DJI Mini 3 Pro - Remote Controller or iPhone 11?

[Brewer]

Is it worth the extra money to purchase the remote controller OR, should I save some money and use my iPhone 11 instead?
I'm about to make a purchase and if I can save some money, that would be a plus. However, I want to have the best experience monitoring flight too, especially as a new user of drones.

 

[old man mavic]

@Brewer firstly welcome to the forum
for me the DJI RC with the built in screen would be the way to go ,but it is really up to you
using the phone is fine, but the screen size could be a problem, if your close up eyesight is not the best ,its a decision that only you can make ,based on your particular circumstances

 

[FLDave]

If you like using your I Phone then just stick with it, unless you have more details about your current situation.

 

[Brewer]

@Brewer firstly welcome to the forum
for me the DJI RC with the built in screen would be the way to go ,but it is really up to you
using the phone is fine, but the screen size could be a problem, if your close up eyesight is not the best ,its a decision that only you can make ,based on your particular circumstances

Good point as I do wear reading glasses!

 

[Cafguy]

You will be limiting yourself to that one small screen. Output for other monitors is not included with the Smart Controller.
The RC-N1 is much more versatile. Now if you get the Pro controller (The black $1000 one) now your in business.
Between the Smart controller and the RC-N1 I will choose the screen less one every time.

 

[Brewer]

You will be limiting yourself to that one small screen. Output for other monitors is not included with the Smart Controller.
The RC-N1 is much more versatile. Now if you get the Pro controller (The black $1000 one) now your in business.
Between the Smart controller and the RC-N1 I will choose the screen less one every time.

Yikes! $1000 just for the controller.
Thanks for your feedback. It seems like my beekeeping hobby, post a question to 5 beekeepers and you will get 10 different answers! ;-)

 

[Cafguy]

If you are flying for a living the $1000 is well spent I just do security so really all I need to do is fly and see lol. A lot of my buddies who are Pro's own the PRO controller at least the ones that fly DJI. DJI makes A very very cool controller for the new Inspire 3 that looks like an oversized Nintendo Switch I think they want $1700 for that one. and not sure about compatibility with non Enterprise models.

 

[umanbean]

Good luck with your choice.

 

[Brewer]

I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the purchase of the DJI Mini 3 Pro. The sale ends tomorrow where they throw in a 1-yr replacement warranty along with the intelligent flight battery.

I did opt to buy the one that comes with the remote controller. After seeing some posts that the iPhone heats up, is not as bright, and does not have quite as big of a screen, I decided to go with their remote controller.

Thanks for all the feedback.

 

[Felix le Chat]

Is it worth the extra money to purchase the remote controller OR, should I save some money and use my iPhone 11 instead?
I'm about to make a purchase and if I can save some money, that would be a plus. However, I want to have the best experience monitoring flight too, especially as a new user of drones.

It's a case of horses for courses. The built in screen is a great idea, but the touch-sensitive screen is very close to the grips and the more sausage-fingered amongst us can end up accidentally hitting the virtual buttons top right and left with the heels of either thumb. On a personal note: I prefer using the RCN1 (or the RC1A/B) with a 10.5" android tablet - the only controller that would change my habits would be the RC-PRO for the one reason: that one is 2T2R (2 patch antennas for transmit: another 2 for receive) meaning a stronger and more reliable control link. But.... I can't justify paying £850+ for something that will be obsolete in a few years, just like the smart controller is.

 

[Cymruflyer]

I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the purchase of the DJI Mini 3 Pro. The sale ends tomorrow where they throw in a 1-yr replacement warranty along with the intelligent flight battery.

I did opt to buy the one that comes with the remote controller. After seeing some posts that the iPhone heats up, is not as bright, and does not have quite as big of a screen, I decided to go with their remote controller.

Thanks for all the feedback.

Remote or Smart controller? I shall assume you meant the smart controller, the one that has the built in screen. I have the Smart Controller with my Mavic 2 Pro.. I bought it later on so it was expensive, they were around $795 new. Mine is the old original Smart Controller but it does have an HDMI port. Yours may well have one too.

If it does, then you can always buy a larger remote monitor which will plug into your Smart Controller, assuming you have that HDMI port. The Smart Controller screen is bright, about 1000Nits, no iPhone will be that bright and even if they tell you, it is, as soon as it begins to get hot, it will begin to dim itself down, so will never stay at its full cold state screen brightness.

I also bought the Feelworld field monitor 729S I think it is and new they cost about $235 but you can find them at less money. This is an amazing 2,200 NITS so is incredibly bright. They now make an even larger monitor which I believe is up to 10 inches and it is touch screen. Do a search for the list of Feelworld monitors but make sure you are looking at the super bright models that have 2,200 NIT screens.

You will be very pleased and thank yourself many times over, that you went with the Smart Controller (assuming you did) because there is the speed at which you can get flying, over connecting an iphone, plus the simplicity and the fact that you have no cables to lose or damage connection points and only the one battery to keep charged, instead of worry about the standard remote controller battery and the iphone battery to charge.

 

[Wildcatgary]

Is it worth the extra money to purchase the remote controller OR, should I save some money and use my iPhone 11 instead?
I'm about to make a purchase and if I can save some money, that would be a plus. However, I want to have the best experience monitoring flight too, especially as a new user of drones.

Can't put other apps on the DJI RC. But you can on the phone?

 

[Brewer]

Remote or Smart controller? I shall assume you meant the smart controller, the one that has the built in screen. I have the Smart Controller with my Mavic 2 Pro.. I bought it later on so it was expensive, they were around $795 new. Mine is the old original Smart Controller but it does have an HDMI port. Yours may well have one too.

If it does, then you can always buy a larger remote monitor which will plug into your Smart Controller, assuming you have that HDMI port. The Smart Controller screen is bright, about 1000Nits, no iPhone will be that bright and even if they tell you, it is, as soon as it begins to get hot, it will begin to dim itself down, so will never stay at its full cold state screen brightness.

I also bought the Feelworld field monitor 729S I think it is and new they cost about $235 but you can find them at less money. This is an amazing 2,200 NITS so is incredibly bright. They now make an even larger monitor which I believe is up to 10 inches and it is touch screen. Do a search for the list of Feelworld monitors but make sure you are looking at the super bright models that have 2,200 NIT screens.

You will be very pleased and thank yourself many times over, that you went with the Smart Controller (assuming you did) because there is the speed at which you can get flying, over connecting an iphone, plus the simplicity and the fact that you have no cables to lose or damage connection points and only the one battery to keep charged, instead of worry about the standard remote controller battery and the iphone battery to charge.

Thanks for the feedback. I did make the purchase yesterday and I did opt for the smart controller.

 

[hagman23]

Yikes! $1000 just for the controller.
Thanks for your feedback. It seems like my beekeeping hobby, post a question to 5 beekeepers and you will get 10 different answers! ;-)

There are two controllers with a screen, the DJI RC is no where as much as the RC Pro controller and is a great.

 

[dvsls]

I also bought the combo with the RC with screen but I can't say I'm really happy with it:
- the controller gets hot really fast even in cool weather
- it's a bit laggy, probably they saved costs by using inferior hardware for that android
- in sunlight is not that good, the iphone is significantly better I would say