DJI's Mini 3 Pro is here with a big sensor, three-way obstacle avoidance

2022-05-10

This year, DJI"s mini drone is going pro. Still right under that all-important 249g weight, which means you"re not required to register the drone with most authorities, the DJI Mini 3 Pro is a more premium drone than its predecessor.

For starters, it gets a new 1/1.3-inch sensor with a bright f/1.7 aperture that should fare better in all kinds of light. The sensor is a 48MP unit and can shoot in full-res 48MP, or in binned 12MP mode. The lens itself is 24mm - the same width as the mini 2, but narrower than the Air 2S" 20mm lens.

In terms of video, the DJI Mini 3 Pro ups the ante over its predecessor. It can record 4K video up to 60fps and 4K HDR video up to 30fps. In addition to the normal color profile, there"s the flatter D-Cinelike. However, it"s 8-bit video, not 10-bit like on the Air 2S.

The three-axis gimbal of the DJI Mini 3 Pro can rotate vertically to produce that portrait-style TikTok and Reels-worthy video (and photo).

Another huge improvement over the DJI Mini 2 is obstacle avoidance. While that drone only had downward sensors, the Mini 3 Pro has forward, backward and downward sensors. They allow the DJI Mini 3 Pro to support autonomous flight modes like Spotlight 2.0, Point of Interest 3.0, Active Track 4.0, and MasterShots. There"s Hyperlapse as well.

Flight time has been slightly increased from the Mini 2"s 31 minutes to 34 minutes with the standard Intelligent Flight Battery. There"s an optional Intelligent Flight Battery Plus that comes with the Fly More Combo, which increases the flight time to a bonkers 47 minutes, though that cell requires the faster DJI 30W charger and moves the drone past the no-regulations 249g weight.

The DJI Mini 3 Pro can capture H.264 and H.265 video up to 150 Mbps (up from 100 Mbps on the mini 2). There"s a zoom mode in video - 2x in 4K and 4x in 1080p. Slow-motion capture is done in either 4K@60fps or 1080@120fps.

Looking at the specs, the DJI Mini 3 Pro is closer to the Air 2S than the Mini 2. The bigger drone has better obstacle avoidance, is a bit faster, and uses a bigger sensor, but the new Mini 3 Pro is close on all of these fronts.

DJI is introducing a new DJI RC controller with a 5.5-inch 700 nit display built-in. It"s lighter and cheaper than the previous RJI RC Pro.

The DJI Mini 3 Pro is on sale from today. You have a choice of three tiers - the DJI Mini 3 Pro with the standard RC-N1 controller for €829, the DJI Mini 3 Pro with the new RC controller for €999, and just the drone without a controller, going for €739.