3 days ago
18
Two-minute review
The ample three-camera gimbal dominating the beforehand of the drone makes the DJI Mavic 3 Pro unmistakable and pushes the bid towards accrued originative potential, acknowledgment to those 3 utile cameras for photography and video. This is the world’s archetypal triple-camera drone, with each the awesome information and formation features that Mavic 3 bid drones are known for, and is easy 1 of the best drones available.
The main camera is the aforesaid Four Thirds 20MP Hasselblad arsenic connected the archetypal Mavic 3/ Mavic 3 Cine and Mavic 3 Classic models. This camera offers the astir functionality and the champion representation prime of the three, including an f/2.8-f/11 adjustable aperture and a dynamic scope of up to 12.8 stops.
Video solution is disposable up to 5.1K successful Normal, HLG (hybrid log-gamma precocious dynamic range), and 10-bit D-Log M profiles astatine 200Mbps, portion 3 Apple Pro Res options connection a importantly higher bitrate for nonrecreational workflows. 5.1K tin beryllium changeable astatine up to 50fps, DCI 4K (4096 x 2160 17:9 cinematic 4K) up to 120fps, 4K up to 120fps and FHD up to 200fps. Plus, photos tin beryllium captured successful 12-bit earthy and JPEG.
The 2 telephoto cameras supply a 70mm equivalent with the aforesaid 48MP 1/1.3-inch sensor arsenic the Mavic Mini 3 Pro and a 166mm camera with a 12MP 1/2-inch sensor. Both volition sprout photos successful earthy and JPEG alongside a scope of video options with manual power implicit both. This makes them incredibly utile successful a scope of situations, though the main 4/3 is apt to beryllium the go-to enactment astir of the time.
Moving beyond the cameras, which are undoubtedly the jewels successful the Mavic 3 Pro’s crown, the drone offers fantabulous formation and information features, including APAS 5.0 collision avoidance, ActiveTrack 5.0 for taxable tracking, GEO 2.0 geofencing, Advanced Return to Home and Quickshots automated formation patterns. It’s not cheap, though, and launches astatine a akin terms arsenic the archetypal Mavic 3 / Mavic 3 Cine, which it supersedes to go the flagship exemplary successful the Mavic 3 lineup.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro: merchandise day and price
- Available successful May 2023
- Two models available
- Two controller options
After months of speculation and net rumors, the DJI Mavic 3 Pro was yet announced successful April 2023 with availability successful May 2023. And conscionable similar the DJI Mavic 3, determination are 2 options available: the ‘standard’ exemplary with 8GB of onboard retention and a Cine mentation with a 1TB SSD. There are besides 2 astute controller options disposable with the modular model; the DJI RC, which is the aforesaid controller that’s disposable with the Mavic Mini 3/3 Pro, and the higher-spec DJI RC Pro, which has ever been an enactment with Mavic 3 bid drones.
In presumption of pricing, the Mavic 3 Pro is the aforesaid motorboat terms arsenic the Mavic 3, which is present unavailable connected the DJI website. Kit options see the Mavic 3 Pro with the DJI RC for $2,199 / £1,879 / AU$3,099, the DJI RC Fly More Bundle for $2,999 / £2,549 / AU$4,199, the DJI RC Pro Fly More Bundle for $3,889 / 3,169 GBP/ AU$5,329, and the Cine Premium Combo for $4,799 / £4,109 / AU$6,939. The Fly More bundles marque consciousness for astir radical due to the fact that they travel with 2 further batteries, a transportation bag, a charging hub, ND filters, and different utile accessories.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro: Design and controller
- Similar plan and physique arsenic different models
- Three cameras
- European C2 rating
The archetypal happening that strikes you astir the Mavic 3 Pro is the size of the camera and gimbal, which is people larger than those recovered connected the Mavic 3 and Mavic 3 Classic models due to the fact that it houses 3 cameras. In presumption of design, there’s nary mistaking its Mavic lineage acknowledgment to fantabulous physique prime and a folding plan that takes the drone from 9.10 x 3.85 x 3.75 inches / 231.1 x 98 x 95.4mm erstwhile folded to 13.68 x 11.44 x 4.24 / 347.5 x 290.8 x 107.7mm unfolded (excluding propellers).
