Drones · owner-verdict comparison

DJI Air 3S vs Holy Stone HS720: what real owners say

Real owners lean toward the DJI Air 3S: 63% of 130 owners recommend it, vs 42% of 12 for the Holy Stone HS720.

Verdicts aggregated from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube owner comments — affiliate reviews excluded. Sample sizes differ; judge accordingly. How we score

DJI Air 3S

63%of 130 owners recommend
63% recommend · 12% neutral · 25% don't
Owners praise
  • Rock-solid, confident flyer that owners call the best drone they've owned
  • Excellent photo and video quality, with images that hold up even blown up
  • Versatile dual cameras, with the 70mm tele lens delivering pleasing cinematic shots
Owners complain about
  • Image quality isn't clearly better than the Air 3, and some upgraders find the main camera worse
  • Larger and heavier form factor that eats more bag space and is harder to travel with
  • Main camera shows cut bitrate, mushy fine detail, noise, moire and purple fringing
Full owner report →

Holy Stone HS720

42%of 12 owners recommend
42% recommend · 8% neutral · 50% don't
Owners praise
  • Fun, easy drone to learn on
  • Good value and features for the price
  • Handy features like RTH and Tap Fly
Owners complain about
  • Rotation problem causes crashes
  • Toy-like and mediocre overall
  • Disappointing 4K camera footage
Full owner report →

Which should you buy?

Get the DJI Air 3S if
  • ✓First-time buyers wanting a safety-packed drone
  • ✓Fliers in windy or coastal conditions
  • ✓Night and low-light pilots wanting LiDAR obstacle avoidance
  • ✓Photographers wanting dual cameras including a 70mm tele
Skip it if
  • Hikers and travelers needing the smallest form factor
  • Pilots who need the longest transmission range
Get the Holy Stone HS720 if
  • ✓Beginners learning to fly on a budget
  • ✓Hobby flyers wanting fun over pro footage
  • ✓Buyers who value features like RTH and Tap Fly
Skip it if
  • Anyone needing reliable, crash-free flight
  • Users wanting true 4K, gimbal-stabilized video

What DJI Air 3S owners say

“The Air3s just works. The mini4pro is so quiet it's almost a stealth drone but the Air3s is my goto drone for windy days.”
— Grolbu on Reddit
“The Air3S can compete and even beat the mavic 3 pro in some scenarios. Its a amazing drone.”
— glenkrit on Reddit
“Just bought an Air 3s from Adorama 2 weeks ago now Flew for maybe 3-hours total flight time or let’s just say 2 battery charge cycles before I noticed all 3 batteries would stop charging for a second and then start again and then stop, repeat.”
— Affectionate-Buy9412 on Reddit

What Holy Stone HS720 owners say

“Holy Stone seems to be leading the budget drone market right now with their quality.”
— @Uberhr on YouTube
“This is by far the best low cost drone i ve seen yet. Well done HolyStone”
— @milaneisner196 on YouTube
“It quit working after three flights so I returned it to Amazon and left a review telling the truth.”
— @sgbawg0 on YouTube

DJI Air 3S vs Holy Stone HS720: frequently asked questions

Is the DJI Air 3S or the Holy Stone HS720 better?

Real owners lean toward the DJI Air 3S: 63% of 130 owners recommend it, vs 42% of 12 for the Holy Stone HS720.

Who should get the DJI Air 3S?

Owners point the DJI Air 3S at first-time buyers wanting a safety-packed drone, and fliers in windy or coastal conditions.

Who should get the Holy Stone HS720?

Owners point the Holy Stone HS720 at beginners learning to fly on a budget, and hobby flyers wanting fun over pro footage.

What do owners complain about?

The most-cited downside of the DJI Air 3S is image quality isn't clearly better than the Air 3, and some upgraders find the main camera worse. For the Holy Stone HS720, it's rotation problem causes crashes.