Greetings from Romania,

I am very interested in purchasing a new drone and I am really considering the Mavic Mini. But I have several questions and concerns that I hope you kind people could help me with.

I have never piloted a drone before and I do not have an RC background. Also I am not a good photographer. I use the phone, auto settings, point and shoot
Why do I need a drone? Well 2 reasons, I think that it's an interesting piece of technology and also I usually go on mountain hikes (on foot or with my bike). So I need a drone, mostly for filming and taking pictures in the mountains.
Yes I am aware this is a light drone and I have to be careful with winds. But I would like some tips on piloting it, as in where to fly it and where not to fly it, in regards to terrain geometry.

Where to buy? I plan to buy the FlyMore Combo and I am debating to buy DJI Care or not (tending not to). DJI is not selling in Romania, and the local resellers don't have it in stock. There seems to be a czech resseler that has a website in Romania aswell and it seems to be in stock. I am abit concerned about warranty issues.

But my main concern, I have read the forums and there seem to be alot of issues with the Mavic Mini, as fly-aways and drones dropping out of the sky. Some say it's firmware related and downgraded to 1.0.0.3 (???) and others say it might be a manufacturing problem.

I do not recommend You to buy this item. High price for bad quality. Pay attention to DJI Spark or Mavic Air. They are more reliable..

Hi ithanium2,
I have only got the mini, MY first and only drone!! I'll never ever get a more expensive one, BUT, should something happen to this MM, I will buy another MM immediately and without doubt!!!
Take a look at these clips in my channel and you'll understand!!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvBCsat4AOPkfgS6ngnRNQw

The Mini is small and foldable which makes it an excellent drone as regards portability.  After lots of research I decided the Mini had all the qualities I was seeking in a small drone.  From reading these forums it appears that the majority of the fly-aways were caused by people not taking into account wind conditions, not just at ground level but aloft, not doing pre-flight checks to include obtaining enough GPS locks, etc.  You always hear about any and all issues but what you don't hear is all the happy flyers that aren't having issues.  Is the Mini perfect?  No, but with firmware updates it gets better each time.  Some people bought the Mini based on price but now want it to do all the things that a DJI drone 3 times more expensive can do, which is an unrealistic expectation.  As a person new to flying drones I would strongly recommend that you purchase DJI Care Refresh.  I personally have not had any flight issues with my Mini and I attribute that to always doing pre-flights and not exceeding the published capabilities of the Mini.  Just thought you would like to hear from somebody that has had only positive experiences from the Mini.  Nobody can make the buying decision for you but at least you are doing your due diligence in preparation to buy.  

Aloha ithanium,

     The Mavic Mini is a good entry-level drone.  As with any drone, you have to fly cautiously, and especially pick your location carefully as you noted.  From what Berhatz said, there is no follow me or other hands off flight modes that would work with mountain biking.  For that the Mavic Air and Spark are better DJI products.  But once you get to your destination, the Mavic Mini  will get you amazing "Point and Shoot" photos and video.  

     Be sure to use the CineSmooth flying mode setting to assist in your initial flights, otherwise, your viewers might get whiplash as the Mavic Mini darts around recording your videos.  CineSmooth really slows everything down and makes flying, recording video and taking photos much easier.

     Be sure to use a compatible phone or small tablet as your display.  A device that is good for gaming and is listed by DJI is a good idea.

     Finally, your success and enjoyment with the Mavic Mini will be dependent on how careful you are and safe you fly.  Read the manuals and release notes.  Watch the DJI videos and other videos on YouTube.  Do the latest firmware updates and watch for compatibility issues.  There are plenty of resources for you to research if you take the time to read, watch and understand the information available.  Do not rush the process.  

     Taking the time and effort to understand the technology is half the fun.  The application of the technology to flight for your Mavic Mini will help you with other areas in your life.  You can get out of flying more than you put into flying because of the technology you will be learning.  So, again, take your time and learn all that it takes to fly safely and carefully.  You will have the time of your life.

     Hope this helps!

Aloha and Drone On!

Thank you all the replies. I did a lot of research and watched a lot of videos before posting here, but I wanted to post here and ask more questions just to be more thorough.
The problem is availability, can't seem to buy one from my country.
As for phone, I still use an old Galaxy S7, which seems to be suported.

MAvic Mini is my first drone purchase.
Got the combo, definitely get the combo because of the additional batteries and also the batteries charging case.

So far my MM do not have any problem *touch wood*...
As long as you do your preflight check, let the drone hover and option enough GPS signals and then update the home point with the correct RTH altitude set and most important, the wind at your surrounding not too strong...
The MM shouldn’t give you any problem then...
Photo and video are very usable for me, especially since I only upload to FB or Insta, 2.7k and 12m it’s more than enough..

So far very happy with my MM...

I am/was at the same point as you. Never had any RC stuff (except Cars when i was a little child ;-) and i wanted something when I'm driving around with my Mountainbike and/or Hiking. I'm shooting a lot of Photos, I would say like wannabe-semi-professional, so very often with manual settings, but that's the only real difference in our both needs.


I can totally recommend the Drone, very Beginner friendly and very fun to use the more you get known to it.
But be VERY VERY careful. It's horribly fragile. One moment when you don't pay attention and it could be dead.

I also got the flymore combo and (luckily) DJI Care Refresh, which i had to use already one time. So I would totally recommend it that you purchase Care Refresh as well.

Also, best way is to fly all the time in line of sight, don't do stupid experiments and try to fly 100000 km far away with it. If you wanna see how the Mini handles it, better watch YouTube Videos about it.

