Welcome, Autel Pilots!
Join our free Autel drone community today!
Join Us

Alternative to DJI

samename

New Member
Joined
Apr 27, 2021
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Age
58
Hi All,

I'm in Toronto, Canada

my daughter does photography and video

she has used DJI mini 2 fly more combo drone and is stuck on getting that one

I want to get an alternative that is not made in China

I know Autel only had frame made there

looking for any drone easy to transport / fly / does 4k video or better

can any one help with this ?
 
Define "made in China"... even if a company assembles the equipment in another country, all the parts are going to be Chinese in origin. So what's your point?

I can absolutely guarantee that there are valid reasons for choosing another manufacturer than DJI... however place of origin, is not among them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MikeReidPhotography
I don't intend to get into a larger discussion about the dozens of reasons why not to support China in this forum as I am sure the moderator and members would not invite that

I know for a fact that there are components made in other countries and as it is my preference to avoid supporting China i was merely inquiring in this forum as to whether anyone had more knowledge

perhaps i was mistaken
 
This may not affect you in Canada but one difference between DJI and Autel is DJI is on what they call "the entity list" in the USA which means the federal government cannot buy directly from DJI. It doesn't affect private sales to individuals in the USA.

Autel did have a marketing gimmick saying Autel is made in America but from what I understand; that isn't really accurate. Some assembly may happen here. I'm not even sure there is a functioning repair facility in the USA to be honest.

I think the Skydio 2 isn't made in China but its strength lies in the active track autonomous ability and not the camera or remote controlled capability.

I really like my Evo 2 Pro for the most part but for the hobbyist the best bang for the buck is currently the DJI Air 2S. This is just my opinion and I don't own one but all indications do point in that direction. Having said that a good used Evo 2 Pro for a fair price, say $1200 USD, with at least 2 batteries would be a much better camera drone. Again; just my humble opinion.

I'm hearing the DJI Pro 3 will be coming out in late summer which will be the upper end prosummer drone from DJI just like the Evo 2 Pro is for Autel. Everyone is speculating about the price but I think the $2500 USD guess is likely close.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MikeReidPhotography
I don't intend to get into a larger discussion about the dozens of reasons why not to support China in this forum as I am sure the moderator and members would not invite that

I know for a fact that there are components made in other countries and as it is my preference to avoid supporting China i was merely inquiring in this forum as to whether anyone had more knowledge

perhaps i was mistaken

Did not intend in any way, to discourage your exploring other options. To give an additional perspective, most of my experience has been with another Chinese manufacturer, Yuneec. The primary reason I chose them is because all of their aircraft (with the exception of their most basic model) does not require any use of an app to operate the equipment... which means no information is being constantly sent back through the app to the company. The difference is how each company chooses to operate... the fact that they are both made in the same country is moot.
 
Hi All,

I'm in Toronto, Canada

my daughter does photography and video

she has used DJI mini 2 fly more combo drone and is stuck on getting that one

I want to get an alternative that is not made in China

I know Autel only had frame made there

looking for any drone easy to transport / fly / does 4k video or better

can any one help with this ?
If she likes the mini 2, that's what I would recommend. Not a real big investment and really is a pretty fantastic drone. If it's the camera she is after, I doubt if most people can tell the difference as unless you are in the upper range, they are all 12 mpixel. The Air 2S would also be a good choice.
Also, if she plans on upgrading every couple years, Autel might come into play.
 
Totally agree, which is why Autel is now on my radar. Guess my overall POV is, focus on the company's actions, not where their headquarters is located.
 
clearly the Autel Evo 2 pro is my atf but I also have the skydio2 with remote/beacon and it is a my #2. sure it's a tracking sports drone but it's an excellent ordinary recreational drone as well. the camera is amazing too. the best thing about the skydio2 is "it won't crash." high recommended if you want something closer to America.
 
clearly the Autel Evo 2 pro is my atf but I also have the skydio2 with remote/beacon and it is a my #2. sure it's a tracking sports drone but it's an excellent ordinary recreational drone as well. the camera is amazing too. the best thing about the skydio2 is "it won't crash." high recommended if you want something closer to America.
I like hearing things like this. Do you use a remote control or the fob or both?
 
