CAMERA and PRICE
In this section, we're going to take a look at all the new features of the camera in the DJI Mini 2.
The DJI Mini 2 became one of the best camera drones, besides the fact that it's so cheap and weighs less than 250 grams.
Is there an actual competition between the DJI Mini 2 vs the Mavic Mini?
I'd say it's more a question of whether you want to upgrade from the original Mavic Mini.
This article will be a complete review of the DJI Mini 2 through the perspective of what's new compared to the previous version.
You can also check my full article, where I compared the Mini 2 vs the Mavic Air2.
If you don't know yet, the DJI Mini 2 is currently the best drone under 250g in the world (hands down).
In this section, we're going to take a look at all the new features of the camera in the DJI Mini 2.
The DJI Mini 2 became one of the best camera drones, besides the fact that it's so cheap and weighs less than 250 grams.
In terms of price, the Mavic Mini 2 is just $50 more than the original Mavic Mini, which makes it a definite winner considering the many improved specs it comes with for that price.
Will DJI still sell the old Mavic Mini? I'm pretty sure they will stop officially selling the first version of the mini, as they did with the Spark and the original Mavic Pro, since the price difference makes the new mini 2 a clear winner.
The DJI Mini comes in 4k; yes, you heard that right, up to 4k 30 fps footage for the new drone compared to 2.4k for the original Mavic Mini. This makes a considerable difference in footage quality, even if you're editing in 1080p.
The sensor size remains the same, and both drones take 12MP photos. So we're safe to assume that nighttime video is going to be about the same.
The other very important change when it comes to camera quality is the increased bitrate. Which more than doubled, from 40Mbps to 100 Mbps. This makes for a more precise image with more details in the frame. It simply increases the amount of information the camera receives and processes, so it's more accurate and close to reality.
And again, when it comes to the lens, both drones come with a 24mm equivalent lens and an f/2.8 aperture; nothing changed here.
Unfortunately, the new Mini 2 doesn't come with Dlog, and just like the original, only the standard profile picture can be used for now. Maybe it will be changed in the future. Who knows!
The camera stabilization, of course, stayed 3 axis and no additional improvements were made there, as it was already very good.
One interesting feature that's also new to the Mini 2 has 2x digital zoom in the app directly for 4k footage and up to 4 times zoom for 1080p. You can, of course, do it in post-processing, but having an in-app zoom makes it way easier to frame a shot better when you see everything directly on the screen.
You can also zoom in with the scroll wheel on the remote to make it easier.
In this section, we'll compare the wind resistance, size and weight of the two drones and why these things are so important.
We'll also go a bit into what the new app features of the Mini 2 are and how you can use them.
Both drones are under 250 grams, and that makes them legal to fly without having to register them in the USA and many other countries. I believe this feat alone is going to propel the Mini 2 as one of the most popular drones in the lineup of DJI, ever.
However, the new Mini 2 is actually lighter than the original Mini, if you can believe it. DJI managed to make the battery a few grams lighter and more efficient. You can see on the DJIs website that the new Mini 2 is under 249g, while the original was precisely 249g. However, if you read the fine print closely, the new drone is actually 242 grams, including the battery, propellers and a micro SD card.
A big difference between these two drones which makes this scarily good, is the better wind resistance. Actually way better wind resistance. I don't know how they managed to do this with the same body and pretty much the same parts, but it makes a lot of difference when you want to take more stable footage.
The original Mavic Mini had a wind resistance of 29kph max, while the new Mini 2 is rated at a Level 5 wind resistance, which equals to about 31 to 38 kph max wind resistance.
This makes it on par with the Mavic Air 2, which is another reason to watch that comparison.
Unfortunately, no front-facing cameras have been added to the new drone, but it's to be expected since the drone would go past the weight of 250g, and they couldn't compromise much.
No, the Mini 2 doesn't come with obstacle avoidance or active track because it doesn't have the 2 front cameras to do so precisely.
However, it still kept the 2 sensors at the bottom for stability in flight when close to the ground.
When it comes to the drone itself, there are no visible differences you can talk about besides the addition of a front LED light and a different color of the props.
However, there are slight changes in shape and size. On the screen right now, you can see that both the folded and unfolded sizes are a bit different. The new mini is 1 mm taller and slightly less wide and long, again a super small difference of 1mm.
The Mini 2 finally also comes with a USB C port for charging and data transfer, instead of the Micro USB that was so in 2019. And yes, you can charge the mini 2 with a cable and a power bank. Speaking of which, I recommend you check my favorite charging cable called Zapcoil.
It has magnets on it so you can coil it right up and make it way tidier to use than standard charging cables. It makes it so that it doesn't get tangled like ever. And it's pretty fun to play with too! I have a link in the description.
You can now quickly transfer high-quality files directly to your phone straight from the drone, and it will open a wifi-Bluetooth connection so you can download them up to 20mb/s on your mobile device
The DJI Mini 2 comes with standard quick shots like Boomerang, helix, circle and rocket. There might be more FLight modes added soon to the list through updates.
Yes, the filters of the original Mini 1 do fit on the Mini 2 drone, as the camera size has remained the same. The same goes for all the other accessories like prop guards and leg stands.
In this section, we're taking a look at the footage, how the photos look, how far it can go and what my experience with it is and why you should care.
In terms of photos, the new Mini 2 has again beat our expectations, as it comes with the ability to take RAW photos, which means better exposure in post-processing and way more control over the image and its details.
This is one of the features most expected by my viewers, and we have not been disappointed, as it makes it the gold standard for drone photography under 250g.
