DJI has recently released Spark, their smallest and cheapest drone yet. With the price of $500, you may wonder how it compares to DJI’s more powerful models like Phantom 4 Pro and Mavic Pro. In this video from Billy Kyle, you’ll get to see how the “selfie drone” stands against the Phantom and Mavic in terms of video quality and customization of features. Since the Spark can’t shoot 4K, all three test videos were recorded in 1080p at 30 fps. All three drones used the same settings: the exposure set to “automatic” and white balance set to “sunny.” You can see the footage of each drone first, and then they’re lined side by side so you can compare them.
When you compare all three videos, it’s obvious that Phantom 4 Pro exceeds the performance of both Mavic and Spark. But these two drones are still pretty good considering that they’re much cheaper (especially Spark).
When you compare Spark with the Mavic, you can say that the colors from Spark are warmer and more realistic. Billy sees more clarity in the Mavic, but to be honest – I can’t tell too much of a difference. It may be my monitor or my eyesight, but to me, the clarity looks more or less the same.
Now, when you compare the Spark with the Phantom 4 Pro, the difference becomes more obvious: the Phantom’s image quality is unarguably better. But again, considering the difference in price, I wouldn’t expect anything less from the Phantom.
Another feature Billy compares are customization and features. With Phantom 4 Pro and Mavic, you can shoot in 4K, which is a deal breaker for many users when they are choosing the drone. But other than this, there are many customization options – you can change color profiles, style settings and customize the look of the screen with these two drones. When it comes to Spark, there aren’t so many features and abilities for customization. However, this may still be improved over time. I must say I’m pleasantly surprised how little Spark holds up against the two more powerful drones. Although the image quality of the Phantom 4 Pro is obviously better, I don’t see much difference when I compare it with the Mavic Pro. And how does it seem to you? Do you think this is a fair comparison, and what do you think of Spark’s performance? [DJI Spark vs. Mavic Pro vs. Phantom 4 Pro Video Quality Comparison via FStoppers]
