After the DJI Mini 3 Professional was launched in Could 2022, one of many dilemmas folks had was selecting between it and the Air 2S.
Now DJI has launched a brand new drone, the Air 3.
The Mini 3 Professional was a worthy contender towards the Air 2S, as you bought virtually the identical options with just a few benefits in every, however how does it maintain up towards the Air 3?
The DJI Air 3 is the higher drone due to its superior flight options, 360-degree impediment avoidance, twin digicam system, superior imaging capabilities, and longer flight time.
Nevertheless, the selection between the Air 3 and Mini 3 Professional largely relies on your particular wants and preferences.
When you prioritize superior digicam capabilities {and professional} options, the Air 3 is the way in which to go.
Nevertheless, in the event you worth portability, simplicity, and a budget-friendly possibility with out compromising on first rate digicam high quality, the Mini 3 Professional is healthier for you.
High Drone Programs
Preserve studying to make the suitable selection on which drone it is best to get.
DJI Air 3 overview
✅ Execs
- Latest DJI drone
- Inexpensive with professional-level efficiency
- It has a novel twin digicam, able to glorious low-light images and filming.
- The DJI Air 3 comes with an omnidirectional sensing system.
- Superior ActiveTrack and Observe-Me options.
- Can fly for a very long time
- High-notch transmission system, OcuSync 4.0
- Can fly lengthy vary with out points
❌ Cons
- The DJI Air 3 needs to be registered (above 250 grams)
- It’s not your best option for mountain climbing and light-weight touring.
- The digicam’s sensors are smaller than the one present in its predecessor, DJI Air 2S.
Being the newest addition to DJI’s catalog of shopper drones, the Air 3 is filled with options, a few of which we had hoped to see within the Mini 3 Professional.
Beneath is a quick overview of the principle options this drone has.
- Twin digicam system: The Air 3 incorporates a twin digicam system, every with a distinct aperture. This lets you take photographs from two totally different views to mix them later or choose the perfect one.
These cameras embrace a 1/1.3, f1.7 24mm huge angle lens and a 1/1.3, f2.8, 70mm 3X telephoto digicam.
- Superior ActiveTrack: The Air 3 comes with the newest ActiveTrack 5.0, which permits it to trace objects in additional instructions and lets the person change the monitoring course.
- OcuSync 4.0: The Air 3 additionally options the newest transmission from DJI that guarantees a variety of as much as 12 miles and higher efficiency in areas with interference.
- 360-degree impediment avoidance: The Air 3 is the primary Air drone to characteristic 360-degree impediment avoidance, making it usable for extra advanced photographs than its predecessors.
- Extra clever flight modes: Along with the flight modes we’re used to in Mini and Air drones, resembling QuickShots, MasterShots, and FocusTrack, the Air 3 additionally options modes like Evening Mode, Cruise Management, and Waypoints, which had been solely accessible within the Mavic 3 drones.
- Longer flight time: DJI is upping their sport when making batteries.
With all of the options and weight of the Air 3, it’s marketed to last as long as 46 minutes within the air, although you may count on at the least 40 minutes because of the numerous elements that have an effect on a drone’s flight time.
» MORE: DJI Air 3 Overview – Is This the Drone for You?
DJI Mini 3 Professional overview
DJI Mini 3 Professional (DJI RC)
It’s unbelievable how a small drone can have highly effective options, particularly for aerial images. The compact and light-weight qualities of the DJI Mini 3 Professional make it sturdy sufficient to face up to robust winds.
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09/12/2023 07:56 pm GMT
✅ Execs
- One of the crucial widespread drones ever.
- It’s small, moveable, and light-weight.
- It weighs below 250 grams and should profit from relaxed drone legal guidelines.
- Wonderful for images and filming for its value
- 3-way anti-collision sensors
- Can fly for a very long time
- Can fly long-range
- It has two batteries suitable.
- Good for inexperienced persons
❌ Cons
- With the clever battery plus, the Mini 3 Professional weights above 250 grams
- It doesn’t have an omnidirectional sensing system.
- The Lively Monitor is inferior to the one present in Air 3.
Launched in Could 2022, the Mini 3 Professional is DJI’s most superior mini drone.
It comes with a variety of options that had been firsts within the Mini drone sequence, making it the right drone for inexperienced persons in search of a flexible possibility. These options embrace:
- Vertical capturing mode: In contrast to within the Air 3, the digicam within the Mini 3 Professional adjustments the orientation to vertical mode, and the utmost decision is 4K.
