Worst thing about Mini 3 Pro and the new DJI RC and the FLY APP

[Robert Prior]

The 700nits screen is brighter than my iPhone XR which is rated at 500nits

Also brighter than the iPhone SE 3 (625 nits), which is what I was going to buy until I saw the all-in-one controller option. (Current phone is an iPhone 6s, so can't run Dji Fly without overloading the processor.)

For me the all-in-one bundle means a brighter display and cheaper overall cost, so it's a no-brainer if I decide to buy. Still on the fence because, well, inflation is running ahead of my pension

 

[MS Coast]

The M3P smart controller is my first experience with anything other than phones and tablets aon the standard DJI controllers. Here on the Gulf Coast today, we have a cloudless blue sky and I'm able to use the M3P smart controller in direct sunlight. It's a substantial improvement over even the Galaxy S20 and the 10" Samsung tablet I've been using recently. In the shade, it's just fine.

I know that there are tablets and controllers with substantially brighter screens, but this one is a perfectly satisfactory performer at a very reasonable cost.

(I suspect that at least some of the complaints about brightness are a result of the owner not having discovered the screen brightness setting. The controller is shipped with the brightness turned down.)

 

[RUFFSTUFF]

The M3P smart controller is my first experience with anything other than phones and tablets aon the standard DJI controllers. Here on the Gulf Coast today, we have a cloudless blue sky and I'm able to use the M3P smart controller in direct sunlight. It's a substantial improvement over even the Galaxy S20 and the 10" Samsung tablet I've been using recently. In the shade, it's just fine.

I know that there are tablets and controllers with substantially brighter screens, but this one is a perfectly satisfactory performer at a very reasonable cost.

(I suspect that at least some of the complaints about brightness are a result of the owner not having discovered the screen brightness setting. The controller is shipped with the brightness turned down.)

Make sure your S20 is in automatic brightness not manual.

 

[abruzzopat]

(I suspect that at least some of the complaints about brightness are a result of the owner not having discovered the screen brightness setting. The controller is shipped with the brightness turned down.)

My RC came set to about 75% from the factory. I cranked it to full. Screen is basically black in full sun, very hard to see when I shade it with my body.

 

[MS Coast]

Make sure your S20 is in automatic brightness not manual.

Yes, thanks. "Adaptive Brightness" is on.

 

[Platoon]

It's difficult to put much stock in a visual comparison without at least having the same content on each screen..

The Tripltek and the DJI RC are in the same screen Settings. The Shogun 7 7 monitor needs a HDMI source, so it is on a white screen with black letters, and it is non touchable because the screen is at 150 F

 

[QUICKNICK]

I'm one week into Mini 3 Pro ownership, and I'm generally happy with it.

Some people (mostly outside the US) have experienced range issues, but for me the range has been fine.

Others have complained about image quality, but what I've seen so far is good, especially for such a small drone.

My biggest disappointment BY FAR is the new RC screen brightness. I guess I was hoping for something similar to the Smart Controller, but this new RC's screen is worse than my iPhone on the N1. On sunny days it is nearly impossible to see the screen. I'm surprised no one else has complained about this.

Very happy with other aspects of the drone... but i guess I need to start looking for a hood solution.

Exactly! Really my only issue also!!

 

[QUICKNICK]

I haven't received mine yet but I understand that the controller brightness can be be set to auto or manual. By chance is yours on manual?

Mine is on full! And as said...not bright enough!

 

[RangerEd]

I'm one week into Mini 3 Pro ownership, and I'm generally happy with it.

Some people (mostly outside the US) have experienced range issues, but for me the range has been fine.

Others have complained about image quality, but what I've seen so far is good, especially for such a small drone.

My biggest disappointment BY FAR is the new RC screen brightness. I guess I was hoping for something similar to the Smart Controller, but this new RC's screen is worse than my iPhone on the N1. On sunny days it is nearly impossible to see the screen. I'm surprised no one else has complained about this.

Very happy with other aspects of the drone... but i guess I need to start looking for a hood solution.

That's the same complaint I have. All the "Beta" reviewers on YouTube were going gaga over the screen's 700 nits brightness. Like you I'm used to my Galaxy S21 Ultra with 1200 nits with my other DJI drones. Flying in a shade helps but the glare is pretty bad. If they ever make the Smart Controller work with the drones that use the N1 controller I'll spring for it. But until then I'll have to use my N1 controller when flying in bright sunlight.

 

[moldorf]

That's the same complaint I have. All the "Beta" reviewers on YouTube were going gaga over the screen's 700 nits brightness. Like you I'm used to my Galaxy S21 Ultra with 1200 nits with my other DJI drones. Flying in a shade helps but the glare is pretty bad. If they ever make the Smart Controller work with the drones that use the N1 controller I'll spring for it. But until then I'll have to use my N1 controller when flying in bright sunlight.

