a good camera, without fisheye, but it also causes some MAJOR repair cost issues if/when you break it.
- Landing gear - Hand catching has become such an important thing to do because the phantoms tip over half the time. They could have just as easily put a little angle to the legs and split them apart (ala the solo) . The solo lands perfect each and every time. This is a major oversight on DJIs part. Easy to correct, but my guess is they didnt want to foot the bill. China - faster, cheaper.
- Structural Stability - Increasing numbers of owners with cracks in the motor pod area, which will eventually lead to significant failure.
- Support - Need I say more? 8 week minimum turnaround time for repairs. As one user mentioned, repairing structure problems with the same part that has issues to begin with. Support is a massive CON for DJI and the P3P


As you can see, from my point of view there are not many cons in either camp, but the Solo Cons (at least today) are a pretty big deal. Much more so than the P3P IMO.

So there is my issue. The pros (in my book) are higher for the solo, but the cons are higher too.
The P3P is a workhorse. It just does its job and does it quite well.

This is a really hard decision, and ill continue to add to this list as the dialogue continues.
thank you all, and PLEASE no BS or Flames.

 

[nacjr]

This is a Solo group. Why do we need another "use vs them thread"? It will just turn venomous like on RcGroups?
Just askin.........................................

 

[rrmccabe]

Just askin.........................................

I think because there are several people that are thinking about returning the Solo and the phantom is the logical replacement of course. Enough time has passed that its a more legitimate conversation now that 4 weeks ago.

The solo is all about "will it eventually". Because right now its not stacking up.

I agree with most everything you said Ryan. If not all.

 

[Dirby]

This is a Solo group. Why do we need another "use vs them thread"? It will just turn venomous like on RcGroups?
Just askin.........................................

good question

 

[rrmccabe]

Also I want to add with me it comes down to one thing.

Can 3DR catch up while the Solo is still modern hardware. DJI has serious momentum and I am really doubting it.

I can assure you if the gimbal does not absolutely rock this thing out of the world mine will go back. There is no reason to have twice as much invested in something that does half as much as my P3P (for my needs).

 

[GoodnNuff]

I think a real discussion comparing the two needs to focus on the here and now and not let personal assumptions of what may or may not happen in the future weigh on the discussion. Otherwise it no longer remains a "real" discussion.

 

[Dunginhawk]

I dont think there has been a thread on EITHER board in the last couple of weeks that is truly un-biased and focuses on a real comparison with folks in Rich's and I's boat.

I dont know why you automatically assume this is going to turn in to a flame war. Just keep it civil, as I felt i have in my long original post. I didnt take shots, i kept it above board and am trying to have a courteous discussion

 

[GoodnNuff]

I dont think there has been a thread on EITHER board in the last couple of weeks that is truly un-biased and focuses on a real comparison with folks in Rich's and I's boat.

I dont know why you automatically assume this is going to turn in to a flame war. Just keep it civil, as I felt i have in my long original post. I didnt take shots, i kept it above board and am trying to have a courteous discussion

I think this group can keep it civil. It is the new members that some of us recognize from another forum that worry me.

 

[Dunginhawk]

We should be able to moderate our own threads, and id delete their posts if they dont directly contribute to the topics at hand

 

[sgs182]

I hope they can catch up while the Solo is still modern and yeah, the gimbal better rock or else I will be pretty bummed.

The Solo was my choice because:

• I already own 2 GoPros
• The ability to upgrade the camera and the hardware on the bird.
• Cable cam, follow me, and hopefully tower (iOS)

Those were pretty much the MAIN reasons I chose the Solo and that was basing it off the fact that the gimbal was going to be on par or better than the Phantom. Is the Solo worth the extra $500? I'm hoping it will be in the long run.

I was following DJI from the beginning and I was waiting for them to release a model where you could attached your GoPro to a gimbal (with a live feed) and that never happened after 3 generations. When I saw that was one of 3DR's features, it became more clear.

 

[Dunginhawk]

I will say, if the gimbal is good... i cant imagine it would be bad, it will at least make my decision a LOT harder.