Anything is better than DJI as their geo fencing is an issue!
Sometimes you get permission to fly in a restricted zone, sometimes you don’t, but most importantly, you might get permission from the app the night before, go on location the next day and because of a glitch, the drone refuses to take off.
I had this happen twice to me for paying gigs of $2000 for the day and frankly, can’t take that chance again.
I cannot trust DJI going forward for paid gigs. I have now switched to the Autel system.
 
  • Love
Reactions: Drgnfli
I have more active DJI aircraft/drones than Autel, however more of my flights/missions now get flown by the Autel compared to all my DJI combined. Still use the DJI particular where I need to fly a litchi or DD recurring mission, and some other corner cases.

For example mini when I need something small, very portable, dont need 4K or 6K or raw photo. P4P for litchi/dd missions, carrying extra payload, and for longer distances (obsidian can be seen further for vlos).
Regular mavic litchi/dd missions, as well as for carrying other payloads (360 cameras, gopros, etc).

However the Autel E2P gets most of the indoor and outdoor activity.
 
  • Like
Reactions: The Autelian
This may not affect you in Canada but one difference between DJI and Autel is DJI is on what they call "the entity list" in the USA which means the federal government cannot buy directly from DJI. It doesn't affect private sales to individuals in the USA.

Autel did have a marketing gimmick saying Autel is made in America but from what I understand; that isn't really accurate. Some assembly may happen here. I'm not even sure there is a functioning repair facility in the USA to be honest.

I think the Skydio 2 isn't made in China but its strength lies in the active track autonomous ability and not the camera or remote controlled capability.

I really like my Evo 2 Pro for the most part but for the hobbyist the best bang for the buck is currently the DJI Air 2S. This is just my opinion and I don't own one but all indications do point in that direction. Having said that a good used Evo 2 Pro for a fair price, say $1200 USD, with at least 2 batteries would be a much better camera drone. Again; just my humble opinion.

I'm hearing the DJI Pro 3 will be coming out in late summer which will be the upper end prosummer drone from DJI just like the Evo 2 Pro is for Autel. Everyone is speculating about the price but I think the $2500 USD guess is likely close.
There is so much confusion about this, Autel is a Chinese company 100% and as stated above a marketing scheme is to put an office in the US and call the merchandise "American" I believe when they first started they had a "figurehead" American that claimed to be the brains behind the company. Skydio on the other hand is allegedly hand built in it's entirety in the good ol US of A with American components and 100% American design. Now considering the price of the Skydio 2 it's hard to believe it is "made by hand" specially in the the good ol US of A, but hey, what do I know?
 
There is so much confusion about this, Autel is a Chinese company 100% and as stated above a marketing scheme is to put an office in the US and call the merchandise "American" I believe when they first started they had a "figurehead" American that claimed to be the brains behind the company. Skydio on the other hand is allegedly hand built in it's entirety in the good ol US of A with American components and 100% American design. Now considering the price of the Skydio 2 it's hard to believe it is "made by hand" specially in the the good ol US of A, but hey, what do I know?
I believe in 2021, the moniker "Chinese company" has a different meaning than last decade. things have changed; it's pretty complex now....and there are so many configurations.
 
Hi All,

I'm in Toronto, Canada

my daughter does photography and video

she has used DJI mini 2 fly more combo drone and is stuck on getting that one

I want to get an alternative that is not made in China

I know Autel only had frame made there

looking for any drone easy to transport / fly / does 4k video or better

can any one help with this ?

The reality of the situation is that we all support China in some way every single day. Politics and personal preferences aside, there is simply no way around it. Even if a product is 100% assembled in a different country, I can almost guarantee you that at least 50% of its components came from China.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Eagle's Eye Photo
When I was shopping for a new drone earlier this year, I also wanted to avoid Chinese products. I do as much as possible with all products, but unfortunately with some things it's impossible and drones are one of those difficult areas.

Even the Skydio has some Chinese components. I bought a Skydio first though, even knowing its limitations for my intended use. Just didn't quite do what I wanted though, so I ended up buying the Autel E2P. The E2P was way better, in every single way, near prefect for my use.

I returned the Skydio, but I sincerely hope someday they put out a product that fits my use better. I even told them that when I provided them feedback on why I returned it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: gschulzuio

Latest threads

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
11,228
Messages
102,655
Members
9,818
Latest member
redwingaerials