DJI’s Mini 3 is a proper entry-level follow-up to the wildly popular DJI Mini 2 that starts at $569.
This new drone retains the great camera and gimbal from the Mini 3 Pro ($869) released earlier this year but strips out most of the other pro-level features. This includes ‘Active Track,’ internal storage and the ability to shoot in 4K/60fps.
This still provides users with a compelling drone experience at a more approachable price point, and by removing the Active tracking sensors, DJI has been able to increase the flight time by four minutes with the Mini 3. This means that with the standard battery, you can get around 38 minutes of flying, and with the heavier Intelligent Flight Battery Plus, you get 51 minutes. However, this bigger battery pushes the drone over that 250g sweet spot, and you’ll need to get a drone license.
While the Mini 3 starts at $569, take note that the base package is just the drone, so if you need a controller, it will cost you $689 for the basic bundle with the DJI RC-N1. The more expensive DJI RC flight sticks feature a screen built into it but comes bundled for $889. It’s also worth mentioning that these are the prices DJI provided MobileSyrup. With this in mind, given the company doesn’t sell directly in Canada, you either need to purchase the DJI Mini 3 online for a direct conversion of the U.S. price or through a third-party retailer like Best Buy, which may increase the cost slightly.
You can also get the Mini 3 in a classic DJI Fly more bundle with two extra batteries, a carrying case and spare propellers. The version with the standard controller costs $908, and the more advanced DJI RC package is priced at $1,108.
With almost all my previous drone reviews, I recommend this package because it gets you extra batteries and a charger, at the very least. However, with the long flight time the Mini 3 offer, I could easily see people getting away with buying just a single extra battery and saving that money to buy accessories that can improve the camera, like the ND filter set.
The DJI Avata is possibly the most fun I’ve had flying a drone, but its high price tag and steep learning curve make me wonder how big the FPV drone market will ever become.
DJI has attempted to lessen this learning curve with its ‘Motion controller’ that came out with the first (and much larger) DJI FPV drone last year. I’ve been using this new controller all week, and while it’s insanely intuitive, I’m not sure if it’s truly the right tool to use to control a flying camera.
Beyond that, the company has released a newer and smaller pair of FPV goggles with HD display capabilities, a touch panel and adjustable prescription lenses that are pretty amazing. There truly is a lot to love about the Avata drone system, but you need to ask yourself a few questions before you decide to pick this up over a Mini 3 Pro.
What to know before you buy
The Avata is known as a ‘Cinewoop’ drone since it’s small, safe and fast. These drones accomplish crazy shots of flying straight down, flips, and other jaw-dropping camera techniques. If you’ve ever seen an Instagram video of a drone flying through tiny gaps in trees or indoors, it’s likely one of these types.
The inclusion of propeller guards makes them both safer and more rigid compared to something light and minimal like the DJI Mini 3 Pro. I even crashed mine into a tiny pole that I didn’t see in the goggles at full speed, and the drone shook it off after I retrieved it from a nearby tree. DJI also designed the Avata to shut off quickly after it impacts something with enough force so it ideally won’t go crazy and spiral out of control, causing more harm or damage. This is a great safety feature, but also something to keep in mind as you try more intense stunts high in the air or over water.
But don’t let its relative safety and small size fool you. This drone weighs almost twice as much as the Mini 3 Pro, which means you need a level one drone license to operate it.
The battery I should mention is rated to last 18 minutes, but I found myself getting closer to 10-14 minute range of actual flight time before the drone started warning me that my battery was dying and that it was going to start returning home.
It’s also worth noting that the types of shots you can get with this drone are much different than you’d expect from a Mavic or Mini. However, the camera is about on par with the latest Mini 3 Pro in my brief tests. Although, it doesn’t seem to handle low light or high-dynamic-range scenes as expertly as the Mini.
A tale of two controllers… kind of
While there’s no denying that DJI has built an extremely powerful FPV filmmaking kit with the Avata, the way the company sells the drone is a bit of a hustle.
There are three bundles. One that’s drone-only ($819 CAD), another with the old DJI goggles, the Avata and a Motion Controller ($1,519). The final bundle comes with the newer DJI headset, the Avata and the Motion Controller ($1,809).
The only way to get the actual gamepad-inspired remote is to buy it separately for $260. This remote allows for full manual drone control so you can accomplish steep dives, flips and more daredevil moves.
At first glance, this makes sense since the motion controller works better for beginners. However, if you spend between $1,500 and $1,800 on this drone, do you plan on being a beginner for long? I’ve flown this drone three times so far and I’m already aching to try out some more complex moves that I’ve seen FPV enthusiasts sharing on Instagram.