- Light-weight design: Being a Mini drone, the Mini 3 Professional weighs lower than 250 grams, making it an ideal drone for anybody in search of a light-weight companion or those that don’t need to register their drone.
Nevertheless, it comes with two batteries, and one of many batteries makes the drone heavier than 250 grams by just a few grams.
This implies you’ll have to register it, which is value it contemplating you get further flight time.
- Impediment avoidance: The Mini 3 Professional was the primary mini drone to characteristic impediment avoidance.
Whereas it’s not 360-degree impediment avoidance, it detects obstacles in three instructions: entrance, downward, and backward, making extra maneuvers potential in comparison with a drone with out impediment avoidance.
» MORE: DJI Mini 3 Professional: One-12 months Overview (Video)
DJI Air 3 vs. DJI Mini 3 Professional – The comparability
Now, let’s dig deeper into the principle options, how these drones evaluate, and which it is best to get.
Weight and design
Each drones have a folding design, making them simpler to pack right into a smaller bag. Nevertheless, in terms of weight, there’s an enormous distinction.
The Mini 3 Professional weighs 249 grams, qualifying it as a passion drone, particularly in america.
As such, you don’t need to register it and don’t want a license to make use of it except you’re utilizing it for industrial functions.
Even with the bigger battery, this drone remains to be gentle and excellent for anybody who wants a succesful drone to slot in their backpack as they have interaction of their favourite actions.
Then again, the Air 3 is bigger and weighs 720 grams.
Nevertheless, contemplating the 2 cameras, superior impediment avoidance, and improved and extra flight modes, this further weight feels value it for customers who need a drone that may do extra.
When you’re in search of a small, gentle, and simply moveable drone that may produce glorious footage with out the complexities of two cameras, the Mini 3 Professional will fit your wants.
» MORE: Greatest 4K Drones Below 250 Grams
Pricing and availability
These drones are priced otherwise, catering to totally different markets.
The Mini 3 Professional is cheaper, beginning at $669 with out the controller. This feature is nice for anybody upgrading from the Mini 2 or any drone that makes use of the DJI RC-N1 or the DJI RC controllers.
When you don’t have a controller, you have to pay $759 for the Mini 3 Professional with the RC-N1 controller or $909 for the Mini 3 Professional with the DJI RC controller with a built-in display screen.
The Air 3, then again, begins at $1,099 with the RC-N2 (an improve from the RC-N1) and $1,349 with the DJI RC 2 (an improve from the DJI RC).
The Mini 3 Professional’s Fly Extra Combo is offered individually at $249, whereas the Air 3’s Fly Extra Combo is offered as a whole package deal, together with the drone for $1,549.
» MORE: Greatest Digicam Drones Below $2,000
Photograph and video recording
Each drone fashions have first rate cameras, however there are some vital variations.
Whereas they each have the same lens, the Air 3 incorporates a twin digicam system.
So, when you get the same lens within the twin digicam setup, it comes at totally different apertures and zooming capabilities at as much as 3X within the tele lens.
This enables customers to modify between the huge angle and the tele lens throughout the similar flight. Taking footage from totally different views lets you additionally get artistic in post-production.
Whereas the Mini 3 Professional doesn’t have two cameras, it does help zooming at as much as 2X in 4K, 3X in 2.7K, and 4X in Full HD.
The standard might not be as nice when zooming like within the Air 3, however it’s ok for observing the topic from a distance.
The Air 3 additionally shoots at a most of 4K at 100fps, which is slightly increased than the Mini 3 Professional’s 60fps, however this shouldn’t be a deal breaker for informal customers since you’ll usually be utilizing the 60fps or decrease except you need some advanced photographs.
One other benefit of the Air 3 is its capability to shoot in D-Log M and HLG, that are extra superior colour profiles that provide you with extra room for creativity throughout post-processing.
The Mini 3 Professional is proscribed to 10-bit, which is a plus in comparison with drones just like the Mini and Mini 2, however you don’t have as a lot room for modifying as you’ll get with the Air 3.
Concerning photographs, each drones mean you can take stills in 12 MP and 48 MP, although the twin digicam system and extra up to date imaging capabilities of the Air 3 give it an higher hand.
The Mini 3 Professional does have one vital benefit, although, particularly for content material creators who love posting their footage on social media platforms, and that’s the vertical capturing mode.
As talked about within the overview, the digicam adjustments to a portrait place, which implies you’ll not need to crop the footage to submit in your channels.
Secondly, you may movie as much as 4K and even take photographs with this mode.
Whereas the Air 3 comes with the vertical capturing mode in each of its cameras, it crops the footage, and you may solely get a most decision of two.7K at 60 fps.
