DJI Mavic Mini Review – Is It The Best Mini Drone?

DJI Mavic Mini Review – Is It The Best Mini Drone?

Welcome to your DJI Mavic Mini review. In this DJI Mini drone review our aim is to provide you with all of the most important information that you need to decide whether the Mavic Mini is the right drone for you. At Future Circuits we pride ourselves on bringing you reviews of technologically advanced products.

When DJI launched the Mavic Mini it did so with the intent of making things easier for drone owners as the laws were changing in the United States. It created a mini drone that weighed less than 250 grams to avoid the need for registration with the FAA.

The engineers at DJI were set a challenge to create a mini drone quadcopter that weighed less than 250 grams but did not compromise on video quality. They managed to achieve this and enhance the reputation of DJI as one of the best drone brands around.

So if you buy this mini drone with a camera from DJI there will be no requirement for you to register it. OK the Mavic Mini doesn’t have a 4K camera, but it will provide you with an impressive 2.7K maximum video resolution at a 30fps frame rate.

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The Design of the DJI Mavic Mini

DJI are famed for producing cool drones and the Mavic Mini doesn’t disappoint in this respect. The Mini has a gray and dark gray color scheme and at the front there are eyes that give it an “angry look”. Just like other models in the DJI Mavic range, the Mini is a collapsible drone.

There is a 3 axis camera at the front and at the back of the mini drone you will find a micro USB port (to charge the battery) and a microSD slot. Some drones cover their storage slots but the design of the DJI Mini makes it convenient for those that want to swap out their storage regularly.

To achieve the “just under” 250 gram weight target the engineers at DJI created a drone that weighs a fraction under 150 grams and a battery just under 100 grams. You might think that this lack of weight would put the Mini in the “cheap drones quality” category but this is certainly not the case.

Unlike the Mavic Air, the Mini doesn’t have front, sides or back sensors for obstacle avoidance. But it does have two sensors on its base which help to provide smooth landings. There is also a light on this mini drone with camera which will help you to keep track of it especially at night time.

At the end of the day the DJI Mavic Mini is light and compact which means that you can take it around with you wherever you travel to. If you are a backpacker or like to hike then the Mavic Mini is the perfect companion. It folds down so that it will fit in the palm of your hand. You will be holding a lot of power.

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DJI Mavic Mini Review – Controller

You will not get a screen with your DJI Mini controller as you do with a lot of other drones. What you will get is a compartment that that you can unfold to house your iOS or Android smartphone.

The controller joysticks “screw on” so when you are not using the controller you can collapse it down to a flat profile. You will find the micro USB port for connecting your smartphone and for charging on the left side of the controller.

No matter what smartphone you own you should be fine as the DJI Mavic Mini comes with USB-C, micro USB and Lightning cables. As long as your phone is compatible with the flying app for the DJI Mini you are good to go.

You can pivot the camera on the Mavic Mini vertically through 90 degrees by using the jog-dial on the top of the controller. By using the jog-dial you can go from looking forward to looking down. It’s not possible to look up with the Mini.

To start your video recordings you will need to use the L trigger. If you want to take a still then use the R trigger. It takes a little while to get the Mavic Mini ready for flight as you have to connect the cables to your phone, screw the joysticks on and then start the flying app. With practice this will not take you very long at all.

This setup process is really worth it when you consider the portability experience that you get with this small drone. When you collapse the controller and the drone everything is really compact. Opening everything up still makes this mini flying drone with camera feel robust.

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The DJI Mavic Mini Camera

As stated above, the Mavic Mini has a maximum resolution of 2.7K in video mode. You can also shoot in 1080p HD with a frame rate of 60fps. The sensor is CMOS at 1 / 2.3 inches (0.435 inches) and you can capture 12 megapixel images across the different modes. The lens provides a field of vision (FOV) of 83°.

There are three modes that you can choose for the camera:

  1. Position mode – this is for the most basic of operations
  2. CineSmooth mode – this mode will slow things down and produce longer breaking time for enhanced cinematic footage and smoother shots
  3. Sports mode – this is best for flying at high speeds

In our tests we found that all three modes delivered high quality footage. At high speeds and in sports mode you may experience a bit of a judder if you suddenly change the direction of flight, but other than that the results were very good.

We found the footage to have good detail and have a punchy feel about it. The dynamic range is pretty good too. This is not a professional camera drone so you cannot expect this kind of quality. But it does produce very good results for aerial videography and still photographs as well.

There is also the option for you to put the camera into manual mode and have complete control over your photographs. If you want to have shutter speeds as long as 4 seconds you can do that. With practice you will be able to produce very good low-light stills in manual mode.

