Anafi or Spark?

[Tim-herts]

I'm new to drones and want to be able to capture some nice outdoors moments with my 4 year old daughter.

I have seen the Spark advertised for £350 without controller but I think it will be fairly limited.

The Anafi is a similar price to the Spark with the controller.

Can anyone help me with my purchasing dilemma?

We live in some nice wooded areas despite it being a little built up and I enjoy walks and runs outdoors.

I also enjoy sailing and think some nice footage from a drone would be great!

 

[Drone_guy]

Try looking here.

 

[d95gas]

Anafi every day ..... I have the DJI Mavic, and since getting the Anafi, I have not used the Mavic...... DJI support is pants, so far Parrot support has been great.

 

[Landbo]

I'm new to drones and want to be able to capture some nice outdoors moments with my 4 year old daughter.

I have seen the Spark advertised for £350 without controller but I think it will be fairly limited.

The Anafi is a similar price to the Spark with the controller.

Can anyone help me with my purchasing dilemma?

We live in some nice wooded areas despite it being a little built up and I enjoy walks and runs outdoors.

I also enjoy sailing and think some nice footage from a drone would be great!

When you want to make great pictures of the daughter I would recommend Parrot Anafi. Dji Spark, in my opinion, has a relative bad camera and can "only" make 1080p video.

A Spark Without Controller can you only be sure has a range of 30 meters, all that's beyond is luck.

You should also be aware that the reason for a Spark is sold with large discounts in the price presumably is that it is not produced anymore.

Good luck with your choice, greetings Leif.

 

[nicholashickman]

Anafi...

I have a spark and love it, use it more than my other drones but the Anafi offers much more.

PS. I would never fly a drone with my mobile only! No remote - no go!

 

[Tim-herts]

Anafi every day ..... I have the DJI Mavic, and since getting the Anafi, I have not used the Mavic...... DJI support is pants, so far Parrot support has been great.

Even if I am a complete novice?

 

[TJBC75]

I have both the Spark and the Anafi. First off, if you are planning to get the Spark, do not buy the Spark without the controller, you will be disappointed.

They are both very nice drones with different pros and cons. Both are easy to setup and fly. Traveling with either is fairly easy, although I think the Spark packs better. Big difference in flight time - Spark is about 11 to 12 minutes; Anafi is 18 to 20 minutes (real time flying in my experience). Build quality favors the Spark; the Anafi feels delicate compared to Spark. Range is about the same for both. Anafi has more video and photo modes than Spark, but I think the Spark camera may be slightly better. Anafi has a zoom and a 180 degree tilting camera, Spark does not have zoom and I believe its camera has a tilt range of 120 degree. Front sensor on the Spark, none on the Anafi. (Not a huge deal, in about 100 flights with the Spark, the front sensor only came into play a couple of times. Stopped the Spark before a crash in one instance. Rear facing sensor would be much more helpful). The Anafi is considerably more quiet than the Spark - important if you are in a suburban area like I am) The control apps are very different with the DJI Go4 app more complicated (longer learning curve) than the Freeflight 6 app. I've flown both drones enough so I feel comfortable with either app. Some people complained that the apps do not work well with Android, but I never had a problem with DJI Go4 or Freeflight 6. Make sure your phone or tablet is powerful enough to handle the apps as they take a lot of processing power. Check the forums on recommended devices.

In the end, you have to look at how you are going to use the drone. I've had the Spark for about a year and it has traveled with me on 4 or 5 vacations. Has taken great videos and photos (panoramas are fun and easy to take) on those trips. Many people tout 4K video, but you may not need that for casual use. 1080p on the Spark and the Anafi is great for you tube and sharing with friends. Remember, 4k video produces much larger files and you need a more powerful computer to edit the footage. Don't get me wrong, 4K is great and stunning, but many times 1080p serves just as well. Right now, I probably favor the Anafi over the Spark because it has much better battery life, is more quiet and has more options and features. But the Spark is a great drone and I have never looked back after purchasing it nearly a year ago. It has been extremely reliable for me, whereas my first Anafi fell out of the sky for no apparent reason and ended up with a broken leg. Sent it back and got a new one. However, my replacement Anafi has performed like a champ!

