Mavic Mini 2 Compatibility with Litchi ?

[Conservative Nihilist]

I'm pretty much committed to buying a Mavic Mini 2, but since I use my drones exclusively for Litchi long range missions, I am curious to learn from any owners of the newly released Mavic Mini 2, whether or not the drone is compatible with Litchi, for long range missions.

The Mavic Mini 2 checks all the boxes for me : 31 minute flight time for those longer forays under Litchi control, Superb wind resistance in comparison to the Mavic Mini 1, 4K video recording, and compact size, all rolled into one package costing less than $500. The ONLY deal breaker for me, would be if it turned out that the Mini 2 cannot work with Litchi.

Standing by to hear from any Mavic Mini 2 users out there, who have tested this brand new platform with Litchi....

 

[OldBlueHeron]

It will probably take quite awhile for the Mini 2 to be compatible with Litchi. It took Mini 1 nearly a year, and we’re still waiting on Air 2. And for what it’s worth, waypoints still don’t work on Mini 1 with Litchi because DJI didn’t write it in the SDK of the quad apparently.

 

[Conservative Nihilist]

Holy Mackerel ! Without Litchi, the Mavic Mini 2 would not fit the bill for me. That said, I may wind up getting one down the line, when they are on sale used and discounted, by which time Litchi may have caught up with this new platform. Such a shame, as this drone is otherwise the best fit ever, for my drone flying agenda.

There I was thinking that all DJI drones are Litchi compatible by hard-wired factory default. Without your timely caution, Blue Heron sir, I'd have blundered into purchasing a Mavic Mini 2, simply on the basis of my totally wrong presumption about Litchi compatibility and DJI products. You just spared me some hair-pulling and gnashing of teeth for sure, and I tip my hat with gratitude.

All the same I'll stick around in this forum, and monitor Mavic Mini 2 user comments as the seasons roll by. In the meantime, back to laying in wait for good deals on used Ebay Phantom 3 4K drones.

 

[msinger]

am curious to learn from any owners of the newly released Mavic Mini 2, whether or not the drone is compatible with Litchi

They won't be able to make Litchi compatible with the Mavic Mini 2 until DJI adds support to their SDK (which Litchi is using).

 

[Conservative Nihilist]

Thanks again msinger, and apologies for the double post. I initially mistook the Phantom Litchi forum, for a general Litchi forum relevant to all Litchi-compatible DJI drones.

 

[zeusfl]

I am pretty sure that Litchi will archive better tracking with the MM2. The tracking problem with the MM1 is the camera was not good enough to keep tracking. The new camera is 4K and handle better the light and I am pretty sure this will help the Litchi developers to archive a better tracking once the SDK are released.

 

[Conservative Nihilist]

I am so tempted to go ahead and buy a Mavic Mini 2, in the hopes that Litchi compatibility is developed soon, but I'll bide my time for a while longer, and read a few more user reviews here and on youtube, before hitting that "buy" botton.

 

[DanMan32]

The difference though in how Litchi does/will handle waypoints for the MM's is through virtual stick. Other models provide that function on-board so all Litchi is really doing is provide a different interface.

In the P3 world, those had waypoint natively, but the Go app required you to fly to the waypoints to set them. Then when you flew the mission, it would be uploaded to the AC to fly it. Litchi simply provided another means of defining the mission offline, then uploaded it to the AC to execute.

 

[jake20934]

I'm not buying into DJI Mini2 because:
No FocusTrack (Active Track, Spotlight, POI).
No Waypoints.
No SmartController
No Litchi.
If/when the SDK comes out, waypoints virtual sticks might be a huge disappointment.

If it doesn't achieve your mission, I wouldn't buy anything now, and wait until DJI delivers or its competitors.

 

[Conservative Nihilist]

I hear ya Jake. No point purchasing a drone that I hope will be compatible with Litchi at some point in the future, when used Phantom 3 or Phantom3-4K drones already follow Litchi waypoints with pinpoint accuracy.

One can only hope that DJI decides to expedite Litchi compatibility for the Mavic Mini 2, because that 30-minute flight time, pocket size, 4K video recording and improved gusty condition handling, all add up to one formidable package, attractively priced at less than $500 brand new. I'll be watching this space for sure, while keeping my fingers crossed that the good folks at DJI release the relevant SDK that will enable Litchi software engineers to work their alchemy.

