DJI Mini 3 Pro: Features, release date, and more
DJI’s Mini 3 Pro was released on May 10 to succeed the Mini 2 as DJI’s flagship sub-250 gram drone. Find everything you need to know about the Mini 3 in our roundup including camera specs, flight times, and compatible controllers.
Table of contents
Mini 3 Pro design and size
Like the Minis before it, the Mini 3 Pro comes in below the 250 gram weight limit. This is nice as most aviation authorities don’t require registering drones less than that. Allowing the Mini 3 to be packed full of amazing features but lowering the bar of entry for all pilots.
Taking ques from the Mavic 3, the Mini 3 Pro has longer propellers that are angled to help improve stability while in flight. The overall look of the drone has changed too from previous Minis. Looking like it leans back while it hovers paired with the large eye-like obstacle sensing sensors giving it a frog look.
The new design gives room for a more advanced camera gimbal. The Mini 3 Pro is the first of DJI’s drones to be able to tilt upwards to see what is above the drone.
Mini 3 Pro Camera specs
The Mini 3 Pro’s camera got a good update from the previous iteration. Now sporting 4K 60FPS video, 48 MP stills with RAW support, and the ability to turn the sensor verticle for social media.
- 1/1.3 inch 48MP CMOS sensor
- F1.7 aperture
- 82.1º FOV
- 100-6400 ISO range
- 2-1/8000 second electronic shutter range
- JPEG/DNG photo formats
- MP4/MOV (H.264/H.265) video formats
Quickshots, Mastershots, Active Track 4.0
Quickshots return to the Mini 3 Pro but for the first time, Mastershots and Active Track come to DJI’s sub-250 lineup of drones. Allowing you to keep the subject in frame whether it’s a person, bike, or car.
Mastershots is also here, making it easy for pilots to document their adventures with a single click. When activated, the Mini 3 will fly around the subject to capture video at different angles to produce a video perfect for sharing.
APAS 4.0 and Tri-directional sensing
Also new to the Mini 3 Pro are two new safety features that DJI fans have been waiting a long time to come. First is Tri-directional sensing, the Mini 3 can detect obstacles forward, backward, and below. For now, it can’t see much from the side, but it is better than having nothing and should help beginner pilots crash their drones a little less.
The second is Advanced Pilot Assistance System or APAS, this cool feature can detect obstacles in the drone’s flight path and automatically fly around or stop the drone. This has been standard on DJI’s Air and Mavic series drones for a while but has finally made the journey to the Mini this time around.
Mini 3 Pro flight time
The Mini 3 Pro got a big boost in flight time, now rated at up to 34 minutes with the standard battery. With that much time, you won’t need to worry about the battery charge as much but if you really need more time the Mini 3 comes with a “Plus” battery option. DJI’s Plus flight battery will give the Mini 3 up to a 47 minutes flight time. The tradeoff is the added weight to the battery pushes the drone over 250 grams.
Compatible controllers for the Mini 3 Pro
Like the Air 2S and Mavic 3, the Mini 3 Pro gets its own controller with a built-in screen. Called the DJI RC, the controller features a similar design to the RC Pro just missing some buttons and is a bit smaller. The RC features a bright LCD touch screen that will replace your phone for flight duties. For now you can only buy the RC bundled with the drone and not seperatly.
Following again with the Mini 3’s older siblings, it also has support for DJI’s RC-N1 controller. This one requires the use of a phone and downloading of the DJI Fly for controling the drone. You can save some money if you already own a N1 controller and just buy the drone by itself.
Where and when can I buy the Mini 3?
Orders are availble today from the DJI store and authorizied retailers but you will wait a bit for them to ship. If you order the Mini 3 Pro with the RC then they will begin shipping by the end of May. However, the Mini 3 Pro by itself and with the RC controller won’t begin shipping until August 2022.