 

[Tim-herts]

Really excellent reply. Many thanks

 

[Naviator]

I also own both the Spark and the Anafi, and fly both regularly and extensively.

I find the Spark to be a more user-friendly and refined drone than the Anafi, but the Anafi is a far more versatile and capable machine. The Spark, by comparison, seems almost to have "training wheels" as it essentially tries to self-limit the amount of trouble you can get into. The Anafi, however is also easy to fly, very stable and ideal for a novice to learn on.

The camera on the Anafi is far more capable that the Spark's and it appears that the Anafi's forthcoming firmware updates will continue to take advantage of that potential, while the Spark appears to be approaching an upper limit of improvement.

A big factor to consider between the two machines is the battery life flight time. Anafi easily gets at least twice the flight time per battery as the Spark. In reality however the actual, realized flight time is substantially greater, due to the lack of needing to land, change batteries and re-launch twice as often. This factor alone is a significant de-stressor. Spark's batteries cost half as much, but then you need twice as many, so the cost is essentially the same. The Spark is somewhat less expensive initially, but by the time additional batteries and dedicated charger are added in, the cost is close to a similarly equipped Anafi.

Finally, don't even consider trying to fly either drone without the remote controller. While it certainly can be done, the limitations imposed are so restrictive and cumbersome, it takes most of the joy from the experience !!!

 

[PascalG]

I ve had two sparks and now an anafi. First spark disappeared... second one crashed on take, just shut down and ended up in salt water

Anafi has a better camera, almost twice the flight time and much simpler software. Spark had to many “features” I never used like gesture control etc. overall spark had more bugs which DJI was trying to squash

Range may have been slightly better with spark, I often reached 5000’ vs 4000’ with Anafi. No big deal and again the battery life makes up for it

I agree with the above relies about the controller. Spark is useless without one unless you just want a quick shot

No regret having switched to Anafi

 

[IRR]

I've only flown the Anafi and not the Spark so I can't weigh in on that. But I was a total novice before buying the Anafi and found it to be suitable for a beginner. That being said, the one thing I wish I did different was also buying a really cheap FPV drone, like less than $100, to simply get more experience flying something where I didn't care if it crashed. It's still a skill that takes some practice as I'm sure you know. And I think my learning curve would have been faster had I practiced on something I wasn't so scared of crashing.

 

[Frank85]

Good evening,

I am Francesco and I am writing from Italy. Sorry for my english.

A few days ago I discovered that through a drone it is possible to get a 3D reconstruction of the territory simply flying over and taking photos (through the technique of aerofotogrammetry) ... After learning this I can not wait to get the right drone to do this (in fact I am a land surveyor-planner and for me it is of great interest to be able to develop 3D models of the territory which can then be imported in graphic processing software).
Informing me about the type of drone that lends itself to aerofotogrammetry I focused my attention on these two models: the DJI Spark and the new Parrot Anafi.
The spark seems more economically ... but actually buying the necessary accessories does not cost much less than the Anafi.
Considering it would be my first drone, I initially thought I would be more secure buying the Spark ... having the anti-collision sensors. Then when I saw that even with the anti-collision sensors can not avoid certain types of obstacles (such as the thin cables of an electric line) I convinced myself that perhaps I could do without it ... and that I could learn to drive with caution a drone like the Anafi. Drone, the Anafi, who seems to beat the DJI in many ways.

What instead is putting me a little fear in choosing definitively for Anafi is to read the reviews on Amazon of people who suddenly lost him because he suddenly crashed .. or topic like this: Anafi Fell Out Of The Sky


What I wonder is:

Is Anafi much less reliable than Spark?

What do you think about it?


My fear is to spend 600 euros ... and then see the Anafi crashing for no reason

 

[nicholashickman]

Good evening,

I am Francesco and I am writing from Italy. Sorry for my english.

A few days ago I discovered that through a drone it is possible to get a 3D reconstruction of the territory simply flying over and taking photos (through the technique of aerofotogrammetry) ... After learning this I can not wait to get the right drone to do this (in fact I am a land surveyor-planner and for me it is of great interest to be able to develop 3D models of the territory which can then be imported in graphic processing software).
Informing me about the type of drone that lends itself to aerofotogrammetry I focused my attention on these two models: the DJI Spark and the new Parrot Anafi.
The spark seems more economically ... but actually buying the necessary accessories does not cost much less than the Anafi.
Considering it would be my first drone, I initially thought I would be more secure buying the Spark ... having the anti-collision sensors. Then when I saw that even with the anti-collision sensors can not avoid certain types of obstacles (such as the thin cables of an electric line) I convinced myself that perhaps I could do without it ... and that I could learn to drive with caution a drone like the Anafi. Drone, the Anafi, who seems to beat the DJI in many ways.