That’s not to say that the motion controller is bad. I was a bit skeptical of it at first, but it’s more responsive than I ever imagined and holding it between your legs like a real flight stick as you fly just makes so much sense, even if it does look a bit awkward when you’re sitting alone in a park with a VR headset on and your hand between your legs…
With the DJI Motion Controller, you need to fly in Sport or Normal, enabling safety features. You can still do some pretty epic flights with the Motion Controller, but if you want to push boundaries, I could see most people upgrading to the standard controller within a few months or even weeks of owning the Avata. That’s what makes the pricing a bit of a hustle. Since there’s no bundle with the drone, goggles and standard controller, most people looking at this drone will likely want to factor that into the price.
It’s also worth noting that since you only get about 10-15 minutes of flight time, extra batteries are a must, and the DJI Fly More combo with two extra cells and a larger charger costs $285 CAD.
A versatile drone and a smart ecosystem
Regardless, when you stack up the Avata and the new DJI FPV Goggle up against most of the homemade Cinewoop drones, DJI’s image transmission system, build quality and battery life are hard to beat.
When you have the headset on you, see lots of information regarding your speed, height, connection status, gridlines, levels, and more. Plus, you can change all your camera settings easily on the fly with the touchpad on the side of the headset. You can also wire it to a phone, or a tablet and spectators can watch and help direct your shots.
For photography and cinematic videography, something like the Mini 3 Pro still gets all the shots I need. Plus, active track features and solid HDR are more important to me. On the other side, I know my partner Alex is really into the FPV aspect of the drone and has more cinematic ambition for the incredible action that it allows for. All of this is to say that you’ll need to weigh out what you’re looking for before you buy either of these two drones.
DJI is back with another beginner-level drone, and this time it’s aimed at people who want to get into first-person view (FPV) flying.
Alongside the new drone, the company has revamped its FPV goggles and created a new motion controller that functions like a Wii remote, and a pilot’s joystick had a baby. I’ve yet to get my review model into the skies to test it, but the new flight control system is being marketed as easier than a controller.
The new drone is small, but unfortunately, it weighs over that sweet spot of 249 grams, so you do need a drone license to fly it in Canada. That being said, the Avata has propeller guards, so you could technically fly it indoors without causing a huge mess, and it only weighs 410 grams, so it’s not heavy.
The drone can record footage in 4k 60fps or up to 2.7k at 120fps, which should help content creators capture smooth aerial footage. The Avata also has a battery life of around 18 minutes per battery. This is pretty long for an FPV drone flight since the machines typically fly very fast, but not for very long.
The camera has a 155-degree field of view which is the same as the DJI action 2. The drone will also crop in, but this large field of view helps the drone use software to stabilize the final image. If you want to take photos, the done has a 48-megapixel lens.
The drone also has 20GB of internal storage and a new feature called ‘Turtle mode’ that will flip the drone over using the force of the propellers if it crashes and lands upside down — a very useful feature for a drone that’s supposed to be flown through tiny gaps.
The new headset
If you already own DJI FPV Goggles and a controller, then you can buy the drone by itself for $819. If you want a bundle with the new FPV headset and motion controller, the price jumps to $1,809. The Fly More kit, which comes with a 4-battery charger and two extra batteries, costs $285. Everyone will need to get the ND filter set as well, which costs $85.
The new Goggles 2 comes with a host of improvements, but chief among them is a new lens diopter mechanic that allows you to adjust them to match your prescription if you wear glasses. This part I have tested and while it’s not perfect, it’s really helpful. The touchpad on the side of the headset that you use to control the menus is really responsive too.
DJI Motion controller
DJI says this new control scheme is so intuitive that even complete beginners can get the hang of it naturally. I have yet to fly with it, but using a remote that’s more like a real flight stick appeals to me a lot. While I’m not bad with a drone controller, it doesn’t feel natural and takes a lot of trial and error to learn. If the latency and precision of the new Motion Controller are good, I wouldn’t be surprised if this new control method catches on.
There are surprisingly few buttons on the remote too. On top, you’ll see a red lock button, a mode switch control, and a large break button. On the side, there is a power toggle, a record button and tilt controls. The trigger section controls the drone’s acceleration. Overall it’s not that heavy and feels made out of solid plastic.
Before buying a drone, you need to ask yourself what you plan to do with it. Are you shooting movies? YouTube videos? Maybe you’re snapping TikToks? Are you just using it to have fun and capture a few memories?
