For the price you probably can beat the mini and DJI makes great stuff. However, check out the Skydio 2, especially if he likes active stuff too, like mountain biking, skateboarding, ATVs, etc. It can run fully autonomous and track you really well. I’ve used it to track a RZR in the mountains and it was zooming in and out of trees almost flawlessly. It is pretty unreal.
It is also made in the US, which is always nice.