Should I buy?

[Craig]

I've owned a number of phantoms and am thinking about purchasing a mini. I read a number of reports of uncommanded descents and propellers that have flattened. I'm wondering how common this is how many people have Mavic minis that have had no problems at all

 

[slup]

Well ... this is purely my personal belief but ... In forums you always find & higher proportion of people with problems then the opposite, a problem is what makes them seek info to start with. It's certainly thousands of lucky Mini owner out there flying along & enjoying.

But with that said ... towards the background of what I've seen here so far regarding the Mini I wouldn't invest in this stage ... still a lot of honing needed to make this little bugger fly properly.

If you can't wait & the price is a concern I would go for a second hand Mavic Pro or Air any day ... just put in some effort to find the right object that were bought recently with hopes to grow a new interest but when reality came in between no spare time were available.

 

[Starz]

I’m sure there are many owners that are smiling. Unfortunately, I’m not in that group. Worth a try. It is a product that is affordable.

 

[Fun Flyer]

Hi Craig.
How was your experience with the other Phantoms you’ve owned? I’ve owned 2P3s’s since 2016. Not sure if I’ve just been lucky or have had two good machines. Touch wood, but I’ve had no issues with either. This gave me confidence to acquire the Mavic Mini. Have only owned it for a couple months, but so far, no issues with it either. Quite happy with the addition to the fleet. Maybe others are expecting too much from this small machine and therefore running into issues. We should not expect it to perform like some of its larger stable mates. After all they are designed for different missions.
That’s my two cents worth.
Good luck with your decision, whatever it may be.
Denis

 

[Gkinghrn]

well as a 1st time droner I think its excellent. No issues flying it BUT I spent a load of time watching and reading about bwhat NOT to do with it and I am pretty **** about not taking it out when conditions arent right. Similarly any glitches whilst flying it (sent too far , got lost) I have been able to remediate easily by using the knowledge obtained in the various sources mentioned above,

And yes forums tend to be full of folk conplaining about an issue or wanting help with something so i dont think you can base any decision on buy/not buy from a forum alone.

Do your homework before buying .... its your call ...

 

[Mavic Mac]

Welcome to the forums - great place to get tips and answers to your questions (as you have discovered already ?) . Also, the search function if an excellent place to search for the many questions a new member will have.

 

[Bonkshagalistic]

The MM isn't my first drone ( I've got a big Walkera with 6 props,a Parrot Bebop 2, a Tello,thinking about a Mavic Air next) and it certainly doesn't get used if it's windy,but I have had no issues whatsoever with it. It fits a certain niche in the market and does it well,it's more portable/practical than any of my others(the Talera is a pain)and has it's limitations but used as intended with common sense it should serve anyone well.

 

[Craig]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I agree, people who have no problems are less likely to post than those who do which makes forum's a slightly skewed owner sample. I had a Phantom 2 vision plus and a couple Phantom 3s and had no trouble with any of them. I flew one of them into a tree but that's a whole other issue of defective pilot rather than defective drone. I like the idea of something you can stick in your pocket and go and of course the price is nice. Thank you everyone for your input.

 

[old man mavic]

@Craig i would think judging from your joining date ,you have a good idea of how to fly a drone, the MM is a new departure for DJI and is having some teething issues at the moment ,it will get better i am sure with some firmware updates as time goes on ,if you want something that you are going to fly VLOS, and are not bothered about all the sensors ,and having auto flight modes as the more advanced mavics then the MM is a great drone,i myself have had the prop striking the body issue,and seem to have overcome the problem by a front arm mod and i have had 50 flights so far with no crashes

 

[Jet skier]

I've owned a number of phantoms and am thinking about purchasing a mini. I read a number of reports of uncommanded descents and propellers that have flattened. I'm wondering how common this is how many people have Mavic minis that have had no problems at all

Get a bigger mavic , Mavic minis are no good in the wind

 

[The Editor]

@Craig - You do not say what country you are talking about which will have a bearing on decision if you are not in a hurry and your are in Europe, my advice would be to wait.

The new EASA rules come into effect from July 1st this year which will have the effect of making all existing aircraft legacy drones which will plummet in value once C0 - C4 certified aircraft become available.

All new aircraft from DJI will have to be ADS-B equipped to comply with the regulations.
The Mavic Mini will need t9 be registered in any case since it possesses a camera so the sub 250g threshold is immateria. Likewise the Mini is not CE compliant for the C0-C4 classification and certification cannot be retrospective.
Some countries will have a ‘crossover‘ period ranging from 1-2 years at which point all existing aircraft will be pretty much be useless since you will only be able to fly them at designated sites or out miles from anywhere.
The new aircraft (of which there will be a few from DJI this year) will all be manufactured with the lower speed modes and lower noise emission stipulation which will allow certain aircraft to get as close as 5 meters to uninvolved people (utilizing the 1:1 rule).

