You might recall I have had all sorts of troubles with my Mavic 3 Cine, mostly incessant loss of connection. So in the end I sent it for replacement, and, when notified that replacement is not available for the next 3 weeks, requested a refund.
Lo and behold, today I have got an email that a replacement - and apparently refurbished - unit is shipped.
I immediately called customer service, only to be told that they can't stop the shipment - even though the box was not released to the carrier at the time, and to stop it would probably only mean to go down to the mailroom and cancel the label.
So, here we are, pretty much a month after the original purchase, nearly $6K in the wind, and I'm getting a refurbished unit...

Dear DJI, I am a patient person, and I did expect a few hiccups for a brand new model, but this has to to end.
I will try the shipped unit, but at any sign of connection error it surely goes back, this time for refund only.
And if this option is not available, I'm sure AmEx and Better Business Bureau will help me.
Not a happy camper here.

Did the email specifically say it was refurbished?

fans32f3952e Posted at 12-2 20:29
Did the email specifically say it was refurbished?

Their original email stated they wouldn't be able to send new units for at least 3 weeks. Henceforth, I deduce it's a refurbished one.
Regardless, my point is I requested a refund. Not another sample from an apparently flawed batch.

Hello, there. Sorry for any inconvenience. We have checked your case and confirmed that it is a new drone. Please tell us if you have any questions.

Hi Wanda, I also received my shipment for my replacement drone today. Can you confirm if it’s new or refurbished? Thank you

DJI Wanda Posted at 12-2 20:39
Hello, there. Sorry for any inconvenience. We have checked your case and confirmed that it is a new drone. Please tell us if you have any questions.

If you say so. We'll see. If it works, great. If not... Well, see above...

I hope this works for you...really I do.

As for the BBB, you do know that they are local and run by sellers, right? Fat chance of getting any help there.

GaryDoug Posted at 12-2 20:44
I hope this works for you...really I do.

Thank you! I carry hope, but in all honesty, not too much. Only  enough to unpack bare minimum - craft, RC, one battery, charger - and see if it works as designed, or is it still plagued.

DarthSLR Posted at 12-2 20:48
Thank you! I carry hope, but in all honesty, not too much. Only  enough to unpack bare minimum - craft, RC, one battery, charger - and see if it works as designed, or is it still plagued.

Mine seems to work perfectly (except for the new screwy RTH feature) so maybe I got lucky. Good luck to you also.

GaryDoug Posted at 12-2 20:53
Mine seems to work perfectly (except for the new screwy RTH feature) so maybe I got lucky. Good luck to you also.

It's possible I just got unlucky with my original unit, as plenty of people indicated there is nothing wrong with theirs. We'll see. Luckily, they are sending it now from some 70 miles away, and via good old UPS, so hopefully not another fortnight waiting...

fans32f3952e Posted at 12-2 20:41
Hi Wanda, I also received my shipment for my replacement drone today. Can you confirm if it’s new or refurbished? Thank you

Hi, there. We have replied to your PM. Please check.

DarthSLR Posted at 12-2 20:41
If you say so. We'll see. If it works, great. If not... Well, see above...

Thanks for your reply. Please tell us your feedback after you receive it.

Wanda..... take care with his case please. A lot hangs in the balance, if you know what that means.

DJI Wanda Posted at 12-2 22:15
Thanks for your reply. please tell us your feedback after you receive it.

Sure will. Supposed to receive tomorrow afternoon, probably will take some time to charge/update. Maybe will have time for one flight, get one of those fabled night shots...

GaryDoug Posted at 12-2 22:25
Wanda..... take care with his case please. A lot hangs in the balance, if you know what that means.

Thank you for your support!

Please let us know how you get on.   Customer service is very important.

I got a refurbished MP back when my original one was broken. (GPS problems)
Best drone I ever had.
Apparently they had swapped the gimbal + camera with the refurbished one and it did not have the small lens alignment issue that my original one had.

DAFlys Posted at 12-3 00:37
Please let us know how you get on.   Customer service is very important.

You can rest assured of that!

Montfrooij Posted at 12-3 00:44
I got a refurbished MP back when my original one was broken. (GPS problems)
Best drone I ever had.
Apparently they had swapped the gimbal + camera with the refurbished one and it did not have the small lens alignment issue that my original one had.

I guess there is hope

DarthSLR Posted at 12-3 07:35
I guess there is hope

There is always hope.

Don't get me wrong, I completely agree DJI has to address the real bugs the M3 has.
But there is a tendency with new products to complain about many things that are 'not as expected' and that make users doubt about their (expensive) purchase.
Again, DJI has to fix what is really wrong, but a lot of complaints are focusing on things that are 'different' and not 'wrong'.
It has been like this with all releases I think, but it does spoil the fun of the great product that the drone is.
I have experienced this pattern first hand after buying 3 instruments and it (almost) made me return them all because I was angry why they did not behave as expected.
But it turned out I could make wonderful stuff with them all and had to adapt my way of working to how they were programmed.