Surprisingly, the new DJI Mini 3 Pro works for most of those purposes better than you’d imagine. Sure, it’s not going to be used in Hollywood blockbusters, but if you want to see a device that looks and feels like a toy punch above its weight class, keep reading.
The DJI Mini 3 Pro features a beast of a camera. The footage blew me away specifically with how well it works under low-light due to a new dual ISO. In my experience, the Mini 3 Pro is the best drone for everyone that I’ve used since it packs so much into its highly desirable sub-250 gram frame. This weight limit is important since it means the drone can be flown without a license in Canada and the U.S.
What’s new and why it matters
This year there are several upgrades packed into the DJI Mini 3 Pro, so it’s hard to know where to start, but for me, the best new features are the camera upgrades.
DJI has increased the sensor size slightly this year to 1/1.3 of an inch. This means it can get a pixel size of 2.4μm, which captures more light than the previous Mini drone. Combine this with a new f/1.7 aperture on the Lens and the new HDR processing, and you get stunning low-light imagery. The drone does get a little noisy under low light, but it’s manageable and makes the DJI Mini 3 Pro way more powerful than the Mini 2.
When the sensor isn’t pixel binning, you can also take excellent-looking RAW images with the full 48-megapixel sensor. I’m used to smaller drones like the Mini 3 snapping pictures similar in quality to a smartphone camera, but DJI’s latest offering actually beats a lot of smartphones. The sharpness and clarity is astounding. My only complaint is that it’s disappointing you can’t focus on objects that are close to the camera.
The wingspan of the Mini 3 Pro is even wider than the Mini 2. The Propellers are a little longer too.
The extra processing power that unlocks improved low-light performance also allows you to record 4K 60fps footage, so you can get that excellent slow motion pan in the sky. However, you need to make sure you have a fast enough microSD card that supports it. That feature never became available to me during my review unit, so most of the video I shot for the video review was 4K 30fps on Auto since I didn’t have a chance to test the ND filters either. Still, it turned out pretty great.
I’ll also mention that DJI tacked a new D-Cine-like colour profile that’s set up for grading, which is another plus that makes this drone more accessible to creators wanting to capture a wider range of colours.
There’s one other important camera setting available here — vertical video. DJI has reengineered the drone’s gimbal so it can flip the entire camera array sideways, letting creators film nativity in portrait orientation. If you make a lot of vertical videos, this makes the DJI Mini 3 Pro the best drone you can get for that.
Some of the more exciting and single creator-focused modes like ‘Active Track,’ ‘Master Shots’ and ‘Quick Shots’ are all disabled in the vertical shooting orientation. This is annoying and something I hope DJI fixes soon. You can always crop down horizontal footage, but this is an extra step that shouldn’t be necessary when the drone can shoot vertically so easily.
When you’re shooting horizontal, these features work extremely well. During my tests, the Active Track mode responded expertly while I walked around. It was able to follow me through trees, crowds of people and over a bridge. The experience felt pretty amazing. I even cropped this footage in for a vertical video, and it held up well enough.
The final new feature is a design that incorporates the tracking sensors. DJI says the widened wingspan, longer propellers and smoother body shape help the little drone stay more stable in the sky. In my tests, the DJI Mini 3 Pro still got pushed around more than the larger Mavic 3, but it was stable enough.
However, the sensors unlock a lot of potential since they can track people, cars and pets, to follow them around like a little dash camera for your life. It’s astounding when it works, but since there are only sensors on the front and bottom, you need to be careful to make sure the drone doesn’t go sideways into things.
Overall, the Mini 3 Pro takes pretty much all of the desirable features from the DJI Air series of drones and puts it into a sub-250g body which means that it can be flown without a drone license, and it’s pocketable. This instantly makes the DJI Mini 3 Pro the most convenient on the market, which means a lot when you’re using a drone since they take so much practice and setup to get good with.
A sharper eye in the sky
The front ‘Lens hood’ area twists off so pilots can install tiny ND filters.
Right away you can notice a small bump in quality in still images over the Mini 2. This doesn’t sound exciting, but the Mini 2 was already really decent, so the extra sharpness that the Mini 3 Pro adds to the equation makes the images pop. In lower light situations, the game changes and the Mini 3 Pro performed way better with less noise and a stunning dynamic range.
If you actually want to print off some photos, the Mini 3 Pro is likely the better option, and for anyone who wants to take pictures or film sunsets (I think all drone owners), the new drone is a clear step forward. The colours on the Mini 3 Pro are also a bit richer straight out of the camera if you like shooting JPEGs.
