Does anybody know about a solutions to get acceptable range from within a car? I'm open to pretty much any solutions from range extender to external antenna on the car

EDIT: I was trying to avoid talking about this but reading the comments adding this information might help: I have a disability which doens't always allow me to get out of the car, so instead of standing outside while flying I'll have to sit in my car while flying. The car won't move and I'll maintain VLOS. I just noticed that the faraday cage that a car is severly limits the range of the mini.

What are you trying to achieve? Pease elaborate ...

Hello there 727. Thank you for reaching out and for these information you have posted. Since this is a 3rd party accessory for your DJI Mavic Mini. I hope that you will get the best recommendation from our fellow DJI co pilot who uses the said range extender. Just a reminder that DJI does not recommend for you to your 3rd party accessory like range extender on your DJI Drones. There is a possibility that these 3rd party accessories will be able work properly. However, since it's not tested by DJI we cannot guaranteed the safety of the said 3rd party accessories if it will work all the time with no issues and might void the warranty of the said DJI product. Thank you and have a safe flight always.

All you need is a clear, unobstructed line of sight between the controller adn the drone and orient the antennas properly toward the drone.
You can shoot through window glass but steel roof etc will block the signal.

Ive had signal issues when flying from a car,  intermittent mostly.

cabrio car ?   open roof car ?

Aloha 727,

     Back of a pickup truck is best!

     Take care and be safe!

Aloha and Drone On!

If you’ve got the original Mavic Mini, your cheapest/easiest option would likely be to sell your Mini and buy a Mini 2. OcuSync in the Mini 2 would make more of a difference than any sort of a kludge you would put together to try to improve the Mini’s wifi.


p.s. If planning to fly from a moving car, just be sure you are aware of regulations here in the US concerning this topic so you can make an educated decision.

Wide open area straight from my front windshield of my Toyota Camry, I can get about 2km range. Got a $5 parabolic range extender recently, got about 3km sitting in my car last week.  Again wide open area with no obstruction.

Open the windows

Cetacean said:  Back of a pickup truck is best!

Not sure if this is USA or California, but around here, to ride in the open bed of a pickup requires a real (approved) seat with a real seat belt - at least to be legal.

A J Posted at 11-27 09:37
Open the windows

Glass is transparent to radio waves, just as it is to visible light.

Here is one guy doing that in my area. just 40 miles south. Launched it from the hood of the Wrangler, probably a bad idea unless it is a fiberglass one. Illegal in that Pinellas County park (Fort Desoto/Mullet Key)....but what the hell. I spent many hours/days in that park, even rode my bike out there once (very younger then ;-) :

Whatever ... I think OP got arrested for driving and droning ...

Labroides Posted at 11-27 15:05
Glass is transparent to radio waves, just as it is to visible light.

Cool - I've never flown a drone from sitting in my car before but I may just try that out - will save getting froze to death over the winter

Matthew Dobrski Posted at 11-27 22:26
Whatever ... I think OP got arrested for driving and droning  ...

lol never! i’m actually not planning on driving juts operate from within the car while parked

K6CCC Posted at 11-27 10:17
Cetacean said:  Back of a pickup truck is best!

Not sure if this is USA or California, but around here, to ride in the open bed of a pickup requires a real (approved) seat with a real seat belt - at least to be legal.

Definitely agree with you on the seat.  As a fellow Californian I know that the seat requirement and restraints in a moving vehicle is a something the police actively pursue.

Labroides Posted at 11-27 15:05
Glass is transparent to radio waves, just as it is to visible light.

Glass does cause some impedance and refraction which can be more noticeable depending on the the UV level and layer thickness.  

Your windshield is laminated glass which is thin layers of glass with plastic film in between.  While windows are made from glass that is chemically or heat treated to make it shatter into rounded shapes know as toughened glass.  

I wasted several days trying to trouble shoot a WiFi connectivity issue for WiFi data transfer to a device in a car.  I ended up doing a lot of research into materials.  Typically glass causes between 3-14% 5.8 GHz signal degradation and even less for 2.4 GHz and signal loss was mostly dependent on the orientation angle of the access point to the device.  From firsthand experience on 2.4 GHz at greater ranges there was a noticeable signal loss not consistent with a device that was taped to the outside of the window.

I think the signal quality will have a lot more to do with the WiFi saturation in environment where you are flying than nominal glass impedance.

Chances for a disaster to happen increased tenfold ...

Matthew Dobrski Posted at 11-27 22:26
Whatever ... I think OP got arrested for driving and droning  ...

Do like the operator in the above video and have someone else drive.

GaryDoug Posted at 11-28 12:55
Do like the operator in the above video and have someone else drive.

In the US you still have to get a waiver to operate an UAS from a moving vehicle. My plan is just to operate while being parked and sitting in the car so legally it won’t be an issue as long as a adhere to all other regulations

727 Posted at 11-28 13:37
In the US you still have to get a waiver to operate an UAS from a moving vehicle. My plan is just to operate while being parked and sitting in the car so legally it won’t be an issue as long as a adhere to all other regulations

I'm not a drone militia member, don't get me wrong. My 6 yrs long experience dealing with all DJI drones tells me that having no VLOS is a recipe for things going wrong, that's all. And yes, I'm suffering excruciated pain in fingertips after 10 minutes in freezing temps ...

I’ll maintain VLOS what made you think I wouldn’t?

Luckily temperature is not the main issue here in Southern California

GaryDoug Posted at 11-28 12:55
Do like the operator in the above video and have someone else drive.

the car will be parked

KlooGee Posted at 11-27 03:05
If you’ve got the original Mavic Mini, your cheapest/easiest option would likely be to sell your Mini and buy a Mini 2. OcuSync in the Mini 2 would make more of a difference than any sort of a kludge you would put together to try to improve the Mini’s wifi.

Totally agree.

727 Posted at 11-28 13:37
In the US you still have to get a waiver to operate an UAS from a moving vehicle. My plan is just to operate while being parked and sitting in the car so legally it won’t be an issue as long as a adhere to all other regulations

Not true. You can fly from a moving vehicle in sparsely populated areas in the US.  107.25

KlooGee Posted at 11-27 03:05
If you’ve got the original Mavic Mini, your cheapest/easiest option would likely be to sell your Mini and buy a Mini 2. OcuSync in the Mini 2 would make more of a difference than any sort of a kludge you would put together to try to improve the Mini’s wifi.

Really helpful. I’m thinking about upgrading to the mavic 2 zoom or the mavic air 2 while I’m looking at smaller drones with occusync. I started another thread asking for input picking between the two:
https://forum.dji.com/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=232221

scoble08 Posted at 12-27 17:42
Not true. You can fly from a moving vehicle in sparsely populated areas in the US.  107.25

Right, was focusing on my situation, that doesn’t apply around me

GaryDoug Posted at 11-27 19:11
Here is one guy doing that in my area. just 40 miles south. Launched it from the hood of the Wrangler, probably a bad idea unless it is a fiberglass one. Illegal in that Pinellas County park (Fort Desoto/Mullet Key)....but what the hell. I spent many hours/days in that park, even rode my bike out there once (very younger then ;-) :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvgwSe0RuSQ

Great!