I'm thinking about getting a Mavic Mini and I live in a large restrcted zone (Northern VA). The way I understand it the software locks you out from even taking off? What about inside, are you able to fly inside in a restricted zone?

Edit: Just realized my question was worded poorly and unclear... I meant can I fly inside MY HOUSE

Hi, thank you for reaching out. I will highly recommend you to fly in an open area wherein it is not restricted since the restricted zones for the Mavic Mini are the same as that of other consumer aircraft. I will be posting a link wherein you can check your location if that is inside the NO-FLY zone. Thank you for your understanding and support!
https://www.dji.com/flysafe/geo-map

Wait, I thought the whole point of keeping the Mini under 250 grams was to avoid regulatory restrictions?

The weight (or lack thereof) could save you from restrictions like pilot certificate, drone ID, mandatory insurance, etc.
No-fly zones remain no-fly zones, hence the name....

louis08 Posted at 11-8 13:22
The weight (or lack thereof) could save you from restrictions like pilot certificate, drone ID, mandatory insurance, etc.
No-fly zones remain no-fly zones, hence the name....

Are we sure about this? My understanding is zero-regulation means zero-regulation, and RFZ are regulatory instruments.

I don't know where you are getting this "zero-regulation" from...you will still have to abide by the  FAA limits like 400', daylight only, not being a danger to other aircraft, etc.  The less than 250 grams just means you don't have to register it.

DJI Gamora Posted at 11-8 13:06
Hi, thank you for reaching out. I will highly recommend you to fly in an open area wherein it is not restricted since the restricted zones for the Mavic Mini are the same as that of other consumer aircraft. I will be posting a link wherein you can check your location if that is inside the NO-FLY zone. Thank you for your understanding and support!
https://www.dji.com/flysafe/geo-map

Sorry my question was worded poorly... I meant can I fly inside my house!

in Your house most likely there won't be GPS signal, so drone should not go into restricted mode, as he will not know where it's flying.
some reviews did fly it inside homes, so there should be atti mode possible.

k_hargy Posted at 11-8 19:32
Sorry my question was worded poorly... I meant can I fly inside my house!

Hi, thank you for the additional information. We do not recommend flying the drone on the location wherein there is no GPS signal since the drone might cause some stability issues. I will highly recommend flying the drone on the location that has a strong GPS signal and away from any possible interference. Thank you for your understanding and support!

Rustic17 Posted at 11-8 15:05
I don't know where you are getting this "zero-regulation" from...you will still have to abide by the  FAA limits like 400', daylight only, not being a danger to other aircraft, etc.  The less than 250 grams just means you don't have to register it.

Thanks — do you have a link that defines that regulatory restrictions are still in-play for model aircraft under 250g?

Ex Machina Posted at 11-10 17:52
Thanks — do you have a link that defines that regulatory restrictions are still in-play for model aircraft under 250g?

Do you really have the idea that you can't fly a Spark near an Airport but can do so with a Mini?
Or near the POTUS?
Just asking ....

Ex Machina Posted at 11-10 17:52
Thanks — do you have a link that defines that regulatory restrictions are still in-play for model aircraft under 250g?

https://www.faa.gov/uas/recreational_fliers/

Rustic17 Posted at 11-10 21:17
https://www.faa.gov/uas/recreational_fliers/

Thanks again -- I was hoping that would clear things up but I'm still having problems sussing this out to my satisfaction. When I first started researching drone regulations, back before I bought my Mavic Pro, it seemed pretty clear the FAA was only interested in regulating drones over a certain weight, the threshold determined to be 250g. Now, it's not so clear to me.

DJI on why they made a sub-250g drone suggests less governmental restrictions as one of the reasons, but doesn't go into specifics -- which probably vary from locale, anyway.
https://content.dji.com/why-did-dji-create-a-249-gram-drone/

In the US it's clear that registration is unnecessary for drones under 250g, and you could read the law as applying equally to all drones under 55lbs, but I'd be happiest with the FAA declaring definitively whether I can fly my 249g drone in my old backyard in the Washington, DC suburbs like the OP despite being within the 15 mile RFZ. In my mind this is not so different from flying kites on the national mall (which have a 5lbs limit, btw).

I can't imagine required registration being a deal-breaker for anyone, but maybe DJI's market research has found otherwise.

S-e-ven Posted at 11-10 18:27
Do you really have the idea that you can't fly a Spark near an Airport but can do so with a Mini?
Or near the POTUS?
Just asking ....

At a fraction of the weight of a pigeon, yeah, I think it's probably not something we need to worry about for either AC, but the law says 250g, so Sparks are out. DJI's safety whitepaper argues that 2.2kg is a more reasonable safety limit but here we are.

Keep in mind, a large percentage of drones fliers are not in the U.S.   The 249 gram drone may well have been designed for drone fliers in other countries, for example Canada, who have a lot fewer restrictions/licensing/registration if their drone is less than 250 grams.

DJI Gamora Posted at 11-8 13:06
Hi, thank you for reaching out. I will highly recommend you to fly in an open area wherein it is not restricted since the restricted zones for the Mavic Mini are the same as that of other consumer aircraft. I will be posting a link wherein you can check your location if that is inside the NO-FLY zone. Thank you for your understanding and support!
https://www.dji.com/flysafe/geo-map

recommend LAANC authorization input for take off in areas that require it. if we have requested and received automated authorization to fly the software and aircraft should recognize we do not all have the luxury of living in class"G" airspace