Greetings and Happy New Year to all on the Forum from Detroit, MI, USA. Expect this may have been asked before but did not find it when I did some searches – apologies if I missed it.

  

  

I have immersed myself in YouTube and DJI marketing to become educated. After flying my son-in-law’s Spark, I am ready to take the plunge! Trying to assess whether or not I will be happy with the Mini as my first drone or I should spend more to get the Air. I’m hoping to tap the real-world experience of the Forum to help with that decision. Initially thought the Air was the only choice (mainly based on sensors) but now thinking that even without avoidance sensors, DJI’s Care Refresh program mitigates the risk of crashing the Mini (only $39USD).

  

  

Does my list below look complete or have I missed important points? I placed asterisks next to items I felt were important to me. Any thoughts/opinions you have that might help me make a well-informed decision would be greatly appreciated. Sorry for a lengthy post and thanks for reading!!

  

  

Mavic Mini Pro’s                                                                                 Mavic Mini Con’s

  

*Cost                                                                                                   *Lack of avoidance sensors

  

*Size and Weight                                                                                *Lack of Bright LEDs

  

*Fly time (30 mins)                                                                             -Fewer cinematic effects

  

-Simple flying app                                                                               -Less capable flying app (?)

  

-Quieter in flight with stock propellers

  

-US FAA registration not required

  

-Latest Release

  

  

Mavic Air Pro’s                                                                                    Mavic Air Con’s

  

*Front, rear and bottom sensors                                                       *Cost relative to Mini

  

*Bright LED’s front and back for visibility in the air                           -Size/weight relative to Mini

  

-More cinematic effects                                                                     -FAA registration required

  

-More flexible fly/controller app                                                         -Noisier than Mini

  

                                                                                                          -Shorter fly time than mini

====END OF POST====

  

PS - I believe the Flymore pkg is a no-brainer. Would be open to a refurb drone provided I could get the Care Refresh coverage (need to investigate this). Thanks!

Hello and good day BSDickinson. Thank you for reaching out and for creating this thread. Both the DJI Mavic Air and the DJI Mavic Mini are great consumer drones made by DJI. I hope that you will get the best recommendation from our valued DJI co pilots on what drone do they prefer and what are there insight with regards to there pros and cons. In addition I will be posting a link where in you can compare the DJI Mavic Air with the DJI Mavic Mini and with other DJI consumer drones ( https://www.dji.com/products/com ... ndsite&from=nav ). Thank you.

Some of my opinions for you:

Registration: not really a consideration as generally easy and cheap
Collision avoidance: not really important unless you're planning low level flight near obstacles or people
LEDs: not much use unless you're flying in near dark
Noise: Both noisy
Range: Both almost identical
Apps: Both give all the functions you need for flying; Mini is probably easier to naviagate and use

So, with those elements removed, it boils down to:

Cost: Is this critical for you? Can you afford to replace if you lose or crash it?
Flight time: Yes, the Air is annoyingly short and you need spare batteries; Mini is longest flight time of any Mavic series drone
Camera: Mini unable to shoot in raw; otherwise camera quality is good enough for almost all requirements (see video below)
Control: Air is faster and much better at handling strong wind way beyond its specs;  Mini is slower and susceptible to being blown away in moderate to strong winds that may not be apparent on the ground

Bottom line: If you're not flying in wind and don't need raw photos, the Mini is ideal and half the price.
IMHO...

CHeers
Ian

Ian in London Posted at 1-5 09:46
Some of my opinions for you:

Registration: not really a consideration as generally easy and cheap

Thanks Ian - agree with your thoughts and still leaning toward the Mini. Beautiful footage in the video - love the foggy flight that include the church. Expect you have many nice locations near you for shooting drone footage.

Cheers,

Brian

Ian in London Posted at 1-5 09:46
Some of my opinions for you:

Registration: not really a consideration as generally easy and cheap

Loved the comparison video and good points in Post 4.

One thing also to consider

The DJI Fly app works only on 64bit devices and then only some are compatible

DJI Go 4 works on almost all 32bit devices that have the CPU power to run it

This is a similar style thread on a different forum

https://mavicpilots.com/threads/ ... -a-mavic-air.79436/

IMHO , the MM's flight performance issues outweighs any of it's advantages

I actually prefer the venerable Mavic Pro over all else, it's been rock solid for 3 years from my point of view

lannes Posted at 1-9 06:42
One thing also to consider

The DJI Fly app works only on 64bit devices and then only some are compatible

Thanks for this. What do you consider to be the major flight performance disadvantages? I understand that lighter weight means more susceptible to wind issues. Not sure what the other 'performance' concerns are.  I'll have a look at that thread as well.

Brian

BSDickinson Posted at 1-9 06:47
Thanks for this. What do you consider to be the major flight performance disadvantages? I understand that lighter weight means more susceptible to wind issues. Not sure what the other 'performance' concerns are.  I'll have a look at that thread as well.

Brian

The Mini is rated for 18 mph winds , but in reality it would be less

The MA is rated for 22mph, this extra power may just help it get back

At the moment I don't fly the Mini much and then only at a lower altitude and reduced range
You'll find you have to be more risk adverse and provide a greater margin for error in flying the Mini which takes all the fun out of it.

https://www.dronezon.com/diy-dro ... -flying-rth-issues/

But then again all drone flying is risky and not fool proof, expect to crash and or loose them

Another point,  DJI Care Refresh only works if can you return the damage drone physically to them, if you lose the drone Care Refresh doesn't work.


This is a good comparison between the MA and MM, which summarises the choice.

lannes Posted at 1-9 06:59
The Mini is rated for 18 mph winds , but in reality it would be less

The MA is rated for 22mph, this extra power may just help it get back

Good video. For me, the MM is a good first drone. I do not have the need to take 4K video, manipulate RAW ,etc. The investment is considerably smaller than the MA and I am ok with being extra careful and not flying on super-windy days, at least for now. If I really get into the hobby, I suspect that I will want to upgrade. It seems that most all of the folks who have been in the hobby for a while have multiple drones if the videos on YouTube and threads in the Forum are a good indication.  I'm sure DJI will continue to come out with new models with new must-have features. Not unlike the car companies!  Thanks for all your feedback - this forum is a great tool to share/gain firsthand knowledge.