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DJI Mavic Mini - New Drone


Tankman

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Great stuff, brave flying for first timer! I not sure if it can be done on the Mini but with the Mavic, you can make adjustments to slow its movements down, especially the yaw, this is where you will see a bit too much motion blur if you pan too fast across a scene, so check the settings ...with Mavic, it's in Drone settings/Advanced/EXP, slow Rudder settings right down, Mini may also have Tripod preset which has all controls slowed down for cinematic shooting

 

Thanks man, I have some X-box hours on my name!  :whistling:

But...  I crashed already too!  Not my fault though!

 

When the RTH mode gets activated and you have lost signal to your phone, the drone chooses the shortest route Home, no matter that there are buildings in the way!  Well this was a big ass building, my RTH is set at 15m, which was plenty when I was playing in the bush... but not enough when playing in between 30m high buildings.  OOPS!!  This is where obstacle avoidance would be very handy!

 

With a strike of luck, it crashed into the building and fell (not sure how far) onto a balcony on the 2nd story... if it would have fell all the way to the ground... I and the drone would be in pieces right now.

 

I saw those settings in the app somewhere to slow down movement of the gimbal, will have a play around... when everything is working again... (is there a facepalm emoji here?)

 

:rolleyes:

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Oh another note to self.

 

When you take off somewhere and then start walking away from there, remember to update your home point!

 

I took off and started walking 10min, into my walk, my phone decides to restart for some unknown reason.  Signal lost, RTH activated and the drone starts flying waaaaay back with me running after it like a crazy person with no way to control it!  :lol:

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Ok so this was a little less play and a little more work...

 

Just not sure why it looks pretty crap in 720p on youtube, it was shot in 2.7k and exported as full HD... looks much better when you click it over to 1080p in youtube.

 

Oh and I still went into Sports mode here and there, just couldn't help myself :D

 

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Think I have figured out why it is good to have the 15% battery left and not to change it.

 

If your drone decides to take shortcut THROUGH a building unsuccessfully and you activate the find my drone beep, that gives you some time to find it! 

 

By the time I eventually found it, there was only 3% left and without the beeping, I would probably still be looking.  I was looking all around the building, expecting pieces everywhere, until I heard a very soft beep coming from somewhere two stories higher than I was standing....

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Ok so this was a little less play and a little more work...

 

Just not sure why it looks pretty crap in 720p on youtube, it was shot in 2.7k and exported as full HD... looks much better when you click it over to 1080p in youtube.

 

Oh and I still went into Sports mode here and there, just couldn't help myself :D

 

Nice smooth filming...that's they key...these things don't have the frame rate, sensor size or write speed to handle fast camera movements so you have to be smooth and slow..great job!

Edited by capediver
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  • 1 month later...

The only down side I have found reading the reviews is the ability to withstand wind.

 

Apparently the mavic air is better at this. Coming from the Western Cape, and hence where most of the flying will the done means that I need something that can handle the wind. So I am saving for the mavic air.

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The only down side I have found reading the reviews is the ability to withstand wind.

 

Apparently the mavic air is better at this. Coming from the Western Cape, and hence where most of the flying will the done means that I need something that can handle the wind. So I am saving for the mavic air.

Yup wind is definitely an issue, so is "fly aways" at the moment, lots of people reporting that it starts going and then doesnt accept any controller response and just keeps going never to be seen again.

 

Im quite interested in the Hubsan Zino 2, I think its going to be a really good drone at a good price when it starts shipping in a few days time.

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Thanks Rocket Boy.

 

Am after something that is small (Mavic air is fine), can handle a bit of wind (Cape town style).

 

I dont want to fly 3 km away, maybe like 500m tops. But they key is small. Sure the mini ticks that, but so does the Mavic Air.

 

Having said that I am open to suggestions.

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Thanks Rocket Boy.

 

Am after something that is small (Mavic air is fine), can handle a bit of wind (Cape town style).

