So i’m still really new to Dones and the hobby.
Ive only had my cheap learning drone for a matter of a few weeks and yet im finding myself constantly looking for something a little better like a Mavic Mini (more likely with the price) or a Pro
Surly i should be enjoying throwing myself into flying the one i have, yet ive a wondering eye for something more!! I know it’s gonna go down like a lead balloon with the wife but such is life lol.
I’m guessing im not alone in getting so hooked that i want better almost instantly?
Also how long did it take you guys in getting the balls to go and push your drones limits? I worry about losing it too much atm lol
Having the balls to trust your skills comes with experience, and trust in your own drone.
With the cheaper end of drones you do not always get the Stability and security of a good hover, that is why most of us fly the DJI Range.
We have all in the early days of our flying have had exactly the same as you, so it’s not a new thing.
As for the Wife, does not your enjoyment and well being mean anything to her, my wife knows who wears the trousers, and has done for many years.
Note, I did not say who did !.
PS my wife gave up after my third drone, and realised that it was not a 5 minute fancy !.
I blame my whole experience on a guy flying his Mavic Pro at the beach, being a geek I went and spoke to him about it, I knew nothing about drones at this point let alone how advanced they were. This thing was amazing.
As much as the guy recommended the Mavic he told me to start with maybe the MJX Range. The perfect entry level BUGS5w I thought this was fantastic but after two months with this bird I chopped it in for the Mavic Pro, then about 6 months after that I chopped that in for a Mavic 2 Pro.
Your definitely not alone when it comes to wanting better things. With the boss mind you, it took some Buttering up. Few flowers and bottle of wine did the trick. Think she knows though, that my drone obsession isn’t just a flash in the pan, which is why she gave in easier than expected. Is a fantastic hobby and very addictive, pushing yourself more and more on each flight is the key & trusting your drone is essential to get the best footage possible.
As the other members have said here it is probably best to build up your flying experience, get some hours under your belt, maybe even take a course or two and your confidence will grow.
I can remember many moons ago learning to drive a car and passing my test. I don’t think I really learnt to drive until after I had been on the road for a while. It’s the same with flying.
You look on Youtube and see some of them take a drone out of the box and fly it 5 miles away (illegally) without a care in the world. Most of us have to pay for our own kit and just would not entertain that kind of stupidity. Before taking my PfCO I just spent a year flying in quiet local areas doing drills, flying squares, ensuring that I knew the orientation of the drone all the time. Eventually the confidence comes and I started flying further out (still maintaining VLOS) but to the point where the thing is a dot in the sky. Don’t do anything in the beginning that scares you is a good policy!
Practise emergency drills, flying between points. Pick a tree out in the distance and try and put the drone over the tree at a certain height without looking at the screen. You’ll soon start to be able to tell from the size of the drone roughly how high or how far away you are. It’s all practise like any other skill.
At this point you know the App and the screen controls well. It all becomes second nature. You’ll be a much better pilot for the practise. Take your time, enjoy giving yourself challenges as part of teaching yourself to fly. It’s a fantastic hobby which doesn’t have to be stressful. Most accidents or stressful situations can be put down to bad flight planning and pilots who try to exceed their current skill level.
If you can get out there and fly once or twice a week regularly your skill level will come to you very quickly and you’ll gain the confidence to push the drone and yourself further.
And all that practise will give you time to save up/hide funds from the wife ready for the next one!
I think this is an excellent point. When I first flew the Phantom 4 it took me ages to actually trust that it could do what they said it could do! Putting it into an intelligent mode and setting it off is really scary for a while until you trust that it’s actually going to come back and do what it’s supposed to do!
Set your RTH height properly and the button becomes your friend very quickly!
I would go for the Mavic mini as starter to first see if you like it no point going all ends in with a pro or something in that range until 1 you get some flying experience under your belt with a less complex drone and 2 / walk before you start running / it’s a great little drone that will provide you a solid base to learn - you have to be much more weary of the flying conditions ( wind )as it’s small and light so you it gets you thinking all the time - and when you fly this mini in wind it’s challenging but you are learning all the time -
Forget about flying distance ( you need to always have line of sight (Vlos) go do a couple flying courses too that helps -
Good luck on your journey
Ps
I’m 9 months relatively new to flying I just passed my PFCO I love it
You would do very well with the Mini or the Air 2. The Mini is prone to being blown around by medium strength winds which are often stronger up above than down on the ground and can catch you out. The Air 2 is perfect for beginners but good enough to probably never need you to upgrade and will handle strong wind absolutely fine…
I was in the exact same position and as @ianinlondon said, i am going for the Mavic Air 2, seems to be a good beginner drone and even pros use it. That means it will stay long enough to have your trust and build up flying experience and because it is new you probably won’t need to upgrade anytime soon.
Icarus used his wings to try and escape from Crete.
Many fly their drones to escape the day to day riggers. Being at altitude looking down on the world around us we see things differently.
Maybe the morning birdsong is always so loud because they get to view that beauty around us again that day and the next.
I don’t think there is anyone that’s flown a drone looked at the screen and not smiled at the view their “wings” are giving them.
We just have to heed battery life and not worry about flying too close to the sun.
If you don’t want to spend too much, look at the FIMI X8 SE, it produces some good results and is reasonably priced so if you do lose it you will only cry for a while! How do I know??? DON’T ASK.
Look at some of my videos on here and compare them with others.
Google them. There are lots of places selling them but it might be best to find a forum because although I had no problem buying mine, some people have been messed about, mines a 2018 and I paid about £340 but the 2020 model appears to be a bit more.
and bottle of wine did the trick. 
Think she knows though, that my drone obsession isn’t just a flash in the pan, which is why she gave in easier than expected. Is a fantastic hobby and very addictive, pushing yourself more and more on each flight is the key & trusting your drone is essential to get the best footage possible.