What instead is putting me a little fear in choosing definitively for Anafi is to read the reviews on Amazon of people who suddenly lost him because he suddenly crashed .. or topic like this: Anafi Fell Out Of The Sky


What I wonder is:

Is Anafi much less reliable than Spark?

What do you think about it?


My fear is to spend 600 euros ... and then see the Anafi crashing for no reason

In my opinion forward collision sensors only really help if you are using the autonomous flight functions of a drone like 'follow me' OR they can be an extra level of safety when the drone is in 'RTH' (return to home), you lose connection but now have buildings or trees between you and the drone for example.

As for dropping out of the sky, fly aways etc from what I have read and seen the Anafi suffers from these problems as much as any other drone, remember people are more likely to be vocal about a problem. How often do you go out of your way to tell people your fridge keeps things cool and hasn't caught fire?

 

[Dirk_ANAFI]

Good evening,

I am Francesco and I am writing from Italy. Sorry for my english.

A few days ago I discovered that through a drone it is possible to get a 3D reconstruction of the territory simply flying over and taking photos (through the technique of aerofotogrammetry) ... After learning this I can not wait to get the right drone to do this (in fact I am a land surveyor-planner and for me it is of great interest to be able to develop 3D models of the territory which can then be imported in graphic processing software).
...

Yes, the Anafi can make 3D models. The data capturing can also be done automatically with the free app Pix4Dcapture.

 

[Naviator]

Francesco,

I own both the Spark and the Anafi and have flown them quite extensively, and feel that either machine would be adequate for your application. One point, however, in favor of the Anafi is the flight time per battery.

Anafi's battery essentially gives a flight time that in actual practice is greater than twice that of the Spark, especially when you consider the time lost returning to land, change batteries, restart, re-launching and then flying back to the area of work.

An additional point in favor of the Anafi is the ability to utilize the "Flight Plan" feature for autonomous route/mission execution. Spark does not currently have a similar ability...

Best of luck!

 

[Frank85]

In my opinion forward collision sensors only really help if you are using the autonomous flight functions of a drone like 'follow me' OR they can be an extra level of safety when the drone is in 'RTH' (return to home), you lose connection but now have buildings or trees between you and the drone for example.

As for dropping out of the sky, fly aways etc from what I have read and seen the Anafi suffers from these problems as much as any other drone, remember people are more likely to be vocal about a problem. How often do you go out of your way to tell people your fridge keeps things cool and hasn't caught fire?

You're right ..in fact I wondered if it was not a type of common problem (in small percentage) to all drones .. rather than a particular problem of the new Anafi.

Yes, the Anafi can make 3D models. The data capturing can also be done automatically with the free app Pix4Dcapture.

Yes, I saw, it's a very nice application.
I have also seen that you can use Auropilot ... even with IOS.

Francesco,

I own both the Spark and the Anafi and have flown them quite extensively, and feel that either machine would be adequate for your application. One point, however, in favor of the Anafi is the flight time per battery.

Anafi's battery essentially gives a flight time that in actual practice is greater than twice that of the Spark, especially when you consider the time lost returning to land, change batteries, restart, re-launching and then flying back to the area of work.

An additional point in favor of the Anafi is the ability to utilize the "Flight Plan" feature for autonomous route/mission execution. Spark does not currently have a similar ability...

Best of luck!

Thank you!

The longer battery life compared to Spark is a very important point in the choice for Anafi.

Using "Flight Plan" is it possible to give the drone photographic missions like in Pix4dcapture or Autopilot?

 

[PascalG]

As mentioned earlier I had two sparks before Anafi. The Sparks forums are full of posts about sparks flying away and crashing and while in all fairness there are far more Sparks than Anafi I really feel Anafi is more reliable than spark.

I hope Parrot doesn’t mess it up by loading it up with useless features like spark