Video is a bit of a different story. I’m sure for a lot of people the simple addition of 4K 60fps slow motion will be enough to make them salivate over this cute drone, but there’s so much more than that. The simple fact that this drone can shoot in HDR helps its footage look a lot cleaner, and the dual native ISO helps control noise in the image.
Obviously, the higher up and the further away from your subject, the better the picture looks as details blur together naturally. But even from moderately close distances, the drone’s footage is crisp and detailed.
There’s a digital 2x zoom that’s also there, it’s considerably less sharp and noisier than the main lens, but to be honest, I think with a tiny bit of help in editing, you can still get sweet shots with it. The subtle parallax that it adds to your frames and the compression you get from the 48mm equivalent focal length is something most flying videographers shouldn’t sleep on.
As I said above, this isn’t going to be featured in any Hollywood blockbusters, but for anyone more casually interested in drones, this is the model for you. As much as I loved the power of the Mavic 3 when I tested it, the large size made it pretty inconvenient to use and transport. The Mini 3 Pro doesn’t have that problem, and its footage is still more than enough for my use cases, making YouTube videos and casual photography.
A new controller and more
Most of the gear in the DJI Fly More Kit Plus.
Notably, this is the first Mini DJI drone to come without a controller at its base cost ($869 CAD). If you’re upgrading from a Mini 2 or Air 2S this is likely fine, but most people will likely want to shell out for one of the more expensive packages that come with a controller.
There are two. The first is the ‘DJI RC-N1’ that comes with most modern DJI drones. It’s the same controller that came with the DJI Mini 2 and the base model of the Mavic 3. This controller feels nice in hand, has a beefy battery and needs to be plugged into a phone to work. This new drone plus basic controller option is priced at $979 CAD.
Top controller is the new DJI RC. The Bottom controller is the DJI RC-N1 and it’s been the standard controller for a few years.
The new controller is called the ‘DJI RC,’ and it has a 700-nit screen built into it so you can keep your phone free for other tasks. This new controller even has a MicroSD card slot so you can back up your footage or check out the drone’s card on the go. There are also two USB-C ports on the bottom; you can use one for charging and the other is for a China-only accessory.
So far, I like the new controller, but it’s less about its new features and simply because it conveniently keeps my phone free which is a nice plus. Having said that, 700 nits isn’t as bright as some phones can go and in direct sunlight, I did find it hard to see the screen.
As usual, the DJI ‘Fly More’ bundles are a nice touch with a fun little bag, two extra batteries, a neat charger and lots of bonus propeller blades.
Like many other DJI drones, the Mini 3 Pro can take ‘MasterShots’ and ‘QuickShots.’ These are some preset flight paths that you can get the drone to follow around a location or a person. Basically, you just tell the drone what you want it to film and it will do it as long as that thing isn’t moving. If it’s moving you need to use tracking.
QuickShots are single motions like panning around a subject or a zoom in/out. MasterShots takes this to an extreme by connecting a bunch of QucikShots into one long take and then splicing that all together for you. Both are pretty handy to have, but I found myself using QuickShots more than MasterShots because I generally only needed one angle of a thing, not an epic edit of a bunch of shots. Still, both modes are fun, and I’m sure people will continue to get a ton of use out of both. These features along with the ability to take panoramas and hyper lapses are also on other DJI drones.
The tracking features are what blew me away the most with the Mini 3 Pro. Having a drone smart enough to actually follow you while you’re walking, biking or driving without another person actively controlling it is a huge plus. Seriously, if you’re part of a small filmmaking team or a solo creator, the utility of this feature can’t be understated. Part of the reason I’ve been unable to add drone shots to most of my recent MobileSyrup videos is that they take a lot of time, skill, practice and a pilot to film me, making moving cars and people pretty much impossible to capture. With the new active track feature, all that goes away.
The last thing I’ll mention here is the DJI 3 Pro’s battery life. Generally, I found the 34 minutes of flight time in ideal conditions to be enough (it.s closer to 25 with some wind). That said, if you want extra flight time, DJI also sells a battery called the Intelligent Flight Battery Plus that can boost the flight time to around 47 minutes, but there’s a catch. This battery raises the weight of the drone slightly above 249 grams meaning when you’re using it, you technically need a drone license.
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says that it is currently investigating a drone carrying handguns that was found stuck in a tree near the Ontario-U.S. border.
Lambton County OPP state that the drone was uncovered near Port Lambton, Ontario, in a tree along the St. Clair River that runs between Canada and the United States.
