Air 3 Battery Charging

[Droning on and on...]

While every potential buyer of an Air 3 is supposed to have a 30-100W PD USB-C charger (I have three, including the one that came with the Mavic 3), there's no excuse to not include at least a 60W charger in the Air 3 bundle.

Of course there is. You gave it: You already have 3.

Between wall bricks and power banks, I already have half a dozen ways to charge my new Air 3 when i get it. I dont want to spend another $100 for the package to add something i don't need and won't use. I'd rather spend that money on ND filters, something I will use.

 

[Arnold LeVine]

@marshvet can i jump in here ,for a second ,if no one minds, as a new AIR3 owner since yesterday, and having been able to get my Air 3 up and running can i mention a few points with regards to your OP
first off the hub that comes with the fly more combo and holds 3 batteries ,is not actually a charger ,that job falls to a mains operated power brick that supplies a certain voltage/ Wattage of charge to the hub, which in turn controls which battery get charged first, and so on ,the hub also acts as a power supply to charge something like a phone or tablet, using the stored energy from the battery or batteries that are in the hub
DJI recommend two types of PD charging bricks to charge the Air 3 batteries a 65w version and the 100w version that is used in the Mavic 3 series of drones
both of them will do the job but the 100w one just does it quicker thats all
i was able to charge one battery in the hub with the 100w brick in around 45 minutes
i have not woken the other 2 up from hibernation yet as i dont know when the weather is going to be suitable for flying, its constant rain on and off every day, for several days here, in days gone past DJI used to supply charging bricks with their drone bundles, and still do now, in some of the more expensive high end drones,but for a us poor hobbyists ,they now expect us to supply our own power source

Are you saying that the Air 3 package does not include a charging brick? IF so, that is utter BS on DJI.

 

[msinger]

Are you saying that the Air 3 package does not include a charging brick?

That's correct.

 

[Torque]

When it comes to communicating understanding, you don't know what they (individually) don't know. The bigger the random sample, the broader your own ignorance about your audience. It will prevent understanding by all, 100% of the time

EXACTLY! And this is why DJI should make it crystal clear that there is not a charging hub included ("here are the two choices for charging we offer at an additional cost").

Did you watch any of the sponsored YouTube reviews? They easily leave most viewers with the impression that the Drone comes with this sleek black DJI 100 watt charging hub (that the influencers were sent with their kit), and a set of filters.

 

[Dr.Sparky]

Don't mean to stir things up, but when I purchased my Mini 2 fly more kit, it came complete with a 20 W charging block. We bought a Mini 3 Pro combo kit a few months later and there was no charging block. (No case or propeller guard either).
At first I thought I was shorted the charger but after looking deeper I realized it wasn't included.
I had the 20w from the Mini 2, but it wasn't sufficient for the 3's power requirement of 30 w.
I realize it's a cost savings for DJI, but not much of one as I bought a 30 W charger on Amazon for $6, and it's been working just fine.

 

[Droning on and on...]

Are you saying that the Air 3 package does not include a charging brick? IF so, that is utter BS on DJI.

That's one perspective.

Another is I already have multiple PD chargers, some 100W capable, so I'm very happy I don't have to waste $100 on something I don't need unnecessarily bundled with the product.

Thank you, DJI!

 

[BobaFut]

That's one perspective.

Another is I already have multiple PD chargers, some 100W capable, so I'm very happy I don't have to waste $100 on something I don't need unnecessarily bundled with the product.

Thank you, DJI!

I do not for one second believe that DJI (or Apple or any other company that does this) passes this savings on to me, the consumer.

 

[Droning on and on...]

I do not for one second believe that DJI (or Apple or any other company that does this) passes this savings on to me, the consumer.

Savings? Odd way of looking at it.

They come up with a price based on what's in the package. How do believe they arrive at the price? Assuming they've included things that aren't there?

Why do you think the Air 3 RC-N1 bundle costs less than the DJI RC 2 package? Are there "savings" being passed on there?

 

[BobaFut]

Savings? Odd way of looking at it.

They come up with a price based on what's in the package. How do believe they arrive at the price? Assuming they've included things that aren't there?

Well they aren't charging based on the price of components and accessories, they're charging what they think the market will bear. It's not like they're coming up with X price, then deciding to not include a charger, and then lowering the price by whatever the charger costs. They know what people will pay for the drone then ask "will people NOT buy this if we don't include the charger at that price?" And of course the answer is no, so they charge the same price and then pocket the extra profit from not including a charger.

 

[Droning on and on...]

Well they aren't charging based on the price of components and accessories, they're charging what they think the market will bear.

Of course. Same thing you do when putting your labor up for sale.

Surely you don't total up just your critical expenses, and then go around telling prospective employers they should only pay you the amount necessary to cover those needs.

No, you look to make a profit on your labor, charging more than it costs for you to be there and work every day.

And like everyone, you try to maximize that pay for the labor you provide. You want what you think you're worth, not what your employer thinks you're worth – and I'm sure you find your attitude entirely ethical.

So do I.

And so is DJI, charging what the market will bear, just like you.

 

[Droning on and on...]

They know what people will pay for the drone then ask "will people NOT buy this if we don't include the charger at that price?" And of course the answer is no, so they charge the same price and then pocket the extra profit from not including a charger.

Over my career working as engineer, project manager, R&D manager, and COO at half a dozen different tech companies, I've been involved in that process – pricing a new product – more times than I can remember to count.

I can assure you the conversations are nothing so cynical and customer-dismissive as you describe here. Rather, I'm certain there was a lot of debate about when to make the change, customer impact, and the noise from some that will never accept a change like this. Even if it's beneficial.

I'm pretty sure this decision was not made lightly, and is part of a bigger plan to follow the rest of the world where this situation is moving to a new paradigm with standardized power adapters across all manner of rechargeable devices. I'm also sure squeezing a few more $$ out of customers already spending U$1,000-1,500 wasn't even part of the discussion.

This was, after all, the main purpose of developing the Power Delivery specification, and standardizing around it.

I don't think it random whim that PD chargers were included with the first generation of PD drones (mini 2, Mavic 3). Then left out of future products (Mini 3(P), Air 3) as PD chargers increased penetration with public, and the standard became more and more prevalent with other devices.

We call this a transition.

 

[walt@classic]

When you guys get all the bugs out of the air 3 drone then I might think about buying. Right now I think DJI is to busy flooding the market with new drones instead of taking care of the ones that are out there being used. A friend of mine got ahold of them about a censor problem and has never heard from them. Just my 2 cents

 

[Auldflyer]

I received my Air 3 yesterday and have been charging one via the drone and one via the charging hub for hours ands both of them do not seem to move past the 2 bars. Am I missing something? Thanks.

Anker 737 120w Charger on Amazon about $70 US, anything less than 100w useless

 

[msinger]

anything less than 100w useless

I'm using a DJI 57W charger. It's not as fast as a 100W charger, but speed isn't really a problem for my workflow since I most often charge batteries the day before I fly.