This makes the airframe marginally larger than different Mavic 3 models but the value of the drone is the astir important difference, contempt it being little than 2.4 oz / 70 g heavier than erstwhile models astatine 33.79oz / 958g for the 3 Pro and 33.96oz / 963g for the 3 Pro Cine. This isn’t a immense leap, by immoderate stretch, but it’s capable to spot the Pro models into the European C2 classification. This means that pilots volition person to usage the drone 50m oregon much distant from uninvolved radical and astatine slightest 150m distant from built-up areas successful Europe.
In the UK, A2CofC certificate holders tin alert successful the A2 subcategory of the Open Category, which reduces the formation distances above. But this is, of course, not applicable to users successful different parts of the world, truthful it’s worthy checking section drone laws and regulations regarding usage of a drone of this value successful lawsuit of restrictions.
The Mavic 3 Pro uses the aforesaid 5000mAh batteries arsenic erstwhile models. Presumably arsenic a effect of the further weight, advertised formation times person been reduced from 46 to 43 minutes. In testing, formation times weren’t noticeably antithetic and inactive beryllium astir the 30-minute people of the different Mavic 3 models, truthful this is beauteous overmuch negligible.
When it comes to controllers, but for the Mavic 3 Pro Cine Premium Bundle, which is lone disposable with the DJI RC Pro, you tin take betwixt the DJI RC and DJI RC Pro. Both are astute controllers featuring 5.5-inch touchscreens – the RC Pro is somewhat larger, 43% heavier and offers up to 4 hours of artillery beingness compared to 3 and a brighter screen. Both are fantabulous overall. The Pro exemplary offers galore much features, including a stronger signal, but it’s overmuch much expensive.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro: Features and flight
- Omnidirectional collision avoidance
- ActiveTrack 5.0 taxable tracking
- Advanced Return to Home
The Mavic 3 Pro flies highly well, and it’s intolerable to differentiate betwixt its show and that of different Mavic 3 models. There are 3 formation modes available: Sport mode provides a apical velocity of 47 mph with collision avoidance switched off; Normal mode is slower with collision avoidance connected and is the astir commonly utilized mode; portion Cine mode provides the slowest formation velocity with reduced power sensitivity and is mostly utilized for capturing creaseless cinematic video footage. Wind velocity absorption is conscionable nether 27mph, which opens up galore much possibilities than sub-250g models with little upwind resistance.
With the Pro moniker, you whitethorn beryllium wondering if the Mavic 3 Pro is suitable for beginners, and the elemental reply is absolutely; it’s incredibly casual to alert and offers fantabulous information features that we’ll screen successful a moment. You whitethorn beryllium amended suited to a much regulator-friendly sub-250g DJI Mavic Mini 3 due to the fact that the Mavic 3 Pro is costly and offers features aimed astatine nonrecreational photographers and videographers. If you’re a beginner with the currency to spend, though, it’s a large drone you’d nary uncertainty enjoy.
GPS positioning is provided by transportation to GPS, GLONASS, and BeiDou satellites and offers precise hovering. Omnidirectional Obstacle Sensing uses the Advanced Pilot Assistance System (APAS) 5.0 for collision avoidance, which collects information from six fisheye sensors and 2 wide-angle sensors to consciousness obstacles successful each directions. When collision avoidance is turned on, the drone tin beryllium acceptable to Brake oregon Bypass obstacles erstwhile they’re detected; the Bypass mounting besides offers a Nifty enactment designed to supply smoother formation erstwhile obstacles are detected successful much analyzable environments. This allows you to alert successful trickier environments, but it inactive comes with a greater hazard of a collision, though during investigating this mode proved highly effective.
Additional information features see Advanced Return to Home, which scans up to 200m to cipher the safest way backmost and AirSense ADS-B receivers, which supply notification of adjacent planes and helicopters for further safety. The Mavic 3 Pro uses the DJI 03+ transmission strategy that tin transmit a 1080p/60fps unrecorded camera provender astatine a region of up to 9.3 miles / 15km successful the US and up to 5 miles / 8km successful different regions.
Flight features see Cruise Control, Quickshots automated formation patterns for video, Mastershots, and Focus Track, which includes ActiveTrack 5.0. This is the taxable tracking strategy that uses omnidirectional obstacle sensors to amended taxable tracking. One constituent to enactment present is that ActiveTrack isn’t disposable erstwhile shooting supra 4K oregon framework rates higher than 60fps.
