Monday, March 12, 2018

DJI Mavic Pro Critic - part 1

What is the DJI Mavic Pro?
Before the launch of the recent DJI Mavic Air and DJI Spark, the Mavic Pro was the smallest quadcopter equipped with a camera in the range of DJI drones. At a price of about £1,099, the Mavic Pro weighs just 743g and, when folded down, measures only 83 x 83 x 198mm - more than compact enough to slip into a small bag. It comes with a battery delivering approximately 27 minutes of flight per charge, plus a top speed of 40mph, a 12MP camera mounted on a 3-axis gimbal, and a compact remote that works in tandem with your iOS or Android smartphone or tablet.

dji mavic pro

DJI Mavic Pro - Design
Having stolen a lot of drones from the Phantom range, I would consider them incredibly compact and lightweight for their capabilities - but the Mavic Pro is in a whole different category of portability. When the mailman delivered the box to my house, I thought there had been a mistake - this package, smaller than a shoebox, could not contain a quadcopter over 1000 pounds, a controller, and a battery charger? But that's because the dji mavic pro is tiny compared to its Phantom cousins - about a sixth of the size when folded.

My immediate concern was that its small size would affect its stability in the air and its image quality. But even with this imbalance in the mind, I could not help but be impressed by the way the drone and its controller tipped cleanly. This is the first 4K drone I've seen that feels like it could really fly all day without any problems. Phantoms need to be carried around in special or bulky backpacks, but the Mavic Pro slips into the smaller bags.

It is solidly built too, with the majority of the quadcopter built from durable plastic - a practical thing to know, since anyone who buys a drone is likely to have at least one or two light air crashes during their ownership. The gimballed camera is trickier, but DJI provides a clear plastic cage that protects it from danger while you carry it.

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