Also follow a lot of preflight-checks and other simple rules and you won't regret your new Toy. ;)

All in all, the Mini is a good drone, some stuff has to be improved but if you fly cautious nothing bad should happen.
This is my first ever drone, and I enjoyed the whole experience, learning mainly from tutorials online, YouTube videos, and most importantly learn from others mistakes.

I would recommend the Fly more combo, and give yourself 5 to 10 hours flying in safe spots before attempting anything more demanding.
Pre flight checks, and after take off checklists, are a must.

DJI Care, I think is worth it... mainly it gives you some peace of mind.
But above all, I just think for the price, there is nothing that can compare, if you really are not interested so much in photography or video there may be other options out there.

MM is my first and only drone. I got the combo box AND care refresh too.
I don't have any problems as far as now, but I always try to be careful and to avoid strong winds.
It's very easy and friendly for beginners and I love fly with it.
I'm not an experience photographer either but I try to read the forum and learn.
I didn't regret I got it.
These are some samples of what it can do.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcq4lK2xK1cMQDer2S_S15A/featured

The MM isn't my first drone but is much more user friendly for a beginer. But you have to be careful as a small and light drone can encounter problems that you should be aware to rectify before it has a crash or a fly away.
I had an issue with the MM that I hope that is solved. That made me stop flying until I got it solved, at least for now. But even with that I still love my MM.

I started getting ESC errors after upgrading to firmware .0400, had to downgrade to .0300 and upgrade/refresh with the DJI Assistant 2 will all batteries (one at a time). After that I have been flying without error up to now (around 50 minutes of flight time).

I take the MM almost everywhere I go and if I have the opportunity I fly with it. I have flown the MM more times during the 3 months that I have it than all the time I had my previous drone. It needed a big backpack and not easy to carry everywhere. Also, the MM is much quieter than other drones and people around don't notice that it is flying.

I absolutely love my Mini. It's small enough that I can pack it and travel with it.

1: Yes, buy the FlyMore package
2: Practice. I go to my local park on good weather days and just fly it around getting used to it. Do this BEFORE you take it into the woods.
3: Be reasonable. If the wind is gusting more than 15 MPH, DON'T FLY A MINI. Yes, bigger drones can take this, if this is an issue for you, buy the bigger drone.

I've never flown a drone in my life and the mini was very easy to pick up. It is fun to fly in sport mode but effortless to fly in Cinematic mode.

Best $500 I've spent in a while.

Cheers!
=C=

You can do nice things with it.
As said here before, use common sense when and where you fly.






https://www.behance.net/gallery/90868159/INTO-THE-FOG
https://www.behance.net/gallery/90835395/roterij


the only downside for me is that I'm not been able to lock the white balance:

Salut

I bought my Mini back in November and I'm using it for pretty much the same things you want it for. I don't regret the purchase and I think it's a great choice for a beginner. Follow discussions here, learn what the compass does, why it is important to check its heading immediately after liftoff (it's the cause for some of the flyaways reported here), how RTH works, when you should and especially when you should not use it, what to do if you see the drone drifting away with the wind (imho this is better than simply not flying when it's windy). I'll leave you with some shots from Romania

Hello and good day ithanium2. Welcome to DJI Forum and thank you for reaching out. The DJI Mavic Mini is an amazing consumer drones created by DJI. I hope that you will get the best recommendation from our valued DJI co pilots who owns the DJI Mavic Mini with regards to this matter. In addition, I will be posting a link where in you can compare the DJI Mavic Mini with other DJI consumer drones ( https://www.dji.com/products/com ... ndsite&from=nav ). For additional reference I will be posting a link where in you can purchase the DJI Mavic Mini ( https://www.dji.com/where-to-buy ... ite&from=footer ). Thank you.

DJI Stephen Posted at 2-11 08:00
I will be posting a link where in you can compare the DJI Mavic Mini with other DJI consumer drones

That's not really true for Romania, is it?

Ice_2k Posted at 2-11 08:39
That's not really true for Romania, is it?

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Hello and good day Ice_2k. Thank you for reaching out. If your DJI Mavic Mini is the CE version which is the version for Romania, then you can fly it normally in CE, SRRC, and FCC countries and regions. In an unobstructed environment free of interference, the max image transmission distance is as follows: If it is a CE country or region like Romania, the DJI Mavic Mini’s maximum image transmission distance can reach 2 km in 2.4 GHz and 500 m in 5.8 GHz ( if supported by local regulations ). Thank you.

Ok, thank you. So tell me about the Care Refresh for MM. If I buy it from someone that isn't an official reseller but drone is not activated (sealed package), can I buy the Care Refresh from the DJI website (if I set store to Hungary or Bulgaria)?
Will it be valid and how will it be handled in case I crash my drone?

As your first just look for some used Spark drone from ebay, olx, gumtree or something. Cost about 200 - 300 eur. More comfortable to use than Mini. Have more sensors to help you as begginer, you not need controller. And whats the fun you dont need the phone. Just use hand for quick launch, make photos and movie and back land in hand. I am really sad that i sold my Spark because i want new model. But Mini in this stage is very dissapointing. So i bought small Tello and put Insta360go cam on it. And  i waiting if Dji make new firmware to bring back some Spark functionality or they make Spark 2 or Mini 2. Of course Air is better but cost a lot.
Look at this video. I use it a lot on my holidays.

Btw This scary me https://forum.dji.com/forum.php? ... D712%26typeid%3D712

Well, I went ahead and bought the FMC and DJI Care from a romanian reseller (It got in stock). I hope I recieve it tomorrow and will be able to fly it over the weekend.

For the money it is a great drone.
But there are some limitations that might be worth noting.
Mostly the connection and (low) engine power.
So you have to keep it rather close to you to make sure have good control over the drone.