 

[Jubalr]

I think it can be an interesting discussion as with any A vs B comparisons. And unlike other forums, I think this one will be civil.
DJI makes fine products and I have owned several. They were a major force in developing the small consumer market. But for me, I prefer the power and flexibility of 3DR's controllers and their customer service. Having been a customer of theirs long before the Solo and the questionable launch procedures, I know the company will do well. Will they approach DJI's sales #s? That means nothing to me when comparing. Subaru makes excellent cars, but I don't think they will ever approach the sales of GM.

 

[Dunginhawk]

You are right. I dont care if they sell 10 solos and support them well.. DOesnt matter to me a bit. HOwever, it will be harder for 3rd party developers to get behind a small install base. Much the same way Developers wouldnt get behind the Wii U because of its tiny install base.

 

[dmassphoto]

I'm biased toward the Solo, but I'm going to be using the P3P. For my personal needs, it's better.

That said, here's some things you're not going to see on the Phantom that you will on the Solo:
1. I've looked at the gimbal controls and they are much better, more fluid than the P3.
2. The gimbal actually has programmable buttons so all you have to do is push one and it will easily slide down/up at your pre-determined speed. This frees you up to fly and get just the right shot.
3. The programmable flight modes, while P3 may get them soon, are second to none right now. You can do a cable cam, and while it's flying you can concentrate on filming.

If I had the money, I would use the P3 for stills (raw files!) and the Solo for motion capture. I just wish the Solo could use a better camera without breaking the bank buying lenses for GoPros.

 

[Dunginhawk]

So you have hands on experience with the gimbal and controls? thats nice...
so you saying you can program the buttons to say pan down 30% at x speed?

 

[rrmccabe]

The programmable flight modes, while P3 may get them soon, are second to none right now. You can do a cable cam, and while it's flying you can concentrate on filming.

What you say is very true but in all fairness you cant compare Solos programmable flight modes to the what DJI might get. The Solo doesnt even have a gimbal yet so DJI is much further along than Solo.

 

[sdharris]

As a P3 owner looking to get a SOLO when available in the UK primarily for the smart shots and secondly because the concept is interesting I would point out that currently my original fear with DJIs SDK approach is currently a reality.

We have a number of developers such as Autoflight Logic waiting to release their beta which features cable cam, orbit, follow me etc but DJI are yet to release a firmware capable of supporting them outside of beta and are yet to file the correct MFI with Apple.

I am wondering if this is likely to reoccur every few months when DJI release a firmware which is not compatible with a third party app. I really do worry that DJI will bankrupt some of these developers by not providing a stable environment for them to code.

I would have preferred DJI to have included these functions in their pilot app as I had thought this situation might happen.

In this respect I much prefer the 3DR approach.

I was also a fan of the GoPro support in the SOLO as I like having the flexibility of taking the camera off and using it elsewhere with the same lens effect. However having used the P3 for a couple of months I have changed my mind in that respect and really do shudder when I see some GoPro footage.

Finally for me, I am concerned with the apparent GPS problems experienced by many SOLO users early on and to me it seemed common sense that the flight controller should be able to handle degradation of the signal and automatically switch to a manual mode instead of chasing 'GPS coordinates'. To me it sounds like 3DR should have really tested the platform more. Ordinarily I would put part of it down to pilot error but this forum seems to be more sensible than others currently so I do put more weight on peoples experiences.

 

[Dunginhawk]

Thanks for your contribution SDharris.

With regards to your SDK issue with DJI, I cant say its any different right now with 3DR... There is a promise of some ability to code, or make accessories, but reality is, right now there isnt much.
I do believe them however, and I do feel the future is bright for something open source, even if not 100% open source.

 

[dmassphoto]

So you have hands on experience with the gimbal and controls? thats nice...
so you saying you can program the buttons to say pan down 30% at x speed?

Can't tell if you're seriously inquiring or being a smartass. The former is welcome.

I do not have hands on experience with the gimbal, but I spent time working with the controls and it's pretty evident what you can do with the gimbal controls via the controller. As far as I can tell, and I don't have the controller with me at the moment, but I'm pretty sure the 1/2 buttons on the right will automatically pan the controller up or down and the wheel between them controls the speed at which they pan. At least it seemed that way when I was playing with it.

 

[Lonewulph]

but I'm pretty sure the 1/2 buttons on the right will automatically pan the controller up or down and the wheel between them controls the speed at which they pan. At least it seemed that way when I was playing with it.

That would be awesome, looking forward to it.