Iffy build quality.

[Chris Baish]

the actual weight of the drone ,whether it be sub 250g or something like the Air 3 at around 725g ,can also play a big part ,in its survivability ,after an impact with something
mainly because, it suffers less damage ,on impact with the ground ,if it falls that far,
and when it comes to the Mini drones ,that perceived build quality, can also prevent structural forces from propagating,to other areas of the body shell ,if it allows the different parts to spring apart, instead of cracking,its all relative
i do aggree that after watching several YT posts, about the Mini 4 pro, that in many of them the fit and finish ,where the parts snap together, did seem to have an issue ,of course it could be that they were early production models ,but for me, they did not paint a very good picture,of the drones overall lifespan
its not really fair to compare the Mini 4 pro, to the Air 3 ,when it comes to the solid fit and finish that the Air 3 displays overal ,it is in a different league ,to the Mini drones

Completely agree with all of this. The build quality of the mid and upper tier models has become very high and it wouldn't be fair to compare directly. However, my Mini 4 Pro doesn't compare favourably to the previous 2 Mini generations, and I've owned one of each generation. The gimbal is solid but the drone body feels like they have pushed the weight savings too far to fit in the extra tech. I've got to look back to the original Mavic Mini for one that creaked and flexed this much in the hand!

 

[old man mavic]

@Chris Baish sometimes More means Less ,i guess time will tell

 

[Chris Baish]

@Chris Baish sometimes More means Less ,i guess time will tell

If I decide to go with a replacement I'll update here to share whether it is any better!

 

[RangerEd]

It’s for weight like you said. I think DJI had no choice other than to put less good stuff in it if they wanted a thicker plastic. Based on some videos of the Mini 4 Pro crashing the light weight and flexibility of the plastic seemingly makes it very break resistant… it just doesn’t feel as nice.

I think you're right. Watching DC Rainmaker crash the drone and seeing where the damage occurred the shell basically came slightly apart and he just needed to push them back together. So the "build quality" may in fact gives it more pliability on impact.

 

[agia57]

Pictures please. I would like to see what you described.

There is nothing to see on the propeller I removed. I did remove and inspect it. There was a tiny bit of thread locker under the propeller where it connects to the motor shaft. It was removed. I put the propeller back on and it moved freely. I then put the original screw back on the propeller and it would bind in a few places. So I had to assume the propeller was slightly out of tolerance. Otherwise, I can see nothing wrong with it.

I then took one of the spare "A" propellers I had out of an unopened package and a new screw from the same package and mounted it. That solved the 'sticky' propeller issue. However, I noted the new screw looked slightly different and sits a little lower but the propeller moves fine. The propeller/screw on the left is what the drone came with. The one on the right is the replacement. The right screw slots are smaller and it sits a bit lower (or the thickness of the screw head is different?). I'm not sure what to make of it.



Update: Contacted DJI Support via their Live Chat. They are forwarding this concern (and some others I had: jerky motion on right control and live feed issues) to their Advanced Technical Team who will supposedly get back to me. They advised at this time if the drone flies OK, not to worry. Had none of these issues with my less sophisticated Mini 2 SE.

 

[davedrone 178]

My Mini 4 is going back. No DJI drone ever gave me a "battery overcurrent" warning after 3,000 miles of flying with 6 different drones. And I was flying in normal mode and have flown with a high wind warning about 500 times. This puppy has problems

 

[Starz]

The right screw slots are smaller and it sits a bit lower

My though would be that these screws are from two different suppliers. I’ve seen these kinds of discrepancies in other hardware products purchased over the years.
Any idea what the material is in this picture?

 

[agia57]

My though would be that these screws are from two different suppliers. I’ve seen these kinds of discrepancies in other hardware products purchased over the years.
Any idea what the material is in this picture?View attachment 168713

I saw that in the photo afterwards (I have 65+ year old eyes!) -- however, that was not the propeller giving me issues at the time. I'll look again before my next test flight.

 

[solidhouse]

My Mini 4 is going back. No DJI drone ever gave me a "battery overcurrent" warning after 3,000 miles of flying with 6 different drones. And I was flying in normal mode and have flown with a high wind warning about 500 times. This puppy has problems

I think they have some kinks to iron out. I remember my Mini 3 Pro giving all kind of battery overcurrent warnings when in sport mode. A few firmware updates later, it didn’t happen any more.

I flew my Mini 4 Pro in some heavy wind today. When I was flying back home and headed into the wind, I noticed it was only moving at 5-6 m/s in normal mode. Then when I put it into sport mode, it was only flying at 6-7 m/s. I thought that this was a bit strange.

 

[Wreckhunter]

After watching DC Rainmaker's video where he crashed his Mini 4 Pro four times without even a scratch, I'm not too worried. I'll withhold my judgment until I have mine in my hands tomorrow afternoon however.

How on earth can a pilot crash the same drone 4 times,wow.

 

[rwilliam99]

How on earth can a pilot crash the same drone 4 times,wow.

Watch the video. It will make sense then. He was testing/stressing the ActiveTrack feature.

 

[Starz]

How on earth can a pilot crash the same drone 4 times,wow.

Large wallet.

 

[JordanAT]

One data point: The frame is quite a bit thinner and more flexible* than my mini; it definitely feels delicate. OTOH, everything seems to fit well and my test flight went off without a hitch. I got noticeably anxious as I crossed the 1km distance mark (since my mini tends to lose signal past there if you breathe wrong), but the link was dead solid out to 2km. I do wish they'd seen fit to put a night strobe on the top/tail and illuminate the front with nav lights. I've got a set and velcro'd them on for a quick night flight but it always feels kludgy to put warts on a drone.


* as a structural engineer, for a decade in the aerospace industry and more than two decades in the terrestrial industry, flexibility and strength are not dependent properties. The fact that this is very lightweight and the frame is flexible is very possible a feature rather than a bug. As long as the shell has a high yield strength fracture toughness, the device should be quite durable.

 

[Torque]

Large wallet.

Sponsored review. Care refresh.
Watch the video.
Crashed 4 times after hitting small, leafless branches and falling, yet no damage to the drone whatsoever.
Waiting for the rain to clear before I make my maiden flight, but so far no complaints here about build quality.
It is what it is.

 

[Torque]

...warts on a drone.

I had to laugh when I read this. I try to avoid using Velcro to attach lights as I view the Velcro as a wart. Give me 3D printed mounts that I can add and remove when needed. Much cleaner.

 

[Mynah]

* as a structural engineer, for a decade in the aerospace industry and more than two decades in the terrestrial industry, flexibility and strength are not dependent properties. The fact that this is very lightweight and the frame is flexible is very possible a feature rather than a bug. As long as the shell has a high yield strength fracture toughness, the device should be quite durable.

More or less what my son (mechanical engineer) told me when I said my Mini 3 'feels' more flimsy than my Mini 2. My argument was how do they fit more tech into a drone AND keep the mass the same. "Better design" he said.

 

[KLRSKIR]

Odd, side by side my 3 & 4 seem to be of the exact same build quality.

 

[JordanAT]

I had to laugh when I read this. I try to avoid using Velcro to attach lights as I view the Velcro as a wart. Give me 3D printed mounts that I can add and remove when needed. Much cleaner.

I was eyeing up what it would take to print a mount that would look less terrible than velcro'd battery/LED packs. I'd gladly pay $100 for a DJI replacement frame/shell with proper night-lighting that connected to internal power, even if it were a 250+g result (esp since I only have Plus batteries and am over the limit!).

 

[Starz]

Sponsored review.

Larger wallet.

 

[Skydreamer]

soft,hard, i dont care as long is working…i am at that age where soft is normal so…