Yes, they could have a FW update that does that but it would violate law to do so since the drone will reliably come in at over 249g with the standard battery (which seems silly to say because most come with the extended battery, thus making it the standard).
Is the Mini 5 Pro a sub-250g drone?
- Thread starter mavic3usa
- Start date
anotherlab
Well-Known Member
That's a distinction without meaning. Yes, they could make a firmware that disables RID, but they could not legally release it.
The Mini 5 did receive FCC certification, and DJI can sell it in the US. They chose not to release it.
Except FAA regulations do not apply to the drone because the manufacturer is intentionally not selling the drone in the United States, whether previously certified or not. It would therefore not be illegal for DJI to set the FW consistent with the original User Manual. U.S. pilots could then always add an external RID module to make it FAA compliant.
In case you are unaware, the Mini 5 Pro is only sold in the EU with the Intelligent Flight (standard) battery. It cannot be purchased with the Plus battery, and you cannot buy a separate Plus battery in the EU.
I'm glad us Canadians don't have to deal with RID. Not that I would care if we did. Fly safe and don't bother people and it's all moot. I honestly don't care if someone can tell where I'm standing while flying, I'm out in the open anyway and not doing anything unsafe. I'm a licensed pilot, my mini 4 pro (and mavic 3) are registered for when I'm flying my plus battery. Obvs my NEO isn't. Not once in almost ten years have I been approached by law enforcement or anyone else asking for my credentials or proof of being able to fly legally. I don't piss other people off plain and simple and I fly safely. Do that and all this discussion is moot.
RID puts a target on the back of every pilot. It even broadcasts exactly which drone and model version you are flying. It distinguishes the 512GB Mavic 4 Pro Creator Combo from the cheaper 64GB Combo. Anyone with the right RID equipment can now go seeking $5,000 drone flyers within a 3-5 mile range, knowing when you put it back in your car, and drive away, that the smash and grab on your car will be very profitable, when you stop for lunch or dinner, or even stop just to go use the restroom!
No disrespect but you don't know how many people you've pissed off, just because you didn't hear from anyone. Before RID, it wasn't easy to locate the pilot and likely no one ever tried. They just hated what you did and either dealt with it or reported it and the authorities never did anything about it (because they couldn't). I'm not doing anything unsafe either but I don't know if you've ever flown a DJI FPV but it *sounds* unsafe which is enough to stir up anyone. Plus I don't think it is possible for anyone to know for sure if you've flown overhead of a person below unless you fly strictly in the outback.
You may not have been approached by police but that's law enforcement just doesn't make contact with anyone and demand details; at least not here in the US. They respond to complaints. Or, if they are curious but they'll ask, not demand. I've never provided my details to anyone either but I've had contact with several LEO and Karens but nothing has ever come of it, I'm not very "approachable" and unless you are FLEO you can kick rocks. If you haven't had any contact then you're lucky; let us know how your first experience goes, hopefully well.
Before RID and VLOS, the only effective way to locate the pilot was to see or hear the drone launch, or follow the drone until it landed when the battery died, or look around within the VLOS radius of the drone. Previously, those annoyed by the drone that couldn’t find the pilot had no recourse. Now, every Karen with an Android phone and a drone RID scanning app can confront any pilot while they are flying at will. At best, it will be annoying, and at worst, if it is also someone armed, it could end badly. The cops won't get there in time! Hence the recommendation since mandatory RID that every pilot have a CCP and carry their weapon!
Sorry all, I meant no disrespect. Do people really use the RID to track you down and be a Karen there???
Hyperbolic and sensational.
And yet, there's not been a single case of theft or violence reported in all the time RID has been in use.
These speculative and imagined threats around RID have created an inappropriate general fear of RID among a number of drone owners. There are far more actual dangers lurking in the world than hordes of criminals lurking in the woods to locate drone pilots with RID and attack them or steal their gear. Based on what's reported on this forum, drone owners should be far more fearful of power lines and tree branches than RID-equipped criminals.
Yes I forsee it happening in future by anti droners. And corporate retaliatory henchmen groups.
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How long has RID been in use in the US? How many cases of attacks, thefts, or horrifying confrontations with meddlesome women have been reported? Is this imagined or foreseen danger really worth fretting about?
Agreed. With the later becoming more prevalent as RID detection equipment becomes more widely available and less expensive. Still, it will be impossible to know they are using these devices and to what extent so the gullible and the unknowledgeable will continue to be fooled into believing they are safe for quite some time. Imagine that, continuing to fall for the same nonsense, year after year; product after product; never learning the lesson: Never willingly allow your devices to have tracking devices installed unless you can control them to some degree.
Almost everyone has a cell phone and can download a RID detection app for free.
Gullible, unknowledgeable, fooled, fall for the same nonsense, never learning the lesson ...
Yes, some people continue to believe that they're in great danger because of RID, despite more than a year of history with no problems reported here, or elsewhere to my knowledge. And nothing suggests that there will be a significant surge in RID-aided crime and meddling coming soon.
(Resorting to slurs is typically a good sign that fact is not on your side in promoting fear.)
I have noticed far less public encounters since drones are more common than when I flew 10-12 years ago. I can only think of 4 instances of concern or confrontation when flying my Phantom 2 and 4 pro. One was with police and 3 with strangers. One was hostile that I was able to de-esculate. The phone apps I have tried are useless in tracking a drone down. The one I have, Sentinel with a Samsung S22 and Mini 5Pro is only good for about 150 ft. You can see it and hear it at that distance.
anotherlab
Well-Known Member
And most of them are not good out in the wild. The radios in most phones are not optimized for this sort of task. A device like Dronetag RIDER is designed for RDI tracking and is priced way beyond what most consumers would pay.
They don't work for most people. Once you try it and you get nothing, you delete it. Typical.
No one ever said "great danger." right now it's a small risk; later it will be a bigger risk.
There are no problems now because no Karen is using it.
More people are used to drone in many areas but there are still areas (like mine) where we have a ways to go. Happy you are in the clear, I am not. However, I don't think Karen is our prime concern. I can deal with Karen although I prefer not to. My concerns are elsewhere. People keep asking for receipts; there are none at this point. If you are comfortable with me coming back one day and saying "I told you so" that's all fine and good but I honestly prefer we do something about it right now while we still have a chance. Bury our heads today and we'll get slammed later on like we are getting slammed now with a DJI drone ban because we were asleep in the past when I was blowing the whistle and everyone said I was crying wolf.
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