I'm curious...a review by AnandTech measured the peak brightness at 942 nits (manual max 462 nits)

The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra & S21 Review: The Near Perfect and The Different

but it seems to me, for the purposes of using for a drone controller, peak brightness is not relevant compared to sustained brightness, and those are much harder numbers to find. (and when I have seen some gauges it's usually that sustained brightness is in the 40-60% range of peak brightness). Not only that, it might even be more relevant to gauge 'sustained brightness without overheating', and those are probably impossible numbers to find

I do know, having directly compared the Tripltek (1200 nits) to the M3-RC (700 nits) the difference in brightness on a sunny day comes down to one being visible and the other is not unless you're in the shade

edit: I see that Tom's Hardware has reviewed the S21 Ultra. They say peak brightness of 1500 nits; and an average brightness of 821 nits. Now I don't know what they mean by 'average brightness'. So i'd be a little suspicious it isn't sustained brightness....but maybe

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra review

 

[scro]

That's the same complaint I have. All the "Beta" reviewers on YouTube were going gaga over the screen's 700 nits brightness.

I did find it a bit amusing when one yoochoober was raving about how bright the display on the RC was.... when it was late dusk and he was demonstrating the low light capabilities of the camera . It was almost as if there was a cue sheet included in the drone package that DJI sent out to influencer "reviewers" with points to rave about on the new drone

My no-exactly-new phone (Galaxy S10) is still bright at night when set to its dimmest setting! I take with a pinch of salt most stuff said in the early promoter/influencer reviews.

 

[globetrotterdrone]

I did find it a bit amusing when one yoochoober was raving about how bright the display on the RC was.... when it was late dusk and he was demonstrating the low light capabilities of the camera . It was almost as if there was a cue sheet included in the drone package that DJI sent out to influencer "reviewers" with points to rave about on the new drone

My no-exactly-new phone (Galaxy S10) is still bright at night when set to its dimmest setting! I take with a pinch of salt most stuff said in the early promoter/influencer reviews.

I know what you mean and is certainly the case that some reviews often have a tendency.
But that doesn't necessarily mean, they are all biased. Some could be just as excited as we are with our new toys.

And the thing is, while I still would prefer my old SC for the Mini 3 Pro against the RC, not only for the brighter screen but for more input methods, where there's a will, there's a way.

Yes, in direct sunlight (with my tinted glasses), the display falls a bit short, but I've for I've always found the possibility to shade it and be it my body. That is not always ideal but if someone really likes to make negative points, it may not be better than worshipping it as many YT do.

The RC could be better, definitely, but I guess, if DJI would raise the price by 300 - 500 Euros, a lot of others would complain too. There's always someone who complains. The RC Pro might at one day support the drone, then we might see how many people really like to spend that much money for a slightly brighter screen. And coming from a smartphone, there's hardly one, which can sustain 700 nits constantly before overheating/dimming. I have the S10e and it is not as bright as the RC for flying in direct sunlight - not after 5 mins. The SC even had a fan that kicked in after few minutes, but I guess most people already forgot or never experienced. So there's that.

I understand the bit of frustration, but the overall pack of the drone and the controller is nicely put.
You can't please everybody and not everybody has to like everything.

Happy flying.

 

[moldorf]

I know what you mean and is certainly the case that some reviews often have a tendency.
But that doesn't necessarily mean, they are all biased. Some could be just as excited as we are with our new toys.

And the thing is, while I still would prefer my old SC for the Mini 3 Pro against the RC, not only for the brighter screen but for more input methods, where there's a will, there's a way.

Yes, in direct sunlight (with my tinted glasses), the display falls a bit short, but I've for I've always found the possibility to shade it and be it my body. That is not always ideal but if someone really likes to make negative points, it may not be better than worshipping it as many YT do.

The RC could be better, definitely, but I guess, if DJI would raise the price by 300 - 500 Euros, a lot of others would complain too. There's always someone who complains. The RC Pro might at one day support the drone, then we might see how many people really like to spend that much money for a slightly brighter screen. And coming from a smartphone, there's hardly one, which can sustain 700 nits constantly before overheating/dimming. I have the S10e and it is not as bright as the RC for flying in direct sunlight - not after 5 mins. The SC even had a fan that kicked in after few minutes, but I guess most people already forgot or never experienced. So there's that.

I understand the bit of frustration, but the overall pack of the drone and the controller is nicely put.
You can't please everybody and not everybody has to like everything.