 

[msinger]

No SmartController

This will be available after an upcoming firmware update.

 

[kyokushinkai]

I hear ya Jake. No point purchasing a drone that I hope will be compatible with Litchi at some point in the future, when used Phantom 3 or Phantom3-4K drones already follow Litchi waypoints with pinpoint accuracy.

One can only hope that DJI decides to expedite Litchi compatibility for the Mavic Mini 2, because that 30-minute flight time, pocket size, 4K video recording and improved gusty condition handling, all add up to one formidable package, attractively priced at less than $500 brand new. I'll be watching this space for sure, while keeping my fingers crossed that the good folks at DJI release the relevant SDK that will enable Litchi software engineers to work their alchemy.

I would not hold my breath as DJI is less to worry about Litchi, since they apparently do not care much about what the customer wants in flying their products. I have the new Mavic Air 2 and miss the waypoints as I use the craft for my business and rely on accurate flight locations 5 to 10 miles away. It amazes me that DJI does not have enough since or compassion for their customers to write the way point software and incorporate into their own platform instead of allowing Litchi to re-write the SDK and sell it. Oh Well, guess things will progress slowly until they feel the pain!

 

[maelstrom]

It amazes me that DJI does not have enough since or compassion for their customers to write the way point software and incorporate into their own platform instead of allowing Litchi to re-write the SDK and sell it.

But you bought it knowing that it didn’t have a waypoint capability so it wasn’t as though DJI was trying to dupe you.

 

[kyokushinkai]

Well I guess this is as dumb as it gets! I never said DJI was duping anyone now did I. I simply pointed out how they could improve. Of course with spokesmen like you for DJI has no reason to improve. If customers state their position and point out the expected actions, a company might take notice and improve their services. Not that it is any of your business why I made the purchase but it was to test the unit and the 4X camera. I happen to own several DJI products and feel that it is only fair to point out the problems and expectations of the unit. Have a great day and I hope DJI pays you well for carrying their water and responding to comments.

 

[maelstrom]

I simply pointed out how they could improve. Of course with spokesmen like you for DJI has no reason to improve.

I’m not trying to defend DJI, but why would they do that? They already produce other drones which people can buy if they need a waypoint capability. If they were able to retrospectively update the basic drones to do this, less customers would want to buy the more expensive, more capable drones. It’s a bit like buying a basic car and then expecting the manufacturer to add cruise control to it later for free. If you needed that feature, you would buy a car from the outset that you knew had it.

The apps which support waypoints for drones which don’t natively have the capability do so using the “virtual sticks” method which relies on the phone/tablet doing all the calculations and corrections needed to fly the route. Because this needs a fairly powerful CPU in the phone, it would probably attract a lot of criticism about poor drone performance from those with older phones. I can see why DJI would be reluctant to do that. The third-party apps offer bonus features not normally available so are less likely to be criticised if they don’t work perfectly. Dronelink, for example, offers drones like the Mini a waypoint capability for not too much money - certainly far, far less than the extra you’d pay for a drone with native waypoint support. I see that as a bonus and not something I’d expect DJI to necessarily add for free.

 

[TravisHC]

Holy Mackerel ! Without Litchi, the Mavic Mini 2 would not fit the bill for me. That said, I may wind up getting one down the line, when they are on sale used and discounted, by which time Litchi may have caught up with this new platform. Such a shame, as this drone is otherwise the best fit ever, for my drone flying agenda.

There I was thinking that all DJI drones are Litchi compatible by hard-wired factory default. Without your timely caution, Blue Heron sir, I'd have blundered into purchasing a Mavic Mini 2, simply on the basis of my totally wrong presumption about Litchi compatibility and DJI products. You just spared me some hair-pulling and gnashing of teeth for sure, and I tip my hat with gratitude.

All the same I'll stick around in this forum, and monitor Mavic Mini 2 user comments as the seasons roll by. In the meantime, back to laying in wait for good deals on used Ebay Phantom 3 4K drones.

I know this comment is almost a year old but if this person is still available or anyone else reading is looking into a cheap decent photography drone vs a DJI Phantom then you should try a "Yuneec - Typhoon QS500 4k" Because I've studied them a lot and flew one my friend has and it's honestly still impressive today, that is...depending on what you require the drone for. Anyways Check it out cause has dropped a lot in price and can be grabbed.new for like $500 or less. Trust me do yourself a favor and atheist look into it.