The Mavic Pro just may be the most recognizable and highly touted name in drones today—and for good reason. Mavic Pro drones regularly make it onto lists of the top drones in all sorts of categories, and we’ve praised their quality in the past as well. To truly round things out, though, and get the most out of your Mavic Pro, you’ll need a case with a level of quality on par with that of the drone itself.
So, what is the best Mavic Pro case out there? Well, we’ve carefully considered a number of different cases across a range of crucial metrics that we think every drone enthusiast should always be on the lookout for—like durability, portability, waterproofing, storage capability and price—before rendering our judgment. Moreover, we realize that these qualities shouldn’t simply be considered in isolation as a full evaluation requires considering how the qualities interact together.
To give a simple example, we can all agree that a case should be sturdy and able to offer reliable protection for your drone and accessories. However, generally speaking, as case durability increases, so does price. A case may be able to withstand a heavy beating and keep your Mavic unscathed, but if this makes it prohibitively expensive, that will reduce its overall attractiveness.
With all of these factors in mind, we think that the Smatree SmaCase D500 Storage Carrying Case is about as good a Mavic Pro case as anyone can reasonably ask for. Below, we have a detailed explanation of the case’s features and a breakdown of how it fairs in each of the important quality categories we’ve mentioned.
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Smatree SmaCase D500 Specifications:
| Product: |   |
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| Specifications: | • Dimensions: 12.7 x 9.3 x 4.4 inches • Weight: 2.64 pounds (or about 2 pounds, 9 ounces) • Hard plastic exterior that protects your Mavic from damage • Made of high-density ethylene-vinyl acetate, or EVA • Able to carry your Mavic Pro, three additional batteries, your remote and any additional cables • Comes with a mesh pocket to carry additional accessories • Has both a carrying handle and an adjustable shoulder strap |
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Smatree SmaCase D500 Pros:
• Lightweight and fairly small for easy portability
• Durable shock-absorbing plastic shell provides protection
• Fairly waterproof, so case can get somewhat wet without affecting drone inside
• Comes with tight-fitting foam pockets to keep your Mavic Pro and accessories from shaking around
• Can fit many accessories, especially considering its small size, including up to four batteries (three in the case’s foam pockets and one in your Mavic)
• Reasonably priced, so affordable for most budgets
Smatree SmaCase D500 Cons:
• Not as sturdy or waterproof as some heavier and more expensive cases
• Foam pocket cutout for the remote may press upon the joystick and require some adjustment
Overall Ratings:
Bottom Line
The Smatree SmaCase D500 Storage Carrying Case is such an excellent Mavic Pro case that it’s difficult to find much to say about it that’s negative. Only the most persnickety of users will find much to object to. Even many of the weaknesses that it does have are understandable, given certain unavoidable design trade-offs that have given the case virtues in other areas. Few other cases can surpass it in durability and overall protective quality, and none that can are cheaper than it.
Other than durability, perhaps the most important quality in a drone carrying case is storage capability, and the SmaCase D500 earns high honors here as well—honors that are all the more impressive when its small size and weight are borne in mind. The case is portable, easy to carry and easy to store away. It is also quite affordable.
The case’s weakest point may be its waterproofing capacity, but unless you plan to go deep-sea diving with your drone, which you shouldn’t be doing with a Mavic Pro anyway, it should be adequate to your needs even here. In short, this is an excellent case, and if you love your Mavic Pro, you owe it to yourself to at least give it a look. You can get it on Amazon.
Durability—Score: 9/10
It’s safe to say that durability is usually the top feature by which most people will evaluate a drone case. After all, a case’s primary purpose is to protect what you put inside of it. You might assume, upon first glance at the SmaCase D500, that it’s soft and not terribly impact-resistant. Happily, you’d be very wrong. One good feel of the case’s exterior will show you just how deceiving appearances can be. Knock against its hard plastic and EVA outer shell, and you’ll see that this thing is unquestionably tough.
The only thing keeping us from bestowing perfect marks for durability on the SmaCase is the fact that there are a handful of other cases that are even tougher. None of these others can boast quite the desirable combination of other features that the SmaCase can, though, and that makes it a genuinely impressive achievement.
