Pro and Cons Autel Evo 2 640T V3 vs DJI Mavic 3T

[ekelley6]

I am new to the commercial drone industry and want to become educated in thermography. I want to purchase a thermal drone but I can not decide between the Autel or the DJI, could I please get some help trying to make an informed educated decision. Thank you in advance.

 

[Flippigan]

Go DJI, far more volume than Autel. Therefore parts and battery availability is much better a year or two down the road. Autel does their best but they don’t produce parts as long as DJI, so you end up having to buy a new one earlier. If that’s not a problem and you’d like to support a less monopolistic company, Autel for sure. Added benefit is Autel thermal cam is slightly clearer from what I’ve heard.

 

[ekelley6]

Thank you for the info., with the Autel I liked the idea of not having the geofencing, has that been a problem for you with DJI? Right now you can purchase the Autel evo 2 640t v3 for $4700 so that is somewhat attractive but I have not owned an Autel product so trying to weigh all the pros and cons.

 

[Flippigan]

Thank you for the info., with the Autel I liked the idea of not having the geofencing, has that been a problem for you with DJI? Right now you can purchase the Autel evo 2 640t v3 for $4700 so that is somewhat attractive but I have not owned an Autel product so trying to weigh all the pros and cons.

The lack of geo restrictions is a plus for Autel. If you’re doing work with the drone and need the waivers regardless DJI is good about unlocking their zones quickly.

Also if you expect to be flying in areas that are not flight restricted (check b4ufly for details on where you plan to fly) then it’s not an issue either.

All else being equal, and if you expect to fly in class g or above airspace frequently recreationally then Autel’s lack of geofencing is a huge plus. The cheap pricing will come back around to bite if you keep the Autel for 2+ years. In my experience that’s when Autel stops producing batteries for their units. And that’s always what you need to replace around then.

 

[jaja6009]

I have a Mavic Enterprise Advanced and at work we have an Autel Dual 640. Both get the job done and both are good aircraft.

The Mavic 3 T is a better choice for me since you get Flight Hub 2 with its Live Streaming, situational awareness and soon control of the drone from Flight Hub 2. You may not need those options, but I find them very useful.

One thing to keep in mind though. There are several laws that may be passed that could ban all DJI products. And there is a similar law that would do the same for Autel.
No one has a crystal ball to know if these laws will pass and if they will go with a full ban to include past purchased drones or just ban DJI from that point forward.

You may want to look into USA drones too if you really want to do your research correctly.

FLIR SIRAS, Inspired Flight, Skydio (Won't sell to small businesses or single users), and some others do have more expensive, less capable options.

 

[Rob Hodges]

Don't forget that bill, currently in Congress to make DJI drones illegal. I'm not buying anything DJI right now. I would like to have the new Avata 2, but am already risking about 6K in DJI equipment if that bill goes through. We need to all contact our congressmen and tell them not to support it if it gets to the floor.