DJI Mini 2 SE, Lightweight Mini Drone

I concur that DJI makes great drones at many price points, and for many skill levels. Every one of the dozens of articles I read before purchase had DJI at the top of the recommended list. My only problem was deciding which drone to buy as a novice. I didn’t want to buy a >$1K package and have the drone fly off into the sunset, never to be seen again, on my first flight. So, I split the difference on risk vs. cost/performance. I bought a DJI, but not the newest model. The better, but still very similar, model 4 would have cost more than twice as much for a similar package as this model 2. I’m happy to report that this drone is a great choice for adult beginners. It does not have the collision avoidance or 4k camera of the newest model, but it is essentially the same for basic setup and flight control and its camera performance is adequate. It really is a very nice drone, and I’m very happy I bought the DJI. It is relatively easy to set up and very easy to learn to fly. I really like the Mini2 SE and I’m glad I bought it. One thing I didn’t know about drones before researching is that all drones above 250 grams must be registered with the FAA, and some drones must initialize a flight approval each time they are used. So, if you buy a drone that weighs over 250 grams, be sure you understand what you are buying. It’s one thing to have to pay $5 and register once online, it’s another to have to be within cellphone signal range to initialize flight. With the latter type you could be miles into a hike and not be able to use your drone at all due to no cell signal for flight authorization. The DJI Mini 2 SE is not either of those. Two things you will need, which are not included in this kit, are a charger plug adapter and a mini SD type memory card. It’s absolutely ridiculous that a $500 package, that includes everything else, does not include the plug adapter. DJI’s >$1K packages don’t either. You need an 18 Watt or greater plug, such as the newer Apple devices use. Yes, most of us already have one, but that’s not the point. DJI should just charge $5 more and include one in the kit! The memory card isn’t technically necessary but the images and video will be much higher quality if you use one. The DJI Mini 2 SE supports up to a 256 gigabyte card. A high quality name brand card is only ~$25 and a 128 gigabyte is half that. If DJI had included the SD card and charger plug, they would have only had to increase the price of this package by less than $20, and the customer would not have to scramble around trying to source missing pieces of the appropriate parameters. Another issue is the formatting of the SD card… It needs to be formatted in the drone itself but I never found any mention of this in DJI’s instructions. Query YouTube for a quick tutorial, it’s less than a 30 second process once someone walks you through the appropriate menus on the controller app. In summary, I have no real complaints just suggestions, this is a great drone made by the leader in this market segment. It’s high quality, easy to fly and many of the parts are interchangeable with prior and current models. Its basic flight capability is very comparable to the more expensive DJI models, but it is edged out by them on camera resolution and advanced features like object avoidance, but it costs significantly less. If price is not a concern, I’d recommend the Mini 4 unconditionally, it is better. However, the Mini 2 is also an excellent choice and I’m glad I chose it for my first drone. I may upgrade at some point in a few years, once I have a lot more experience, but I’m completely satisfied with this drone and would recommend it or buy it again in the same circumstances.