This characteristic can be not accessible for photographs.
» MORE: Greatest Inexpensive Drones with 4K Digicam
Clever flight modes
These drones characteristic frequent clever flight modes resembling QuickShots, MasterShots, Panoramas, Hyperlapse, and ActiveTrack.
Nevertheless, the Air 3 has further modes, making it a good higher possibility. These embrace:
- Improved ActiveTrack: With the Mini 3 Professional, the one possibility is for the drone to observe you from behind or from the aspect.
However with ActiveTrack 5.0 within the Air 3, you may select the drone to observe from eight totally different positions and swap between these instructions because the drone flies.
This enables for some dynamic and higher-quality footage.
- Cruise management: This characteristic permits the drone to fly at a relentless pace. All it’s important to do is fly at your required pace and provoke this characteristic, and the drone will keep that pace with out a lot enter from you.
This characteristic is helpful when it’s essential to take a shot however are having bother sustaining the perfect pace.
This characteristic was solely accessible within the Mavic 3 sequence drones. This characteristic can be accessible when utilizing the Highlight characteristic.
- Waypoints: Additionally solely accessible within the Mavic 3 and enterprise drones, the Waypoints characteristic lets you set a course for the drone to observe whereas taking photographs.
This characteristic works nice for mapping duties or if you need to automate a particular shot.
The Mini 3 Professional has its model of Waypoints, as mentioned right here, however this characteristic solely works within the Hyperlapse mode, and you may solely use it to execute a particular Hyperlapse sample.
- Evening mode: When you get pleasure from taking photographs and movies at evening, you’ll love the Air 3’s devoted Evening Mode that mechanically lowers the ISO and reduces the noise, leading to higher evening footage.
» MORE: Observe Me and ActiveTrack on DJI Drones (Defined for Freshmen)
Vary and transmission power
The vary of a drone, or how far it may possibly fly from the controller, in addition to the transmission high quality, are essential since they have an effect on how effectively you need to use the drone.
That mentioned, the Air 3 comes with the most recent DJI transmission system, the OcuSync 4.0, with a variety of as much as 12 miles.
Then again, the Mini 3 Professional makes use of the older OcuSync 3.0 that guarantees a vary of as much as 5 miles.
In a contest for the strongest transmission, the 04 system is healthier due to extra antennas and upgraded anti-interference know-how.
Nevertheless, the Mini 3 Professional shouldn’t be that far behind and performs fairly effectively.
» MORE: Lengthy Vary Drones: Final Information
Flight options
The Air 3 has higher flight options and efficiency than the Mini 3 Professional. It excels within the following elements:
360-degree impediment avoidance
It is a vital improve from its predecessor, the Air 2S, which has four-way impediment avoidance and a substantial distinction to the Mini 3 Professional, which options three-way impediment avoidance.
Whereas each drones carry out effectively in areas with obstacles, you may fly in tighter areas with the Air 3 than you’ll with the Mini 3 Professional.
Longer battery life
The Air 3 is marketed to final 46 minutes in flight, whereas the Mini 3 Professional comes with a 34-minute battery.
Whilst you might not get the marketed minutes as a result of numerous elements like wind, battery well being, and temperature, the Air 3 would nonetheless last more.
Nevertheless, you may go for the Mini 3 Professional’s Clever Battery Plus, which lasts 47 minutes, however you’ll compromise on weight, particularly in the event you’re in search of a drone weighing lower than 150 grams.
Getting this battery additionally brings the price of the Mini 3 Professional nearer to that of the Air 3, so it is best to think about which possibility provides you probably the most worth in your cash.
Pace and wind resistance
Being heavier and sturdier, the Air 3 can stand up to winds as much as 12m/s in comparison with the Mini 3 Professional’s 10m/s.
The Air 3 can be sooner, with a most pace of 42.5 mph in comparison with the Mini 3 Professional’s 35.7 mph.
A sooner pace lets you get to a vacation spot sooner and get out of emergencies rapidly.
» MORE: DJI Mini 3 Professional and Climate
Controller compatibility
As talked about earlier, these drones include totally different controllers.
The Mini 3 Professional is suitable with the DJI RC-N1 and DJI RC, normal controllers which might be additionally suitable with a number of different Mavic and Mini drones.
The Air 3 comes with the RC-N2 and RC 2 controllers designed for the brand new 04 transmission.
As such, whereas they appear much like the earlier fashions, they’ve extra antennas and carry out higher. Sadly, these controllers are presently solely suitable with the Air 3.
