Multirotor, multicopter and quadcopter discussion - The Drone thread

Caporegime
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DJi releasing their new mini drone, Priced at £369 for the drone, a battery and controller. Or £469 for the fly more bundle, 3 batteries, extra props, prop guards etc.

Design wise it's a smaller mavic, though for the props they seem to have outright copied the parrot anafi. Have to wonder how well it'll fare in any kind of wind as it's only 249 grams in weight.

(and yes that glass container thing can be bought as its a charging dock)
 
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Caporegime
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Seems an odd weight point. Slightly too much to avoid the registration and very light to be stable.


I can't see it being upto much in the air with any kind of wind, someone mentioned they're doing a japanese version that weighs in at 199 grams. The 249 grams weight point is to avoid the 250 gram FAA\CAA requirement. I typed 259 above for some reason. :o

Though i suppose technically if you added a filter to it then you're probably over the limit as well.
 
Caporegime
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My xjb145 is 240g and it does get blown about in quite light breezes.
Mind you still looks amazing and a great price as well.

All this weight limit seems to do is make it so you (currently) don't have to register it, though that could change down the line. You still presumably have to stick to the distance limits for flying anywhere near buildings etc.
 
Associate
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All this weight limit seems to do is make it so you (currently) don't have to register it, though that could change down the line. You still presumably have to stick to the distance limits for flying anywhere near buildings etc.
Yeah all the rules as per normal, you just don't have to fill in the stupid online flying "exam" and pay £9 for the privilege. That video doesn't follow many of the rules though! Different countries, different rules I suppose.
 
Soldato
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Sub 250g can be perfectly stable in the air, depends entirely on the motors and flight controllers performance.

My 242g custom 4S 3" quad is rock solid stable in the the air at wind speeds of 30mph+, it also does 100mph+ in a staight line but then the batteries just about manage 4 minutes flight time :)

At a guess the new mavic mini is using 2 18650 cells, which makes me wonder why they are charging so much for extra batteries. You can get a pair of Samsung 2500mah 18650s for like £7. DJI want £45 per battery.
 
Soldato
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Looks like the kind of drone I should move over to. I have a Mavic Pro in the cupboard and hardly ever take it anywhere. Maybe a smaller, pocketable one would have a better chance of being taken places with me.
 
Caporegime
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At a guess the new mavic mini is using 2 18650 cells, which makes me wonder why they are charging so much for extra batteries. You can get a pair of Samsung 2500mah 18650s for like £7. DJI want £45 per battery.


Suppose for a DJI branded battery the price is reasonable compared to their other batteries, though still a large markup.
 
Caporegime
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Looks like the kind of drone I should move over to. I have a Mavic Pro in the cupboard and hardly ever take it anywhere. Maybe a smaller, pocketable one would have a better chance of being taken places with me.

Drones direct are doing a deal where all preorders get a free dji bag so could be worth a look.
 
Soldato
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Looks like the kind of drone I should move over to. I have a Mavic Pro in the cupboard and hardly ever take it anywhere. Maybe a smaller, pocketable one would have a better chance of being taken places with me.

I'd get one myself but I also like going inverted on my custom quad or doing power loops yet still being able to capture 1080p 60fps, sure its no DJI camera but for me its good enough.

The only major upgrade I would consider would be an autonomous drone that could track me while doing some downhill mountain biking, in that case the only option would be the skydio 2 which is out next month.
 
Caporegime
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The only major upgrade I would consider would be an autonomous drone that could track me while doing some downhill mountain biking, in that case the only option would be the skydio 2 which is out next month.

Wouldn't put money on that, last i read they had taken all the pre-orders they were taking for this year and not taking any more til next year. Plus currently the drone is only certified for use in the us\canada and they don't have any info about any more regions getting it. Their production facility is quite literally a room with people putting these together so volume is going to be pretty small overall, unless they can partner with people to make them.
 
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Soldato
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Having sold my mavic 2 zoom due to lack of use, have to say im quite tempted with the mavic mini, going to wait a little while for some more reviews etc, I understand that they cut things out to save weight etc, but its a shame it doesn't have any active track at all
 
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