Mavic 2 Pro vs Mini 3 Pro

[Remote Pilots Australia]

M2P camera system is superior in every way to the mini 3.
However the drone can only be operated in A2/A3

Being in Australia this is thankfully a madness that I am yet to be subjected to. As far as proximity goes one drone is much the same as another here.

I also do a lot of orthos and photogrammetry

Likewise. I’m a commercial operator and probably 70% of my flying consists of waypoint missions gathering images for mapping and survey although of course the M2P rolling shutter is unsuitable for that and I am usually flying the venerable Phantom 4 Pro or RTK.

I waited and waited for the M3 to get waypoints and an SDK and still it hasn't

Here you have why the Mini 2 which is my motorcycle pannier buddy is the only DJI Fly platform drone I own. I would be hard pressed to find the post in question; I’m a member of the DJI software developers program so I suspect it was there but I have seen a statement from DJI that there is no intention to ever support host processed waypoint missions on any consumer drone running on the fly app.

I’m unsure why exactly, I’ve seen it posited that it is because of pressure from various regulators and I’ve also seen it said that it is to put in place a firm market differential between their consumer and commercial lines … all I know is while I may well end up with a Mini 3 Pro you are never going to see me lay out the $Au3700 to $Au7200 being asked for a Mavic 3 series when it is never likely to support what is to me a must have feature.

Regards
Ari

 

[Cymru]

Another issue is availability of batteries and spares for the M2P. I have 3 batteries remaining, all on 50+ cycles, all of which are degraded to the point i don't get full flight times or even get warnings during flight. But i cant buy spares any more.

DJIs "nudge" towards newer platforms is one thing but it seems like they're pushing people to the newest product whilst at the same time stripping features so it cant actually do the same job.
I have learnt to deal with the rolling shutter by adjusting flight speeds and to be fair, Metashape handles it very well.

(I've eventually owned 9 M2P batteries, down to my last 2.5 semi useful ones).

 

[Remote Pilots Australia]

Currently I have no problems sourcing genuine M2P batteries from my authorised dealer and I’m surprised you are having this issue so soon. Obviously it comes to all models at a certain point but the M2 series were the current model only 8 or so months back. Once that source dries up it’ll be time to go aftermarket I suppose or pack my own (not something I’m looking forward to trying)

I found a lot of my batteries from August - September 2018 manufacture were quite prone to swelling and early degradation. My later ones fared much better.

Yes, as you say you can ameliorate the rolling shutter effect somewhat by adjusting your speed or coming to a stop to acquire the image (also a metashape user here) but with the size and scope of some of the jobs I do it would mean doubling the number or batteries I carry or even more and is not viable for me. Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 is still king in my world.

Regards
Ari

 

[Cymru]

P4P (or any global shutter) would be better for sure. I dont need to stop to get rid of the effect but yes each mission is longer and needs more batteries.

Its frustrating because shutter aside, the newer drones COULD do everything needed but DJI have chosen not to allow it via software cripples.
Im not entirely sure what their overall plan is, if any....

 

[Bussty]

Even if the Air2S was 8K, for me it would be too limiting as I flew the Parrot Anafi for 3 years with hundreds of flights.
Once you have that gimbal flexibility you start to look at the sky differently. You appreciate clouds and composition

I think this is a VERY valid point

 

[jmaganaski]

Even the Mavic 3 ?

I'm not restricted in my area yet but it's true that it could be useful if I travel in one of those countries where this law will apply. However I'm really concerned with the wind resistance.

I traveled in many places where I would have been hesitant to fly a DJI Mini while it wasn't a problem with the Mavic 2 Pro.

As of right now, yes. Even the Mavic 3. This is because the 3’s lack of support with 3rd party software, specifically for mapping jobs. The M2P is still the drone of choice for these applications. Hands down, although I suspect that will eventually change. But as of right now, yes. Absolutely.

 

[Zandian]

I have a M2P and have loved it. I spring for the smart controller too. I really was excited about the Mavic 3 but was blown away by the extremely high price. So I’ve been sitting disappointed waiting for something worth replacing my M2P. But I don’t think I will sell it. I have three batteries that are showing slight signs of expanding. I really don’t want to blow money on three new batteries so I’m putting it towards a Mini 3 instead.

The Mini 3 has many things I like. I like the portability, the new RC and the range. Would love a better camera but much better than the last two minis. Gonna live with both until the Skydio 3 comes out, then might sell the M2P to buy that.

Z

 

[Remote Pilots Australia]

specifically for mapping jobs. The M2P is still the drone of choice for these applications.

I don’t want to drag the thread too far off topic and certainly don’t wish to seem argumentative but for the sake of anyone thinking of buying a drone for mapping I have to say that the Mavic 2 Pro is *not* the drone of choice for mapping and never has been within the industry.

I’ve had at least one Mavic 2 in the company hanger since 2018 and still do. It’s a great drone, does waypoint missions like a champion and until the arrival of the Air2S was the unrivalled champ for social media, light weight photography (light weight meaning anything not big enough to have interchangeable camera payloads), events and real estate and is still the go to in those situations for many myself included but there are certain restrictions imposed by the rolling software shutter and associated distortions that mean it really will not serve for mapping in it’s truest sense.

It takes great photos that stitch into a mean authomosaic that will suit many situations but mapping serious areas with the cm level accuracy required to be commercially sold as “mapping” is just not practical. Oh you can slow it right down or to a stop for each image and reduce inaccuracies, almost to an acceptable level but then the area you can cover per battery becomes sub viable from a commercial perspective. It’s like racing the Indy 500 in Volkswagon. You’ll finish the course but there’s no money or acclamation at the end.