Until DJI makes them suitable with different drones, in the event you’re in search of a drone suitable with different controllers you might have, the Mini 3 Professional can be the most suitable choice on this case.
Then again, future drones from DJI might characteristic the 04 system, making the brand new controllers suitable with different drones.
Contemplating the options you’re in search of, you need to use the Mini 3 Professional and the older controllers or get the brand new Air 3 and anticipate an replace on compatibility.
One fascinating compatibility that DJI made potential by an replace is between the Mini 3 Professional and the Goggles 2, Goggles Integra, and the Movement Controller 2.
This lets you expertise FPV with out getting an precise FPV drone.
So, if you wish to do that, you may go for the Mini 3 Professional. This characteristic shouldn’t be but accessible for the Air 3.
» MORE: FPV Drones vs. Common Drones (Defined for Freshmen)
DJI Air 3 vs. DJI Mini 3 Professional – Which do you have to select?
Each are succesful drones, have glorious options, and would enchantment to totally different folks. Beneath is why you’ll select both of them.
Why select the DJI Air 3?
The Air 3 is right for individuals who prioritize superior images and videography capabilities. Right here’s who ought to think about it:
- Fanatic filmmakers and photographers: The twin-camera system with various apertures and zoom capabilities, together with 4K at 100fps and superior colour profiles like D-Log M and HLG, makes the Air 3 good for creators who demand the utmost in picture high quality and suppleness.
- Skilled content material creators and filmmakers: The Air 3’s superior capturing modes, together with Evening Mode, enable professionals to seize high-quality footage even in difficult situations. Its versatile flight modes and longer flight instances additionally make it appropriate for skilled use.
- Drone pilots needing superior monitoring: The ActiveTrack 5.0 characteristic with multi-directional monitoring and the power to vary monitoring instructions is a big benefit for drone pilots who require exact object monitoring in numerous eventualities.
- Customers in windy areas: With its increased wind resistance and sturdier construct, the Air 3 can deal with stronger winds, making it appropriate for customers in windy areas.
- These wanting prolonged flight time: If longer flight time is a precedence, the Air 3’s marketed 46-minute flight time (although real-world flight time could also be barely much less) is a big benefit over the Mini 3 Professional.
» MORE: DJI Air 3 vs. Mavic 3 (Right here’s my Selection)
Why select the DJI Mini 3 Professional?
The Mini 3 Professional is designed for customers who prioritize portability and ease of use whereas nonetheless demanding good picture and video high quality. Right here’s who ought to think about it:
- Informal photographers and videographers: When you’re in search of a drone that’s simple to hold round and supplies good-quality footage with out the complexity of a number of cameras and superior settings, the Mini 3 Professional is a superb selection.
- Hikers and outside lovers: Its light-weight design and compact type issue make the Mini 3 Professional an important companion for outside actions. The impediment avoidance system in three instructions enhances security throughout outside adventures.
- Social media content material creators: The Mini 3 Professional’s vertical capturing mode permits for simple creation of portrait-oriented movies and photographs, good for sharing on social media platforms.
- Customers on a price range: The Mini 3 Professional is extra budget-friendly than the Air 3, making it an appropriate selection for these in search of a cheap drone with out compromising an excessive amount of on options.
- FPV lovers: When you’re concerned about experiencing FPV (first-person view) flying with out investing in a devoted FPV drone, the Mini 3 Professional is suitable with the DJI Goggles 2, Goggles Integra, and the Movement Controller 2, providing an FPV-like expertise.
» MORE: DJI Mavic 3 vs. DJI Mini 3 Professional (Which One is Proper for You?)
DJI Air 3 vs. DJI Mini 3 Professional – Which one’s higher?
If I had been to decide on between these drones, the Air 3 would is the higher total drone.
Its higher digicam, extra capturing choices, sturdiness, further clever flight modes, higher vary, and higher total efficiency carry it nearer to drones just like the Mavic 3 sequence, making it an important bang for the buck.
To see each drones in motion, here’s a detailed video:
» MORE: DJI Air 3 vs. Air 2S vs. Mini 3 Professional: Which One is Proper for You?
Greatest SD playing cards for the DJI Air 2 and Mini 3 Professional
Whether or not you go for the Air 3 or Mini 3 Professional, one of many equipment you’ll rapidly notice you want is an SD card.
And never simply any SD card, however an SD card with the suitable write and skim speeds and sufficient storage. To make it simpler, under are some SD playing cards you should purchase in your drone.
Greatest SD playing cards for the DJI Air 3
Greatest SD playing cards for the DJI Mini 3 Professional
