Mini 3 Pro range is terrible (in Canada/FCC region)

[shadow3467]

What is an "almost clear line of sight"? What is possibly in between your RC and AC?

As in some trees in between me and the drone but not a forest, more like a few branches here and there

 

[noahzho]

I've had 6-7 flights with it now and seriously considering returning it if possible

I can barely get to 600m away (with almost clear line of sight) before I get signal warnings and the drone saying its going to return to home by itself...

I was hoping this was more of a CE region thing and that once we got the drone here in NA it would be better but doesn't seem like it

Anyone else experiencing this?

This is my first drone so Im not sure how the mini 2 or air2s perform in similar situations. But only being able to go out 500m makes me feel like I paid for an overpriced toy rather than a serious piece of tech

Are you pointing the tips of antennas towards the drone?
also, manual channel transmission settings or auto?

 

[test2000Anafi]

Are you pointing the tips of antennas towards the drone?
also, manual channel transmission settings or auto?

“(with almost clear line of sight)”

 

[Scoobychief]

in urban area heavy urban area from my garden i use to get around 1400m with mini 2 using yagi antenna. i had tried with mini 3 and was getting around 500m before losing connection, the other day decided to take the bird up and try another test, and i fly her 1300m at 120m high without any intereference, at that point i thought better get this back, i was really surprised at the result to be honest.

 

[spsphotos]

This is concerning to me. I have been able to fly my Mavic 1 and mini 2 3 miles away in the mountains where I live. There are some really nice rocky slabs I fly it to. I was hoping I would be able to do the same with the mini 3.

"Drone Police Hat On". And you can keep a VLOS at 2-3 miles? Bionic eye have you?

 

[shadow3467]

in urban area heavy urban area from my garden i use to get around 1400m with mini 2 using yagi antenna. i had tried with mini 3 and was getting around 500m before losing connection, the other day decided to take the bird up and try another test, and i fly her 1300m at 120m high without any intereference, at that point i thought better get this back, i was really surprised at the result to be honest.

What changed between your first and second flight?

 

[Scoobychief]

What changed between your first and second flight?

not sure for one i was only flying around 60m high but frankly i have no idea. most probably double in height.

 

[shadow3467]

Ok so I went out for a test flight today and managed to get up to 1000m but with LOTS of low signal warnings and 2 bars, around 1200m it lost contact and returned to home.

Keep in mind this was in a flat area, with almost no buildings and a couple of trees between me and the drone, flying at 120m

I'm so disappointed. Was the Mini 2 range like this as well? I might return this and get the Mini 2 if it wasnt. I'm okay with sacrificing photo quality for better signal

 

[QUICKNICK]

I've had 6-7 flights with it now and seriously considering returning it if possible

I can barely get to 600m away (with almost clear line of sight) before I get signal warnings and the drone saying its going to return to home by itself...

I was hoping this was more of a CE region thing and that once we got the drone here in NA it would be better but doesn't seem like it

Anyone else experiencing this?

This is my first drone so Im not sure how the mini 2 or air2s perform in similar situations. But only being able to go out 500m makes me feel like I paid for an overpriced toy rather than a serious piece of tech

I'm getting no issuers at considerably longer distance. In London, On.

 

[globetrotterdrone]

Compared to my SC and the M2P I have to admit, the signal seems more prone to obstructions like foliage and buildings, especially if you not angle the RC towards the drone.

But is not like dramatically worse.
You just have to care a bit more for proper alignment.

 

[CryptoGuru]

I've had 6-7 flights with it now and seriously considering returning it if possible

I can barely get to 600m away (with almost clear line of sight) before I get signal warnings and the drone saying its going to return to home by itself...

I was hoping this was more of a CE region thing and that once we got the drone here in NA it would be better but doesn't seem like it

Anyone else experiencing this?

This is my first drone so Im not sure how the mini 2 or air2s perform in similar situations. But only being able to go out 500m makes me feel like I paid for an overpriced toy rather than a serious piece of techЕу

Hey man. I've tested my DJI mini 3 pro with new DJI RC - range around 2000m in EU region, in near my town(capital).