Not saying DJI can get away with bugs, but from what I have seen, the M3 is 'as is' already a great drone and it should be a great tool in your hands.
(if they send you a product that does not have the connection issues)

Montfrooij Posted at 12-3 07:47
There is always hope.

Don't get me wrong, I completely agree DJI has to address the real bugs the M3 has.

I agree with you.
My primary concerns were clearly bugs/malfunctions, and not of the "it cannot fly into the setting sun straight with OA enabled" kind, but the ones that prevent its very usage due to non-stop connection loss.
Mavic 3 has all the potential to be the best drone in its class.
I hope it will be once all the initial glitches are resolved.

DarthSLR Posted at 12-3 08:05
I agree with you.
My primary concerns were clearly bugs/malfunctions, and not of the "it cannot fly into the setting sun straight with OA enabled" kind, but the ones that prevent its very usage due to non-stop connection loss.
Mavic 3 has all the potential to be the best drone in its class.

I hope so too (mainly for you, I probably won't be buying, too much limitations here for the M3)

Update: arrived today around 2pm. Appears to be 100% new. Charging now. Will activate/update FW later once fully charged,

Well, I can now confirm that the replacement unit I have received today, while new, is from a pre-launch batch, not from some latest improved one.
When attached to the latest DJI Assistant 2.1.8, freshly downloaded from the DJI site, craft, batteries, and RC Pro all displayed some pre-2021-11-04 version.
Craft and batteries updated. RC Pro updating now. We'll see how the activation/connection goes... Holding my fingers...

DarthSLR Posted at 12-3 17:45
Well, I can now confirm that the replacement unit I have received today, while new, is from a pre-launch batch, not from some latest improved one.
When attached to the latest DJI Assistant 2.1.8, freshly downloaded from the DJI site, craft, batteries, and RC Pro all displayed some pre-2021-11-04 version.
Craft and batteries updated. RC Pro updating now. We'll see how the activation/connection goes... Holding my fingers...

Hi, DarthSLR. Thank you for your update. Please update the drone, RC Pro and App to the latest version. And try to conduct the flight test in an open, well-signalized environment. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Hope you have a good time on flying.

DarthSLR Posted at 12-3 07:35
You can rest assured of that!

Sorry,   I should have known that.   .  OrginalDobo just got his replaced and they sent him a new one.

DAFlys Posted at 12-4 00:56
Sorry,   I should have known that.   .  OrginalDobo just got his replaced and they sent him a new one.

As I said, it was from some pre-launch batch according to firmware version, but at least it seems to be functioning properly for now. Thank you for caring!

DarthSLR Posted at 12-4 09:20
As I said, it was from some pre-launch batch according to firmware version, but at least it seems to be functioning properly for now. Thank you for caring!

You would think that the repair centre would have updated the firmware to at least release level.

DAFlys Posted at 12-5 00:56
You would think that the repair centre would have updated the firmware to at least release level.

It doesn't look like they sent me a fixed unit. Rather a brand new one, which this time around happened to work.

DarthSLR Posted at 12-5 08:37
It doesn't look like they sent me a fixed unit. Rather a brand new one, which this time around happened to work.

Brilliant.    I hope this one is more reliable for you.  

DAFlys Posted at 12-5 11:48
Brilliant.    I hope this one is more reliable for you.

So far, knock on wood, everything up to spec, bar the known limitations of the firmware. No connection errors, even maps are working (more or less, see my other thread).
I didn't have a chance to fly it anywhere else except above my house, I hope to get to different areas in the upcoming days/weeks.

Sadly I have the same issue with multiple connection losses.  It appeared that the issue was solved by moving to 5.8 ghz transmission setting - had a few good flights but how wrong I was, eventually the drone lost  connection permanently and crashed into the sea..  I am devastated, submitted a replacement under DJI refresh and waiting....  

fans223b737c Posted at 12-20 03:57
Sadly I have the same issue with multiple connection losses.  It appeared that the issue was solved by moving to 5.8 ghz transmission setting - had a few good flights but how wrong I was, eventually the drone lost  connection permanently and crashed into the sea..  I am devastated, submitted a replacement under DJI refresh and waiting....

Hi, there. Sorry for the unpleasant experience caused. We fully understand your feeling. Could you please give us your case number, so that we could keep an eye on it?

DJI Gamora Posted at 2021-12-20 04:50
Hi, there. Sorry for the unpleasant experience caused. We fully understand your feeling. Could you please give us your case number, so that we could keep an eye on it?

Hello! My case number is CAS-8138265-H3N5Q5

Thanks for your help!

Igordronepilot Posted at 1-17 07:48
Hello! My case number is CAS-8138265-H3N5Q5

Thanks for your help!

Got it, we'll help to keep an eye on it. If there is anything other assistance needed, please feel free to let us know.