If it was me......I’d hold on. lots of goodies in the pipeline this year some arriving very soon.......

 

[Jet skier]

@Craig - You do not say what country you are talking about which will have a bearing on decision if you are not in a hurry and your are in Europe, my advice would be to wait.

The new EASA rules come into effect from July 1st this year which will have the effect of making all existing aircraft legacy drones which will plummet in value once C0 - C4 certified aircraft become available.

All new aircraft from DJI will have to be ADS-B equipped to comply with the regulations.
The Mavic Mini will need t9 be registered in any case since it possesses a camera so the sub 250g threshold is immateria. Likewise the Mini is not CE compliant for the C0-C4 classification and certification cannot be retrospective.
Some countries will have a ‘crossover‘ period ranging from 1-2 years at which point all existing aircraft will be pretty much be useless since you will only be able to fly them at designated sites or out miles from anywhere.
The new aircraft (of which there will be a few from DJI this year) will all be manufactured with the lower speed modes and lower noise emission stipulation which will allow certain aircraft to get as close as 5 meters to uninvolved people (utilizing the 1:1 rule).

If it was me......I’d hold on. lots of goodies in the pipeline this year some arriving very soon.......

New rules are not supposed to be in effect for 3 to 5 years they're saying. That's a long time in the drone world

 

[The Editor]

New rules are not supposed to be in effect for 3 to 5 years they're saying. That's a long time in the drone world

Wrong - the EASA rules come into force on the 1st of July this year (140 days time) with all member states having to phase out their own existing rules by 1st July 2021.

 

[RodPad]

Get a bigger mavic , Mavic minis are no good in the wind

How much experience do you have with the Mini?

Rod

 

[hiflyer201]

I'm thinking that solving the prop issue on the Mini is going to put it over the 250 limit. It's seems like a nice little drone but it's been cut bare to the bone. Too many compromises for me to consider one.
Compare it to the Spark

I hope you'll watch this video..this guy's a lot of fun and you'll enjoy it.

 

[aeropic]

first time with a flying camera (not with a quadcopter). It is a very good ratio performance/money.
I like its pocket size and the low mass that makes it easy to carry with you.
Pictures are decent with a quality close to a smartphone.
Flying experience is good, easy to pilot and absolutely no problem at all. The battery capacity is excellent and allows for 20-25 minutes of flight.
Now the drawbacks are:
- could be quite fragile in case of shock. You have to handle it with care
- no follow me mode
- you are stuck to DJI batteries which are quite expensive
- it is very light and you have to take care not to flight in strong winds (above 25 km/h)
- wifi is good but do not expect (CE model) to go above 500m in busy areas. 800 m is achievable in country areas. However after 250-300 you do not see it anymore...

Overall I like it a lot and never regret having bought it!

 

[Saigondroner]

I've owned a number of phantoms and am thinking about purchasing a mini. I read a number of reports of uncommanded descents and propellers that have flattened. I'm wondering how common this is how many people have Mavic minis that have had no problems at all

I have a MM, maybe 40 hours flight time, no damage. It’s a toy, however. After owning most of DJI’s drones since the P2, this is the 1st time it feels DJI cut corners on their hardware...what they are renowned for.

YMMV

 

[Gkinghrn]

I have a MM, maybe 40 hours flight time, no damage. It’s a toy, however. After owning most of DJI’s drones since the P2, this is the 1st time it feels DJI cut corners on their hardware...what they are renowned for.

YMMV

i think you do it a disservice by calling it a toy.... it clearly fills a need in the market and there are enough serious pro’s out there who are using it ....

Yes wind can be an issue but do your homework and learn when NOT to fly it and you should be ok.

It’s not 4K but seriously that simply is not a major issue unless you have a need to do proper 4K ..

Portability beats the heck out of your phantoms and other larger drones..

 

[Stercus Stercus]

I’ve not had a problem yet (apart from a tree suddenly growing where I was flying) unfortunately I’ve still not got enough flights under my belt due to the weather. So far mines been great for a first drone.

 

[Deleted member 114292]

i think you do it a disservice by calling it a toy.... it clearly fills a need in the market and there are enough serious pro’s out there who are using it ....

Yes wind can be an issue but do your homework and learn when NOT to fly it and you should be ok.

It’s not 4K but seriously that simply is not a major issue unless you have a need to do proper 4K ..

Portability beats the heck out of your phantoms and other larger drones..

In my book it is 100% a toy - none of my customers would accept the 2.7K video from it.
Also I would have to re-schedule jobs more often due to wind.
Pretty sure DJI meant it as a toy - their marketing videos seem to indicate that.
"it clearly fills a need in the market " - for a low cost toy drone.,
Most members here are using it as a toy.
But what's wrong with being a toy?
A 400K Cigarette boat is a toy too (unless you are a drug runner).