Is DJI Select Membership program worth the price?

DJI’s Select Membership promises a lot for $49 a year, with product discounts and many other perks. And DJI is currently sweetening the deal by also offering 50% off its Care Refresh service plan when you purchase the new DJI Mavic Air 2. But is all this really worth the price?

DJI Select includes discounts on accessories and on its DJI Care and OSMO Shield protection plan. It also promises early access to products, exclusive offers, faster repairs, 30-day refunds, and replacements, along with a birthday “surprise.” Let’s take a closer look at what all these offers actually entail.

What do you get with DJI Select membership?

Five 20% off accessories coupons

This sounds great at first, but the catch is that it doesn’t apply to the accessories of newer products, such as the Mavic Air 2, Mavic Mini, DJI Smart Controller, Osmo Mobile 3, or the DJI FPV System. In fact, Osmo Mobile 3 isn’t even that new; it’s almost one-and-a-half years old. From the exclusion list, it looks like DJI is only willing to discount its older-generation products as a way to move inventory.

50% Off DJI Care Refresh and OSMO Shield

DJI Care Refresh gives you extra peace of mind when flying your drone. Care Refresh allows you to get up to two replacement drones in one year, without a damage assessment being done. Coverage includes water damage and you get free shipping throughout the replacement process.

OSMO Shield, while similar to Care Refresh, is a little different. OSMO Shield extends your warranty to two years from one. This includes water damage coverage, accidental damage coverage, and free shipping throughout the replacement process.

This part of the package is likely one of the main reasons to sign up for DJI Select. To be able to get the 50% savings, you will have to purchase Care Refresh or OSMO SHIELD in the same order as the product you are wanting Care Refresh to cover. You aren’t able to get 50% off coverage for previously purchased drones or gimbals from DJI.

Prioritized Shipping

Prioritized shipping does sound nice to have, especially when DJI states you can get early access to “select products.” When you hear that, it sounds like you will be receiving the latest DJI products before non-DJI Select buyers will. While that could be the case in some situations, DJI also states that this depends on the stock levels of new products and accessories. So all you can count on is faster shipping on older products that are well stocked.

Exclusive Offers & Birthday Surprise

These two are similar. DJI will send you deals, offers, and gifts regularly, giving you discounts and free items when you purchase another item of greater value. You will also receive a coupon on your birthday for a random product in the DJI store. So maybe it’s for something you want, but very likely not.

30-Day Refund & Replacement

This is another one of the benefits that stand out. The standard return and replacement time from DJI is 7 days. That’s not long enough, in my opinion, to decide if a drone is right for you. Having an extra 23 days definitely sweetens the deal. Please remember DJI’s Refund and Replacement Policy still applies. Here are some circumstances that will prevent you from getting a refund or replacement:

• Legal proof of purchase, receipt or invoice is not provided or is reasonably believed to have been forged or tampered with.
• Any fault or damage of the product is caused by unauthorized use or modification of the product, including exposure to moisture, entry of foreign bodies (water, oil, sand, etc.) or improper installation or operation.
• Damage is caused to the product by uncontrollable external factors, including fire, floods, high winds or lightning strikes.
• A product is found to have no defects after all appropriate tests are conducted by DJI.

Faster Repairs

The faster repairs sound nice, but they may not be as fast as you think. DJI says only that it will cut the time for damage assessment by 1-2 days. The repairs themselves won’t happen any faster and depend on the amount of damage caused to the product.

Opinions around the web

Taking a look around the internet, and specifically on the Mavic Pilots forum, many people complain of DJI misleading them in terms of how they can spend coupons. Many stated that they weren’t able to use the coupons on the accessories they were hoping to save on. Some also say they are not able to utilize the 50% off Care Refresh deal. People also seem to be having issues with the prioritized shipping, as it’s based on stock levels and demand at the time of purchase.

Conclusion

To decide on DJI Select, you have to take a look at what exactly you are wanting to purchase now and what you are likely to be purchasing in the future. The 30-day return and replacement time is a significant benefit over the standard 7 days. The faster repairs are also a nice-to-have if you are wanting to get back in the air faster. But simply trimming the damage assessment time may not help much.

Personally, the $49-per-year price tag isn’t worth it for me, as I usually purchase the drone with the fly more combo that already includes some accessories. I also buy third-party accessories from other online retailers or a local store.

But for someone who is wanting all the discounts on accessories and is going to take full advantage of the membership, it may be a money-saving option. Just consider what you are likely to buy in the coming year and do the math first.

Do you have any experience with the DJI Select Membership? Did you find it to be useful? Let us know in the comments below.

Photo: DJI