 

[Ken-Mav-Mtl]

Im from FRANCE (CE), in a medium city 20 km away from Paris , the signal was horrible (1km) , so i tested out two things and its way better , first I patched my RCN1(classic RC) for FCC MOD + i choose 5.8ghz only . I get more than 2km with full power signal in city and its already enought for me . You must fly highter than 100m if u start from a low point as i do (downhill)

How do you "Patch" as in:
first I patched my RCN1(classic RC) for FCC MOD

 

[CryptoGuru]

Hey man. I've tested my DJI mini 3 pro with new DJI RC - range around 2000m in EU region, in near my town(capital).

Update. Flew yesterday in Warsaw(Poland) in front of a river(Not a city center) and got like 500m range, than got disconnected. Abit disappointing ****.

 

[shadow3467]

Update. Flew yesterday in Warsaw(Poland) in front of a river(Not a city center) and got like 500m range, than got disconnected. Abit disappointing ****.

Yeah I've been experiencing the same. Going to contact DJI support on Monday and send them my videos. It's just not worth $1200 (CAD) if it's going to perform this inconsistently.

I took this shot (

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) that day, but was struggling with keeping signal at 430m distance at 40m altitude.

It's such a shame because everything else about the drone is so good.

 

[Ken-Mav-Mtl]

I was reviewing the thread that I started for the Mini 2, back in January of 2021, and my latest experience with range issues on my Mini 3 Pro seems quite similar. See the below title:

Mini 2 "RC signal interference" with 24 sats and less than 75 meters from homepoint​

I'm getting "RF signal interference" as well as "Aircraft Signal Interference" as early as H 29m and D 2.4m for RF
and H 120m D 195m for "Aircraft signal interference".

I hope that this will be corrected with a firmware update.

Anyone had similar experiences?

 

[shadow3467]

I was reviewing the thread that I started for the Mini 2, back in January of 2021, and my latest experience with range issues on my Mini 3 Pro seems quite similar. See the below title:

Mini 2 "RC signal interference" with 24 sats and less than 75 meters from homepoint​

I'm getting "RF signal interference" as well as "Aircraft Signal Interference" as early as H 29m and D 2.4m for RF
and H 120m D 195m for "Aircraft signal interference".

I hope that this will be corrected with a firmware update.

Anyone had similar experiences?

So you were having a similar experience with the Mini 2? Did the firmware updates end up fixing it eventually?

 

[shadow3467]

Ok so I just factory reset the RC remote, repaired it with the drone and went out for a quick 15 min test flight

I dont know if it's placebo but the signal seemed a lot healthier this time around....

I was able to get as low as 15m in a park about 300-400m away with multiple houses, some trees and even some ground (park is below ground level) without any signal loss whatsoever so Idk what the reset did but it may have done something

Will do more tests later tonight if possible and tomorrow to confirm

 

[shadow3467]

Ok I did another quick 15 min test just now and I'm baffled...

I dont know how a factory reset and then updating to the same firmware would change anything

But I flew around in my neighborhood which has LOTS of houses and interference, and I was able to fly with no problems, up to almost 700m away, I lost a bar or two in some places sure, but those places were behind a hill and dozens of houses, trees etc

Will need to do more testing especially at areas I'd had trouble before but it seems to be much better than before

I guess if you have signal issues, try a factory reset of the RC remote and see if it helps, seems to have helped me a bit

 

[Ken-Mav-Mtl]

Ok I did another quick 15 min test just now and I'm baffled...

I dont know how a factory reset and then updating to the same firmware would change anything

But I flew around in my neighborhood which has LOTS of houses and interference, and I was able to fly with no problems, up to almost 700m away, I lost a bar or two in some places sure, but those places were behind a hill and dozens of houses, trees etc

Will need to do more testing especially at areas I'd had trouble before but it seems to be much better than before

I guess if you have signal issues, try a factory reset of the RC remote and see if it helps, seems to have helped me a bit

Hi Shadow3467:
The issue on the Mini 2 was resolved once they did a firmware update.

I hope that DJI is paying attention to user experiences and that they will eventually update Mini3-Pro firmware.

I can't see how a factory reset and reinstall the same code would change anything. There are always bugs with any new device that need time to work out.

I would not qualify my characterization of the issue as a "range" issue. It's more an "interference" issue, as if the drone is easily affected by some RF interference.

 

[shadow3467]

Ok, went to the same spot in my second test today to test it again after the factory reset of the RC and unfortunately it's still behaving the same. It's so inconsistent for a $1000 drone it's kind of ridiculous.

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I think I'm going to return it at this point and look into a none DJI mini drone, as this has been a terrible experience (along with their useless customer support)