Happy flying.

I'm curious, do you think that the difference in manufacturing costs between the M3-RC and the RC-Pro is mostly due to a 300 nit brighter screen?

I honestly don't know what cost differential there would be between 700 nits and 1000 nits? What's involved in producing that difference vs all the other differences between the 2 RC's? You can get the M3 for $669. And the M3 + M3-RC for $909. That's a $239 'cost' for the RC. But the RC-Pro costs $1199. That's a $960 differential which is 4 times the 'cost' of the M3-RC. That can't all be due to 300 nits can it?

I'm just a little skeptical about the reasons that DJI has gone from the 2000 nit crystal sky screens > 1000 nit screens of SC/RC-Pro > 700 nit screen of M3-RC. That's going the wrong direction and it's not like there isn't a world of customer feedback saying we need brighter screens

 

[old man mavic]

@moldorf i dont believe its just the screen brightness, that has contributed to the lesser cost of the new controller, it is a lot lighter than the RC Pro, and does not have as much going on inside either ,I believe that DJI are trying to give consumers a taste of the benefits of not having to purchase a device ,or use a phone that may be already working at full capacity, to view what the drone sees ,at a competitive price ,all i know is that for me never having experienced a device with a built in screen, it is a game changer, for how quick and easy it is to get the drone up in the air

 

[moldorf]

@moldorf i dont believe its just the screen brightness, that has contributed to the lesser cost of the new controller, it is a lot lighter than the RC Pro, and does not have as much going on inside either ,I believe that DJI are trying to give consumers a taste of the benefits of not having to purchase a device ,or use a phone that may be already working at full capacity, to view what the drone sees ,at a competitive price ,all i know is that for me never having experienced a device with a built in screen, it is a game changer, for how quick and easy it is to get the drone up in the air

I don't doubt any of that. I'd say brightness is only a part of the reason for the huge cost differential between the RC-Pro and the M3-RC. From what I've read here the RC-Pro is quite versatile with button and dial assignments while having a lot of features that are like tablets

I have the RC-N1 with the Tripltek. So, having made the investment in the Tripltek, if I did make the leap to the M3 (after the range/transmission bugs have been worked out) I would not buy that Mini3-RC. I might spring for the extra $80 for a 2nd RC-N1 just so I didn't have to go thru the hassle of unbinding/binding each time I wanted to switch between the Mini2 & Mini3.

and if skipped the M3 and went with the Air 2S I'd still stay with the RC-N1 & Tripltek. It would be a little crazy to spend $1300 on the Air 2S fly-more and then spend another $1200 on the RC-Pro

I know that supposedly, at least with the Mavic 3 the RC-Pro is supposed to increase the range significantly over the RC-N1. But, I see YouTubers getting 6-9 miles of range with the Mavic3/Rc-N1 combo and can't imagine any reason why I'd want to go out even a mile.

if they cut the price of the RC-Pro in half and make it backward compatible with the Mini3/Mini2 that might change the equation. But that won't happen

 

[cah]

I've seen a few silicone cases appear on Aliexpress which look interesting.
I've got one on order.

 

[globetrotterdrone]

@moldorf
Strictly sticking to the screen, I certainly don't believe that 300 nits more would anyway cause DJI a massive rise in purchasing these parts. However, the closer you get to the "Pro" level, the more exponential the last % get, ie 700 nits is good for the overall consumer, 1,000 nits is our top notch line, so if we close this gap, we will price it not linear but very progressively.

That is pretty common behaviour.
But as we don't get the possibility to customise it, we will nevery know.
Maybe a RC 2 will have a brighter screen anytime in the future.

 

[pommy]

especially if DJI drops it again after a short period of time

Hey

I noticed you have said that number of times, but the SC was released in 2018 and was only "dropped" very recently.

During those 4+ years, technology moved on - and so O2 became O3 and they naturally upgraded it to the new RC Pro. 4 years for any tech product is dated.

Also, at present, the SC supports 8 DJI drones, so I'm not sure how you think they abandoned it?

If I get 4 years from my RC Pro, I'll be happy.

 

[pommy]

I've seen a few silicone cases appear on Aliexpress which look interesting.
I've got one on order.

View attachment 150386

I have one that lives in my drawer. They are mis-shaped when fitted and that shade bit? it totally blocks your fingers from the sticks. Nice idea, waste of money.

 

[pommy]

The difference in brightness between 700 nits and 1000 nits is barely 10%. If you can't see your screen at 700 nits in sunlight, you aren't going to see any significant improvement with 1000 nits either. You'd see a much bigger difference just by getting a sunshade.

Is that true though? Here's a side by side, same sunlight - 10% no difference?