Although the DJI Mavic Mini can shoot video in low-light with reasonable results there is a limit to what you can do with a camera sensor of only 1 / 2.3 inches. There will be an element of noise with the footage but you cannot really expect much else. Overall this quadcopter drone with camera delivers very good results for what it is.

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The Mavic Mini Flying App

There have been changes to the initial version of the fly app and in our DJI Mini review we put the app through its paces. In the latest version, you get guides and sample videos so that you can see the quality of the footage that you are likely to get as a result of using the different camera modes.

We found the interface to be very intuitive and particularly liked the in-app tips and the tutorials. In one or two cases we had some tips appear in Chinese which wasn’t great. At the time of writing the Fly Spots feature was only localized for China. DJI know about these issues and we are confident that they will resolve them in later releases.

Apart from these smaller niggles; using the app was a great experience. It was pretty easy for us to understand the modes and the different speeds. One great feature is “Quickshots” which provide pre-programmed flight paths where you can activate dynamic pans just by tapping on a button close to an object.

There are two gimbal modes which are:

  1. Follow mode – this keeps a level horizon line
  2. FPV mode – this enables you to see the drone’s perspective and does a great job maintaining stability

If you think outside the box here you can actually use the DJI Mini as a steady handheld cam because you can toggle between these two modes to get the best results.

A really good feature with the app is “find my drone”. If for some reason you have to make an unplanned landing with your mini DJI Mavic drone and are unable to fly back to home then this feature will help you to locate your drone with a good degree of accuracy.

When you use the find my drone feature the app records where the drone landed. In a couple of tests we found this to be completely accurate. The Mavic Mini is a very lightweight drone and it can be susceptible to gusts of wind from time to time. With this feature you can be confident that you will always be able to find your rc mini drone.

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Wireless Connection

The DJI Mavic Mini uses a WiFi connection to transmit live video to the drone controller. You need to have your phone connected so that the controller can engage with the app. We turned the WiFi on the phone on and found that we lost connection with the Mavic Mini at about 200 feet away.

We did not believe this to be a WiFi issue as there appeared to be sufficient ambient connections available in our test area. What was really interesting is that when we selected airplane mode on our smartphone we were able to significantly extend the connection range.

Tests on the DJI Mini have shown that the connection range can extend to around 2 miles or more in less “built-up” locations with ambient WiFi available. The manufacturer claims that the maximum connection distance is 2.5 miles which is pretty impressive.

The quality of the live video feed was good as it delivers 720p HD quality at a frame rate of 30fps. Maximum bitrate is around 4 Mbps and the latency with the video feed is very respectable between 170 ms and 240 ms depending on the phone you are using and the environmental conditions.

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Mini DJI Drone Battery Life

DJI claim that the 2,600mAh batteries with the Mavic Mini will provide a 30 minute flight time. This of course depends on the use of the drone and the environment that it is flying in. We tested this and found that the battery life claims were pretty accurate. You will use up your battery levels a bit quicker by operating in sports mode though.

There is a useful return to home (RTH) feature if battery levels fall lower than a specific point. When the battery level gets to the point where the Mavic Mini can just about make it back home it automatically triggers the RTH feature so that your drone can return home safely.

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DJI Mavic Mini Specifications

The DJI Mini has the following specifications:

