DJI Spark vs. Mavic Pro – Comparison and Buyer’s Guide
There was a lot of confusion after DJI announced the Spark. Is the Spark going to be better then the Mavic Pro? Has the Spark superior features to the Mavic? Well als most of the time with tech the answer is “Depends on”. With this Comparison I’m trying to help you in your decision and show you whether you are a DJI Spark or a DJI Mavic Pro guy.
Most of the new features in the Spark i already covered in my Unboxing and Review of the Spark. So i won’t cover those again. But you are welcome to rewatch it.
So let’s start with the Dimensions of DJI’s entry Level Drones. Storing the Drone is one thing. but if you fly with it you also have to consider the size of the Rotors. So the Mavic throws an diameter of about 52cm into the Ring. Thats impressive considering you can fold the Mavic up to 21cm. The first time i held a DJI Spark i was surprised how small it was. It only has a diameter of 27cm. Even if you put the Pro Guards on it only has 31cm.
So the Spark is way safer to fly in small places then the Mavic. But when it comes to Packing space the Spark is still bigger then the Mavic since you can’t fold the arms.
But size doesn’t always matter. If you travel a lot and you have to pack light this decision will be easy. The Mavic weighs 759g plus your Controller 319g. So you are at a total of 1.07kg. Thats a lot of weight. Especially because you normally won’t just travel with one Battery. So lets take a look at the Spark. The Controller is about 275g and the Drone only has 306g. This is incredible. Thats not even half of the Mavic. Since the Batteries are small too they are way lighter then the ones from the Mavic.
The Form Factor of the Spark comes with a price. The Mavic achieved an incredible 28 minutes under optimal conditions. Considering the Size of the Spark it’s unbelievable that DJI still managed to squeeze 18 Minutes of Flight Time out of it.
One of the most important things when it comes to Drones is the Image quality. Here both Drones couldn’t be more different. The Mavic can record Videos in up to 4k (4096 x 2160 with 23.9fps) the Spark only can manage Full HD (1980 x 1080 with 29.9fps). With Pictures the Mavic goes up to a Resolution of 4000 x 3000 and can give you the images in RAW(DNG). The Spark only gives you Pictures as JPG in 1440×1080. Here are some unedited Pictures from both.
When it comes to picture quality. The Mavic will be definitely your pick. Surprisingly the Spark is delivering a very decent quality in pictures and videos. So if you don’t want to edit your Footage in Post the Spark for sure delivers a good enough quality.
So my conclusion is. If you want to go with a light weight, easy to use Drone that delivers a good enough footage quality the Spark will be your pick. The Mavic on the other hand is a serious work horse that is unbeatable when it comes to size and picture quality. Only the bigger Drones will supply you with a better image but they are also way bigger.
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DJI Mavic Pro
DJI Mavic Pro Fly More Combo
DJI Spark
DJI Spark Fly More Combo