How are illegal guns reaching the hands of criminals in Canada? Recently, #LambtonOPP found that drones are being used to carry the prohibited guns over from the United States. This drone was located Friday morning near Port Lambton, stuck in a tree, transporting 11 handguns.^jb pic.twitter.com/SnGybiAkp3
The plastic grocery bag attached to the drone had 11 handguns inside it. The majority of the handguns are prohibited in Canada. It’s unclear what type of drone this is, but it’s substantial and looks like it’s commercial.
Police say that the drone likely came from the United States. Though it remains unclear, this was likely an attempt to smuggle the firearms into Canada.
DJI’s FPV Combo first-person drone package is currently on sale at various retailers.
With a 4K camera, S Flight Mode, Super-Wide 150-degree field of view, HD low latency transition, and more, the DJI FPV Combo is $400 off at $1,299.99 CAD.
The combo also features DJI first-person view goggles version two. The drone can record 4K/60fps video at up to 120Mbps and more.
MobileSyrup utilizes affiliate partnerships. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content, though we may earn a commission on purchases made via these links that helps fund the journalism provided free on our website.
If you own a DJI drone, the new Action 2 or Pocket 2, and a Pixel 6, you’re not in for a good time. Not only do Android users need to download some of DJI’s apps from its website instead of the Play Store, but Pixel 6 users can’t even use the apps at all.
Several Pixel 6 users are reportedly only seeing a black screen, but can still access some settings. This pretty much renders the drones useless since you need to see them when you’re flying. If you have an action cam or the Pocket 2, this is less of an inconvenience since both devices feature small built-in displays.
While the most prominent issues seem to stem from Pixel 6 devices, it appears that a small number of Samsung devices might have the bug as well. I have only been able to test the app on a OnePlus 9 Pro and it worked flawlessly for me.
According to a report from Android Police, DJI is aware of the issue and is working on a solution.
For the time being, if you plan to buy a DJI product, especially a drone, I would do a quick Google search to see if anyone else has the same phone as you to make sure that the app is compatible. It’s also worth noting that you need to download the DJI apps from DJI’s website since they were removed from the Play Store in January 2021 for not compiling code in a modern way.
Ozzy Osbourne flies drones over his neighbours’ homes.
The Black Sabbath star and his wife Sharon Osbourne enjoy ”spying” on the nearby residents to ”see what they’re all up to”.
Speaking on Absolute Radio’s Christian O’Connell Breakfast Show, she said: ”Ozzy’s got a drone and we take it up and spy in on the neighbours’ gardens and see what they’re all up to.”
And whilst the news may not please some of the people and their families, the 63-year-old star – who has daughters Kelly, 30, and Aimee, 32, and son Jack, 29 – insists she never intends to ”hurt people” with the things she does and says but doesn’t see the problem with having an opinion.
She explained recently: ”A lot of people really don’t like others being opinionated, they would rather you sit on the fence instead of having a strong opinion on something. I get it but that doesn’t mean I still don’t put my foot in my mouth – I do!
”I’ve always been very opinionated. I don’t want to hurt people, I don’t get a kick out of embarrassing people or being disrespectful, but if you ask me I’ll answer. I don’t mean to do it in a mean way to anyone.”
Enrique Iglesias’ hand injury is ”worse” than first thought.
The ‘Hero’ hitmaker sliced his fingers open after he caught a drone flying midair at his concert in Mexico,Tijuana, on Saturday (05.30.15) and reconstructive surgery carried out earlier this week took longer than anticipated as it emerged during the operation that he had also fractured one of his digits.
A posting on Enrique’s Instagram page yesterday (06.02.15) read: ”We wanted to give you a personal update about his condition. His recent surgery lasted longer than expected since the damage ended up being a bit worse than initially assessed. He suffered a fracture that needed to be corrected in addition to the reconstructive surgery.”
Despite the injury being worse than first thought, the ‘Tired Of Being Lonely’ singer is still expected to make a ”full recovery”.
The post added: ”He will be recovering during the next few weeks, but a full recovery is anticipated.”
Following the accident, Enrique’s representative confirmed the singer had defied medical advice and continued the show after something ”went wrong”.
The spokesperson, Joe Bonilla, said on Instagram: ”During the show a drone is used to get crowd shots and some nights Enrique grabs the drone to give the audience a Point of View shot.
”Something went wrong and he had an accident. He was semi-treated by crew on the side of the stage to try and stop the bleeding. He was advised to stop the show.He decided to go on and continued playing for 30 minutes while the bleeding continued throughout the show.”
The 40-year-old star is scheduled to resume his ‘Love and Sex’ world tour on 3 July in Mexico City.