To be truely able to market your product as “mapping” you need a higher grade camera than the M2P carries with a hardware shutter. There’s a reason why in most states of the U.S. you must have a surveyor’s qualification on top of a drone licence to advertise as being a mapping provider. Even here in Australia I have to guarantee a level of accuracy that I can not provide over any realistic area with a M2P and my bread a butter currently is geotechnical slope survey mapping where my images are used to calculate how much mountain sides and slopes are shifting which as you can imagine can have life and death implications.

For light weight mapping the go to drone is as it has been for the last 5 years, the Phantom 4 Professional.

Regards

Ari

 

[robotfist]

The variable aperture on the Mavic 2 Pro is so useful. I can't imagine going back to a fixed aperture and the days of launching the drone and then realizing you should have put on a stronger ND. With the Mavic 2 Pro, it's possible to make minor adjustments to your exposure in the air. That is invaluable to me and results in a ton of saved time and saved power.

 

[Johnmcl7]

The variable aperture on the Mavic 2 Pro is so useful. I can't imagine going back to a fixed aperture and the days of launching the drone and then realizing you should have put on a stronger ND. With the Mavic 2 Pro, it's possible to make minor adjustments to your exposure in the air. That is invaluable to me and results in a ton of saved time and saved power.

That's one aspect that's making me consider cancelling my Mini 3 order as it wasn't something I was initially thinking of and was clearly forgetting how often I'm stopping down the lens on the M2P.

What I've been wondering is does the quad bayer layout actually offer any useful improvement in image quality? Most articles I can find are early ones where they explain the promise of being able to read different sub pixels individually allowing much wider dynamic range or much lower noise. However I can't find any actual advantages in practice although most discussions break down into whether it does offer any more resolution or not. Olympus have released a new camera with a 20MP* 4/3 sensor which uses the quad bayer layout (although apparently not called quad bayer due to the micro lens layout) but reviews seem mixed on how much IQ advantage it adds, if any. Looking at the Mini 3 files they're about what I'd expect for the sensor size, better than the 1/2.3in sensors but not as good as the 1in sensors even though it has the quad bayer layout.

* They sell and badge it as a 20MP not an 80MP like many of the other companies selling quad bayer sensors are doing

 

[Cymru]

Without a variable aperture you're pretty much limited to a photo flight OR a video flight.
A correct filter for video blur will cause image degradation on most stills whereas a nice fast shutter speed for crisp stills is sub-optimal for video.

With a variable aperture you can stick one filter on and adjust the exposure in-flight enough to make 1 flight work for both photo and video.

Without it you're back to returning, landing, removing a filter then launching again to go from video to stills and vice versa.

 

[Remote Pilots Australia]

Which brings us back to “buy a Mini 3 Pro if you want one by all means but don’t sell your M2P just yet especially if you want host processed waypoints”

 

[KS-6]

Flew my M2P today on a somewhat tricky job. It needed a custom unlock and was windy / tight quarters flying.

The thing just nails it every time…

 

[Sockeye]

I sold my M2P with the SC, Litchi & hacks installed and bought the Mini 3 for less.

I do not think I will miss Waypoints or Litchi but will enjoy the weight, size (with the corresponding legal advantages) and superior video quality. The only downside is that oversharpening of the mini but I presume this will be adjustable soon.

 

[Johnmcl7]

I sold my M2P with the SC, Litchi & hacks installed and bought the Mini 3 for less.

Where did you sell it that cheap? I've been toying with the idea of a smart controller for the M2P but I didn't realise how crazy the prices are currently, the SC on its own can go for near the price of a Mini 3.

 

[MaximusCZ]

The only downside is that oversharpening of the mini but I presume this will be adjustable soon.

I wouldn't hold breath

 

[AroundTheWorld]

This could be a game changer for some of us

New Firmware Adds 10-bit Video Recording For DJI Mini 3 Pro

Earlier this week, drone maker DJI brought 10-bit video recording to the DJI Mini 3 Pro when recording in D-Cinelike by means of a firmware update.

dronexl.co

 

[vindibona1]

I didn't read 3 pages (currently) of replies. But I would encourage you NOT to sell your Mavic 2 Pro even if you buy the Mini 3. I have both a M2P and a Mini 2. I'll probably get a Mini 3 down the road, but I am NOT going to ditch my Mavic 2 Pro. In spite of some of the features and advantages of the Mini 3, the M2P has got way too many features that you won't get in the Mini 3... or even the Mavic 3 without going for the Smart Controller. In reality, the only think that seems to be missing for me, which isn't any kind of deal unless I NEED perfectly smooth slo-mo.

The Mini 3 is pretty formidable and looks like a nice step up from the Mini 2, and I wouldn't touch it without it's smart controller. But the flying characteristics and stability of the Mavic 2 in high winds will be much better than the smaller drones. And for me, variable aperture is a kind of a big deal as are the programmable C1/C2/5D buttons, dual wheels and separate video/photo "shutter" buttons are not something I want to give, up, nor the lighter weight and smaller size of the M2 controller.

 

[raakcc]

And if you don't need all that, but do need a better top speed then paying €100 to forfeit what you need to gain a load of what you dont need is a dud deal. All depends on what you want your drone to do.

Why do you need a higher top speed if you're using the drone to film video?

 

[scro]

Why do you need a higher top speed if you're using the drone to film video?

Hi, Welcome to the forum!

See post #6 of this thread - the OP was concerned about wind resistance, and the higher the top speed of the drone the less likely it is to get blown away and lost in the wind. The new mini 3 has a lower top speed than the Mavic 2 Pro so would get blown away sooner by strong wind.