 

I dont want to fly 3 km away, maybe like 500m tops. But they key is small. Sure the mini ticks that, but so does the Mavic Air.

 

Having said that I am open to suggestions.

 

Folded down, the Mini is microscopic with no parts to get dinged off. All the reviews I've seen on wind ability show the Mini to be decent, but when it's windy Cape Town is next-level.

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Thanks Rocket Boy.

 

Am after something that is small (Mavic air is fine), can handle a bit of wind (Cape town style).

 

I dont want to fly 3 km away, maybe like 500m tops. But they key is small. Sure the mini ticks that, but so does the Mavic Air.

 

Having said that I am open to suggestions.

The Air and Mini are pretty much it with smaller drones. Lots of reports of people losing Mini's in the wind though where it literally was blown away and couldnt get back to the start point.

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Any updates Tank?

Still enjoying the mini?

Nope, unfortunately not.

 

I enjoyed it for the couple of weeks when I had it  :lol:  but after crashing into a building during 94.7 my Mini was sent back to DJI China, there was no physical damage on the outside but the local guys could not get it going again.  News is that DJI is indecisive as to repairing under warranty or charging me for the repair.

 

My Samsung S8 restarted for some unknown reason during the flight, I lost all control and the drone chose the shortest way to the Return to Home position, straight through a building.

It was my fault for not setting the altitude higher than when I was testing it out in the open the previous weeks.  Seems that there is issues with Samsung and the DJI app.

My phone would normally be on for months, start the DJI app and it restarts ever so often.  Not ideal when piloting a drone!

 

Not the best time of the year to have something sent to the other side of the globe.

 

I still feel that this is the best drone to start with but I have already seen the potential for needing obstacle avoidance sensors and other more professional functions for recording video and photos.  Not that there is anything wrong with the quality of video or photos on the mini, it is truly impressive and more than enough for insane footage.   Since video and photo is in my field, having the capabilities of the big brothers interests me personally.

 

It is able to handle some pretty rough winds but you need to be sensible too, fly out against the wind and fly back with the wind.  Also dont try and fly 3km away and then complain that you lost signal and lost your drone due to the "wind", you lost it due to being a dumbass. :lol:

 

Oh one more tip, make sure to get insurance on your drone, it is easier to crash them than you think!

Not a lot of household insurance companies or even my insurer that specialize in professional photographic gear, will insure them.  I found an online app, Pineapple and insured through them.

If they are any good, I will find out once I get feedback from DJI I guess! :eek:

Edited by Tankman
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  • 3 weeks later...

Im seriously considering a mini, Im just not too happy about its ability to handle wind and the range issues in CE mode.

I live at the coast and its literally always windy. I have seen way too many reports of fly aways and the lower pitch angle definitely affects its ability to fly in even mild wind.

 

The problem in SA is that you cant really buy any other drones(Autel Evo2 etc) because the cost of bringing one in is just nuts. DJI drones sell for very similar prices locally to what they sell for internationally.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Sweet, got a new Mini back! :D

 

post-4352-0-93008900-1581324177_thumb.jpg

 

 

Also figured out a way to force the Mini into FCC Mode meaning 5.8Ghz frequency   :clap:  :clap: 

Doubt that this will extend the range, never needed more range but this will ensure a much more stable connection in areas with loads of wifi interference!

 

post-4352-0-71809300-1581324403_thumb.jpg

 

 

Cheerio... gone flying!

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My Samsung S8 also just randomly rebooted twice while using the mini. Luckily the RTH was all good.

Decided to use my old slightly stuffed S6 as a dedicated drone phone, and no issues so far.

 

Loving the drone, but in built up areas the signal sucks. Flew just over 2km at the coast with no issues. 400m near my house and that's about it sadly.

 

Did my own family holiday video. It's incredible how much there is to learn with these things that just comes down to practice. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8gjnAnIq-8&t=2s

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