DJIMini 3 (DJI RC), Lightweight 3x Mechanical Gimbal Drones with Camera for Adults 4K, 38-min Flight Time, up to 32800ft (10km) Video Transmission, Vertical Shooting, GPS Auto Return Integrated

After being drone-curious for a decade, this was my first drone purchase. The Mini 3 is a lot of fun to fly and the video and photo quality is excellent, even in lower light in the evening. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy the Mini 3 is to fly, which is true of probably every DJI mini drone. Installing the DJI Fly app wasn't difficult and it wasn't too invasive. I wish the DJI Mimo app to register their action cameras was as pleasant an experience.The 38 minute flight time is excellent for a 249 gram no-license mini drone. I fly 25-30 minutes and land as soon as the app starts telling me that the battery is getting low, both to avoid drama trying to limp home against a headwind with only a few electrons remaining in the battery, and to avoid deep cycle discharging the battery and reducing its life span. The battery is so intelligent it actually has its own firmware and the smart battery controller will do everything it can to protect the battery, up to but not including endangering the drone. The drone will always try to make it back and it'll fry a battery if needed, as it should. Don't deep discharge the battery and it should be good for hundreds of flights, even though drone flight is a high discharge activity that inherently isn't good for batteries.The Mini 3 doesn't have obstacle avoidance but that's mostly useful for following a person and the visual follow modes don't work all that well so I prefer to do the obstacle avoidance and tracking manually, and not having obstacle avoidance makes the batteries last longer.There are a few reasonably priced after market apps that extend the features of the drone. I use Maven EVO and it allows me to program waypoints, either by flying to them or by programming them on a map, and then fly the mission. It's a great way to have the drone fly itself and video me while I ride my motorcycle, or precisely fly a programmed course to video a particular scene, such as a coastline, river or cliff. There are also a few co-pilot features that automate some of the flying, or constrain the drone's motion (example: along a line) while allowing the remote control to do much simpler flying along the path. All of these features allow some up front setup time to be traded for a precise and safe flight path.I love how small and lightweight the Mini 3 is. That makes it easy to bring along on ultralight motorcycle camping adventures, while allowing me to get some dramatic aerial video and photography so my shared adventures are more compelling.The most challenging aspect of drone flying has been getting my old eyes to see my phone or tablet when flying on a sunny day. You may want to upgrade from the RC-N! controller that uses the DJI Fly app on your connected phone, to the RC-2 controller with the built-in screen, not to use the screen, but to have video out that can be fed into heads up glasses so the flight software is inside sunglasses but you retain situational awareness you wouldn't have with FPV goggles. This would be at least a few hundred dollars for this upgrade but may be worthwhile for some people.

This mini drone exceeded my expectations. Despite its compact size, it delivers stunning video quality, smooth flight, and impressive stability – even in light wind. The GPS and return-to-home features give me peace of mind as a beginner.Battery life is solid, and the app is user-friendly with lots of smart flight modes. It’s perfect for travel and capturing breathtaking footage without carrying bulky gear. If you’re looking for your first drone or a portable option, this one’s a winner!

As a total beginner, I wasn’t sure if I was buying a drone or just an expensive way to crash into trees—but the DJI Mini 3 made me feel like a pro in no time. Setup was easy (even for someone who thinks “firmware update” is a threat), and the camera quality is chef’s kiss. Smooth flying, epic footage, and somehow I haven’t lost it on a rooftop yet.Battery life is solid, the controls feel intuitive, and the obstacle sensors saved me from a tragic mailbox collision. If you’ve ever dreamed of being a low-budget aerial cinematographer or just want cool vacation shots, this little guy delivers. 10/10 would crash gently again.

Best Valued DJI Beginner Drone! It's easy to fly and great for beginners who want to get into DJI drones. It's packed with lots of features like QuickShots that helps you record videos. It's camera quality is superb with up to 4K 30fps video. It's very stable in-flight (as long as you have at least 13 satellites/GPS connection) . There's lots of functionality in the drone that you can use for different occasions such as nature photography or just flying it for fun! At the time of writing this review, the DJI Mini 4 Pro was out and the DJI Mini 3 Pro was hard to find. I suggest getting the DJI Mini 3 Pro if you can find one that's reasonably priced and at a price you can afford since it does have sensors that assist you in-flight and can stop you from crashing into things as the DJI Mini 3 (non pro) does not have sensors except for downward sensors used for landing. This drone will still get the job done but everything comes down to personal preference and use case. If you value more features and increased safety, I suggest looking into the DJI Mini 3 Pro as I mentioned earlier or maybe the DJI Flip. If your into FPV, I suggest getting an Avata or an FPV drone rather than a drone like this since the FPV mode on the mini series or any other series than the Avata series is not truly FPV and doesn't fully submerge you into the experience of flying FPV.

This is my first drone. The DJI Mini 3 flies well but the fully charged battery doesn't seem like it lasts for the 31 minutes of flight time advertised. The Return to Home comes on rather quickly at about 21 minutes which serves its purpose but I was expecting better time overall. The included paper instructions from DJI are in tiny type and worthless. The best instruction on how to operate and fly the drone, after viewing many, was the DJI Mini 3 Pro and Mini 3 Tutorial by Otto Julian. It covers all the operation and buttonology for the RC remote controller with built in screen which is what I have. I do recommend the mini 3 but would probably go with the mini 3 Pro if I had to do it again because it has obstacle avoidance and waypoint functionality built in plus a couple more quick shot capabilities to mention a few.