The Mini 2 can also take panorama photos directly from the app without the need for you to stitch them in post-processing. It's good to have, but I definitely don't consider it a ground-breaking improvement. However, stick till the end and you'll find that there's much more to come!
The Mini 2 comes with a few new photography modes besides being able to shoot panoramas. It can now also shoot in sphere mode and 180 degrees.
And what's also neat is the Auto exposure Bracketing with 3 bracketed frames. This basically means the drone will take 3 photos at slightly different exposure rates, and that's so helpful since you can't always get the perfect exposure. So sometimes you might find the sky is a bit blown out or the shot is too dark, now you have some leeway for mistakes, and I think that's beautiful.
The Mini 2 can fly up to 31 minutes now, 1 minute more than its predecessor, which was already super impressive for its size and more than enough for most shots.
However, a thing that most people don't know about it is that the hovering time is exactly the same at 29 minutes. Which means they made the drone more aerodynamic. But who hovers it anyway. Even though the new battery is lighter than the previous one, it's still superior (2250mAh vs 2400mAh) ( 86.2g vs 100g). To learn more about the DJI Mini 2 battery and how to take care of it, and its charging time be sure to read my in-dept article about it.
Yes, you can indeed use the original Mini 1 battery with the Mini 2 safely, but you can't use the mini 2 battery on the Mini 1 as it has changed its shape and doesn't fit anymore.
One of the biggest changes in the DJI Mini 2 is the addition of Ocusync 2.0, which you can find in more expensive drones like the Air 2 or Mavic 2 pro. This is absolutely huge, as it makes the signal way stronger so there's no more interference like with the wifi connection we've had with the Mavic Mini or the Spark. What's more, it can now fly for up to 10 km( 6.2 miles) in FCC mode, which basically means the USA and about 6km or 3.7 miles in CE mode in Europe.
In both cases, it's way more than enough, and it makes it a very close contender for the Mavic Air 2 for people who want a drone under 250g.
The FCC flight range of 10km means you can fly that much if you are from the United States, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong and a few other countries. Some of my viewers are from Canada and Australia, so I thought I should make this clear.
The CE range of 6km is for Russia, France, Germany, Spain, and most European countries. However, it is important to note that even when you are not legally bound you can't fly drone just about anywhere and it is important to consider the environment before flying your drone .
A new factor not known by many is that the Mini 2 comes with an additional GPS substitute, making the positioning even more Precise. So besides GPS and GLONASS, which is the Russian satellite system, it also comes with GALILEO, and this will most certainly increase the GPS stability a bit.
The DJI Mini 2 does not inheritedly have a Follow Me mode to maintain its overall under 250g weight property. Despite this, there are many hacks and tricks that you can use to mimic the follow-me mode and you can read about them in this guide.
If the Mini 2 can fly for longer, is it also faster? It is indeed! As you can fly with 57.6Kph vs 46.8Kph on the original model. That means a 10 km/h increase in speed, which gets it very close to drones like the Mavic Air 2, but not really enough. This speed means DJI has fixed one of the main issues with the Mini, and that's an error that comes up when You're flying against the wind and the motors can't handle it. The newer drone is faster and stronger and that's great.
It's also faster in normal mode or P mode as it's called. The new Mini 2 flies at 36 kph vs 28.8 kph of the mini. This is another 10kph increase which is totally welcomed.
The ascent and descent speed has also increased quite a bit from 4m/s to 5m/s in sport mode and from 2 m/s in normal mode to 3 m/s in p mode. This means you'll be able to land it quicker when you're running out of battery.
Package contents of the Mini 2 haven't changed much from the original, besides a few key points.
But even so, it requires a more in-depth look.
You're getting a prop holder this time, which is helpful to keep the propellers in check when putting the drone away in the bag. Many of my viewers complained that the propellers are a bit flimsy on the Mini.
Speaking about propellers, the new props are a bit orange-colored at the tip, probably to make them safer to fly and actually know the direction of the drone.
Another small change is the battery, this time is grey instead of black.
However, the biggest factor in the new package is the new Controller.
DJI Mini 2 controller
The new transmitter isn't entirely new, as we've seen it before in the Mavic Air 2 for the first time, and I have to say it's definitely my favorite drone controller so far. It is indeed a bit bigger than what you'd expect for such a small drone, but it's so ergonomic and way easier to use with your phone.
There's basically no difference between it and the one on the Air 2, besides small changes like naming tripod mode and cine mode instead.
Compared to the original Mini, the new Controller also has twice the battery size, so you won't have to worry much about controller battery life this time (5200mAh vs 2600mAh)
Yes, the upgrade to the Mini 2 is definitely worth it!
Just like they did with the DJI Spark and the Original Mavic Pro, DJI will certainly stop the production of the original Mavic Mini. Since they are so close in price, there's no reason for people to buy it anymore. And if you wonder if you should upgrade to the Mini 2, I would say selling the original Mini and getting the new version is the best way to go now that we have DJI mini 3, you should also compare and if you like it better than mini 2.
You won't lose much money in the process, and you'll get a 4k camera drone with Ocusync 2.0 You can't really beat that. So yes, Go into the description, and check the current price, I recommend getting the fly more combo as always and getting your brand new Mini 2.
1. DJI MINI 2
Best drone for Travel
No need to register
For people with a lower budget looking just for fun
As a backup to the other two drones (for professionals)
2. Mavic Air 2
My top recommendation in 2020
Great for Pro Photography
Perfect for Slow Motion 4k
Great for Weddings and events
Great for travel and vlogs
2. Mavic Mini
I don't recommend it anymore
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