The Mavic 3 Pro, alongside the Mavic 3 Classic and Mavic 3, is besides compatible with the DJI Goggles Integra, DJI Goggles 2, and the DJI RC Motion 2, truthful it tin besides beryllium flown successful an FPV benignant for a much immersive formation acquisition and video footage. This is utile for those who can’t warrant purchasing the DJI Avata but, inevitably, adds further outgo to the Mavic 3 Pro kits if you determine these accessories would beryllium beneficial.
DJI Mavic 3 Pro: Image and video quality
- Hasselblad 20MP 4/3 main camera
- Fully functional telephoto cameras
- Up to 5.1K video with the main camera
I person to confess that erstwhile I archetypal heard that the Mavic 3 Pro was apt to see 3 cameras, I was skeptical astir however effectual and utile the 2 telephoto cameras would be. This was simply down to the information that the Mavic 3 telephoto camera was highly constricted astatine launch, to the constituent of being beauteous overmuch pointless. Then with the Mavic 3 Classic, which had a fewer reductions successful video specs, including the removal of the Apple ProRes format for video, it felt similar DJI mightiness beryllium giving up connected the multi-camera approach.
The Mavic 3 Pro has, I’m blessed to say, quelled my archetypal reservations astir however utile the further cameras would be. Having a 24mm 20MP Four Thirds main camera, a 70mm camera with the aforesaid 48MP 1/1.3-inch sensor arsenic the Mavic Mini 3 Pro and a 166mm camera with a 12MP 1/2-inch sensor is incredibly useful. What’s more, but for aperture power for the telephoto lenses, which person fixed apertures, manual power is disposable with the further cameras alongside shooting video successful ApplePro Res and the Normal colour profile. The mean telephoto tin besides sprout successful HLG/D-Log M, though this is unavailable with the telephoto.
The Image prime of the main 24mm Four Thirds Hasselblad camera remains the champion for some photos and videos. Plus, the adjustable f/2.8-f/11 aperture is incredibly utile for making vulnerability adjustments to video without having to onshore the drone to alteration ND filters. That said, representation prime from each 3 cameras is excellent, and the quality to zoom successful 3x and 7x is utile for situations wherever the drone needs to beryllium further distant from radical and objects for information and ineligible reasons. There’s besides a integer zoom with each camera – the Hasselblad camera offers 1-3x, the mean telephoto 3-7x, and the telephoto 7-28x – but this feels superfluous with the 2 telephoto cameras.
All 3 cameras tin seizure photos successful Raw and JPEG and connection photography modes, including Single Shot, Burst Shooting, AEB and Timed. The mean 70mm camera tin sprout astatine some 12MP and 48MP. For video, the main camera holds the trump paper successful presumption of solution options, formats and framerates, but the 2 telephoto cameras are much than capable, conscionable with a sliding standard of features and wide representation quality. The mean telephoto remains utile successful presumption of what it offers, though. The Hasselblad camera tin seizure video successful 5.1K up to 50fps, DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) 17:9 cinematic 4K up to 120fps, 4K up to 120fps and FHD up to 200fps. The mean telephoto and the telephoto cameras tin seizure 4K and FHD up to 60fps.
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How I tested the DJI Mavic 3 Pro
The DJI Mavic 3 Pro was tested implicit respective days of flying successful a scope of locations, environments and upwind conditions (excluding rain) to trial formation performance, formation features, wide handling and representation prime for some photograph and video capture. All investigating is conducted successful a mode that meets section aviation laws and restrictions to guarantee that each flights are harmless and legal.
Drones are ever tested utilizing manual formation patterns for video that are emblematic of nonrecreational aerial video seizure to seizure visually absorbing footage, arsenic good arsenic automated formation patterns and taxable tracking features erstwhile available. Manual formation provides the accidental to trial aspects specified arsenic the transportation betwixt the drone and controller, latency betwixt the 2 and the accuracy of the controls and formation successful general.
With astir 30 years of photographic acquisition and 15 years moving arsenic a photography journalist, I’ve been covering drones successful presumption of shooting and editing techniques, alongside penning drone reviews for a fig of years. As good arsenic flying astir user and prosumer models, I’ve antecedently held a PfCO (Permission for Commercial Operations) issued by the Civil Aviation Authority successful the UK, and present alert nether an A2 CofC (A2 Certificate of Competency).
First reviewed May 2023
English (US) ·