The Drone

  • Drone Takeoff Weight (includes the battery, a microSD card and propellers) – 249 grams (8.78 ounces)
  • Drone dimensions unfolded with propellers – 245 mm (9.65 inches) by 290 mm (11.42 inches) by 55 mm (2.2. inches)
  • Drone Dimensions Folded – 140 mm (5.5 inches) by 82 mm (3.2 inches) by 57 mm (2.2 inches)
  • Ascent Speed Maximum S Mode – 4 meters per second (13.1 feet per second)
  • Accent Speed Maximum P Mode – 2 meters per second (6.6 feet per second)
  • Accent Speed Maximum C Mode – 1.5 meters per second (4.9 feet per second)
  • Decent Speed Maximum S Mode – 3 meters per second (9.84 feet per second)
  • Decent Speed Maximum P Mode – 1.8 meters per second (5.9 feet per second)
  • Decent Speed Maximum C Mode – 1 meter per second (3.3 feet per second)
  • Maximum Drone Speed S Mode (no wind and near sea level) – 13 meters per second (42.7 feet per second)
  • Maximum Drone Speed P Mode (no wind and near sea level) – 8 meters per second (26.2 feet per second)
  • Maximum Drone Speed C Mode (no wind and near sea level) – 4 meters per second (13.1 feet per second)
  • Takeoff Altitude Maximum – 3000 meters (9842 feet)
  • Flight Time Maximum – 30 minutes
  • Tilt Angle Maximum S Mode – 30°
  • Tilt Angle Maximum P Mode – 20°
  • Tilt Angle Maximum C Mode – 20°
  • Operating Frequency Model MT1SS5 – 5.725 GHz to 5.850 GHz
  • Operating Frequency Model MT1SD25 – 2.4 GHz to 2.4835 GHz and 5.725 GHz to 5.850 GHz
  • Transmission Power Model MT1SS5 – <30 dBm (FCC) at 5.8 GHz
  • Transmission Power Model MT1SD25 – <19 dBm (MIC/CE) at 2.4 GHz and <14 dBm (CE) at 5.8 GHz
  • Navigation – GLONASS and GPS
  • Gimbal Mechanical Range – Tilt 110° to 35°, Roll -35° to 35°, Pan -20° to 20°
  • Gimbal Controllable Range – Default setting Tilt -90° to 0°, Extended -90° to 20°
  • Battery – 2600 mAH Lithium Ion 2S
  • Voltage – 7.2 volts
  • Maximum Charge Voltage – 8.4 volts
  • Maximum Charging Power – 24 watts
  • Operating Voltage / Current – iOS 3.6 volts 450 milliamperes, Android 3.6 volts 1200 milliamperes

 

Drone Camera

  • Camera Sensor – CMOS 1 / 2.3 inches
  • Pixels – 12 megapixels
  • Lens – 35 mm (equivalent format 24 mm)
  • Aperture – f/2.8
  • Field of View – 83°
  • Shutter Speed Range – 1/8000 second to 4 seconds
  • Maximum Video Resolution – 2.7K
  • Full HD – 1920 x 1080
  • Bitrate – 40 Mbps
  • Format – MP4
  • Still Format – JPEG

 

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Flying the DJI Mavic Mini

The DJI Mavic Mini is fairly simple to fly and with practice you will find it very easy to control the drone. Before each flight you need to conduct pre-flight preparation. It is important that you observe the following when flying the mini drone:

  • Avoid flying the drone when weather conditions are extreme – e.g. heavy rain, fog and snow
  • Chose open areas for flight and avoid metal structures and tall buildings as these can interfere with the GPS and internal compass
  • Be sure to fly away from crowds of people, trees and power lines. Also avoid cell towers and other structures that have a high level of electromagnetism
  • The performance and battery life of the drone are dependent on factors such as temperature and air density. You will reduce batter life flying at more than 9,842 feet above sea level
  • Be aware and abide by any FAA rules (or other regulatory bodies) on drone flights

Before each flight be sure to go through the pre-flight check:

  • Fully charge the intelligent battery, remote control and your smartphone
  • Check that everything is securely mounted including the propellers and battery
  • Unfold the drone arms
  • Check the correct functioning of camera and gimbal
  • Check the drone for any obstructions
  • Connect the DJI Fly app and check it is working

You can use the auto takeoff and auto landing features. To start the drone motors push the sticks to the corners. As soon as the motors start release the sticks. Stopping the motors when the drone has landed requires pushing and holding down the left stick.

To take off you need to place the drone in an open space and a flat area and ensure that you can see the status indicator. When the status indicator blinks green you will have recorded the home point and flight can commence.

For a manual takeoff just push the throttle stick gently (or you can use auto takeoff). Use the sticks to change the direction of the drone in flight. Be sure to select the right camera mode that suits your requirements.

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Pros and Cons of the DJI Mavic Mini

We want to bring you the best mini drone review so we have identified the pros and cons of this DJI mini quadcopter.

Pros

  • Small and compact weighing less than 250 grams avoiding FAA registration
  • Flight time is long
  • Video quality is good
  • 3 axis stabilization
  • Attractive price
  • Easy to fly this drone

 

Cons

  • Lack of object avoidance sensors
  • Lack of active tracking

 

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Conclusion

The new DJI Mavic Mini is a high quality mini drone that has some very good features and we really enjoyed testing it for you. If not having a professional 4K camera onboard is fine for you then we would strongly recommend the DJI Mavic Mini as we believe it to be an excellent small drone with camera.

Is it the best small drone? Well we have tested a number of them and the DJI Mavic Mini is a real contender. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced drone user you will love the Mavic Mini.

We worked hard to bring you this comprehensive DJI Mavic Mini review and we sincerely hope that it has helped you to make the right purchase decision. Please ask us any questions in the comments below.

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