Waterproofing—Score: 8/10
The SmaCase D500’s thick and durable EVA exterior gives it some respectable waterproofing properties as well. This is an especially important quality on which to evaluate a case as the Mavic Pro is not a waterproof drone, and the manufacturer recommends that you not even fly it in the rain or while it’s snowing. EVA’s polymer mesh allows it to be a reliable insulator. If you carry the SmaCase D500 out in the rain—even in heavy rain—you can be confident that your drone and its accessories will remain completely dry.
For nearly all ordinary or conventional purposes, therefore, the case provides adequate waterproofing. However, we don’t recommend that you tempt fate and submerge the case underwater while the drone is still inside. Thick plastic cases will provide even more insulation to your Mavic Pro, but they will be much larger and more expensive than the SmaCase D500.
Portability—Score: 10/10
The SmaCase D500 measures just 12.7 x 9.3 x 4.4 inches and weighs only about 2 pounds, 9 ounces. It’s therefore very small, lightweight, easy to store away and a breeze to carry around. To add to your convenience, it has both a carrying handle and shoulder strap, so you can either carry it in your hands or sling it over your shoulder if your hands are full.
There are some very high-end and ultra-durable Mavic cases out there that can weigh as much as 6 or 7 pounds before you even put your Mavic inside of them. However impressive their protective capabilities are, such cases are a chore to lug around. The SmaCase D500, on the other hand, is unobtrusive and barely noticeable.
Storage Capability—Score: 10/10
Considering how small this Mavic Pro case is, its storage capacity is almost miraculous. Its relatively small external dimensions give no indication of its impressive carrying capability, but it’s certainly there. The pockets carved into the thick and durable foam inside are meant to contain the following things: the Mavic Pro itself, its remote control, the SD card, a battery charger, assorted cables or wires and three Mavic Pro batteries. If you keep a battery inside of your Mavic, that capacity increases to four batteries.
The depressions carved into the foam—from the largest one for the Mavic to the smallest one for its SD card—are all sturdy, and the foam is virtually immovable. Everything you put into this case will be firmly locked into place. If that wasn’t enough, the case also has a mesh pocket into which you can place yet more accessories. Since the SmaCase D500 can carry more than even many larger-dimension Mavic cases can, its creators deserve praise for their highly economical design. Some users have complained that the remote control pocket is improperly carved and can unduly press down on the joysticks, but even if you should experience this problem, it can be easily fixed.
Price—Score: 10/10
To be absolutely honest, there are plenty of cases available for the Mavic Pro that are cheaper than the SmaCase D500, but there are certainly none that offer the impressive combination of other features that it does. Though Amazon’s prices are known to fluctuate, you can usually get a SmaCase D500 there for about $38. The very cheapest of cases for the Mavic Pro, by contrast, sell for about $20-$25, so there isn’t a large premium at all separating them from the SmaCase D500.
Quality differences, however, especially in durability and storage capacity, are enormously skewed in favor of the SmaCase D500. Also, while some heavy-duty Mavic cases that offer superior protection exist, they are heavy and cumbersome and can frequently cost between $90 and $100. In short, when controlled for quality, the SmaCase D500 is a steal.
What Do Other Reviews Say?
We are far from alone in gushing over the Smatree SmaCase D500 case. Many other voices on YouTube have joined in the chorus that sings its praises. This review, for instance, especially praises its easily manageable size and impressive storage capacity. Longer and more hands-on reviews that provide detailed breakdowns of the case’s features—like this one—also find much to praise and little to criticize.
Conclusion
We just can’t say enough about how great the Smatree SmaCase D500 Storage Carrying Case is. It truly is the ultimate in Mavic Pro cases when all important features are weighed against one another and properly considered. It’s tough, lightweight, portable, able to fit a ton of accessories, reasonably waterproof and very cheap compared to other cases of comparably high quality. Head over to Amazon now and purchase this fantastic case.
You should also know that we’ve reviewed cases for other popular drones, including the DJI Spark. If you have any other drones in your collection that you want to equip with the best overall case the market can offer, give our review a look. In fact, we’ve got a long line of reviews and discussions of all kinds of drones and drone-related products, so come back sometime and check out some more of our product reviews and best-in-class lists.