Don't get me wrong, I love my DJI Mini and
Mini 3. However I'm terrified of the absolute lack of any water, moisture or dust protection on any DJI consumer drone. I also own a couple FIMI drones. My FIMI X8 Pro has 3 way obstacle avoidance, many automated flight and tracking modes, 15km control range, 4k HDR Sony camera etc. It also has an IP 43 dust/water proof rating. This means i can fly my X8 Pro and my X8 2022 V2 in the rain safely without damaging the drone. My X8 Pro was only $599.
This tells me that manufacturing a drone with an IP43 rating is not an expensive. So why doesn't DJI add this inexpensive protection to their drones?
My first thought is profits. If a DJI drone flies through low fog or gets caught in a pop up rain shower and is damaged, then DJI makes money when the drone owner sends their drone in for repairs or buys a new DJI drone. I'm sure the fear of water damage drives a lot of Care Express purchases too.
This really bothers me. This obvious decesion by DJI to not include basic water proofing to it's consumer drone models. I would have already purchased a DJI
Air 3 if not for this issue. Instead I am about to buy an Autel Evo 2 V3 8k.
We have flown more flights in the Rain with our DJI drones than probably anyone else in the world.
Phantomrain.org
We have been flying DJI drones in the Rain now going on almost 6 years.
The IP rating comes from a Machine that looks a lot like
6 6-Headed Squirt gun.
The machine shoots out water at a few different angles, thus you have a weak angle you get a Low IP rating.
Rain comes down in one angle and that is mostly down and a Storm does not Equate to an IP machine..
With that said, the Drones do have some Weak Angles: Thank Fully Rain Pours Straight Down.
DJI has already created a very Water Resistant Drone.
However, after flying and Submerging the drone in the water we discovered some weak links and Overheating was not one of them.
Any drone can overheat if the conditions are right, and you are not aware of your drone.
DJI does a fantastic job at making a Water Resistant Drone right off the bat with
the Motors as we have confirmed them to be 100%. Water Proof.
Understand that DJI and EVO use the same Motors that are used in the RC subs. This is a great start by DJI an Autel to Creating a Water resistant drone.
They also do their best to Vent out the Hot Air without letting Rain in but this is a Weak Link on all the Drones.
but not as weak as the
Battery and the Power Button, this is truly the Weakest Link on your Drone.
ONCE THE BATTERY DISCONNECTS FROM YOUR CONTROLLER ITS GOING TO CRASH.
When we submerged drones underwater, other weak links appeared such as some of the modules on the Main Board, the Esc, etc.
We have sold close to 20 Thousand Wet Suits and keep pretty close contact with our clients.
overheating is rarely an issue because
Wet Suits DO not block air flow but redirect it .
True the
Mini 3 and
Mini 4 have no internal fan and are not the best at just sitting as they will overheat, and I was not a fan of either of these two drones as they can if they overheat cause your drone to Foce Land,
This is why I did not make a Rescue Jacket for them, and was hoping DJI would change that Behavior.
So DJI already did more than half the work on creating a Water Resistant Drone
The Phantom Rain Wet Suit provides an Air Tight Seal where needed, Redirecting Air Flow, and Protecting some of the key areas on the drone such as the sensors, and has allowed us Companies to Fly in the Rain.
Look at the
Mini 3 Pro in the Rain. DJI is doing most of the work, and the Wet Suits just enhance the Weak Links on that drone and there are many.
Our first
mini 3 Pro did not last more than 3 Seconds in the rain before the sensors burned out but with the Wet Suit it was a Completely Different Animal.
As far as going with the Evo 2 pro, Yes we do make a Wet Suit for that drone, but do yourself a favor and spend some time on the Autel Forum before making your final decision.
Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain, Land on the Water, and stay far away from the IP machines. lol
