Adrian Kingsley-Hughes
for Hardware 2.0
| November 8, 2021
| Topic: Hardware
Being able to put a camera in the sky is part of the job for many people these days, from cinematographers to real estate photographers to wedding photographers.
And now, DJI’s new Mavic 3 lets you put not one camera in the sky, but two.
Yes, two.
What follows is a first look at the DJI Mavic 3. (It arrived too late to put it in the air, but there’s plenty to do unboxing and setting up this package.)
The Mavic 3 is the follow-up to DJI’s Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom drones, released in August 2018. A lot has happened since then, and an update to the flagship line has been widely anticipated for some time.
The Mavic 3 comes in two models: the Mavic 3 and the Mavic 3 Cine. The only difference is that the Cine model offers support for the Apple ProRes 422 HQ codec (where you’ll be burning through a gigabyte of storage for every 10 seconds of 5.1K video) and 1TB built-in SSD. The base Mavic 3 is limited to H.264/H.265 codecs with a max bitrate of 200Mbps.
If you find H.264/H.265 video not offering you the flexibility you need, then you need the Cine version. For most people, however, the Cine version will be overkill.
Let’s take a visual tour of the Mavic 3.
DJI Mavic 3: Tech specs
Aircraft specs
Takeoff Weight
Mavic 3: 895 gMavic 3 Cine: 899 g
Dimensions (Folded/Unfolded)
Folded (without propellers) 221×96.3×90.3 mm
(Length×Width×Height)Unfolded (without propellers) 347.5×283×107.7 mm
(Length×Width×Height)
Diagonal Length
380.1 mm
Max Ascent Speed
1 m/s (C mode)6 m/s (N mode)8 m/s (S mode)
Max Descent Speed
1 m/s (C mode)6 m/s (N mode)6 m/s (S mode)
Max Flight Speed (at sea level, no wind)
5 m/s (C mode)15 m/s (N mode)19 m/s (S mode)
Max Service Ceiling Above Sea Level
6000 m
Max Flight Time (no wind)
46 minutes
Max Hovering Time (no wind)
40 minutes
Max Flight Distance
30 km
Max Wind Speed Resistance
12 m/s
Max Tilt Angle
25° (C mode)30° (N mode)35° (S mode)
Max Angular Velocity
200°/s
Operating Temperature
-10° to 40° C (14° to 104° F)
GNSS
GPS + Galileo + BeiDou
Hovering Accuracy Range
Vertical: ±0.1 m (with Vision Positioning); ±0.5 m
(with GNSS Positioning)Horizontal: ±0.3 m (with Vision Positioning); ±0.5 m
(with High-Precision Positioning System)
Internal Storage
Mavic 3: 8 GB (available space is approx. 7.2 GB)Mavic 3 Cine: 1TB (available space is approx. 934.8 GB)
Hasselblad Camera
Sensor
4/3 CMOS, Effective pixels: 20 MP
Lens
FOV: 84°Format Equivalent: 24 mmAperture: f/2.8 to f/11Focus: 1 m to ∞ (with autofocus)
ISO Range
Video: 100-6400Still Image: 100-6400
Shutter Speed
Electronic Shutter: 8-1/8000 s
Max Image Size
Main Unit: 5280×3956
Still Photography Modes
Single shot: 20MP PhotosAutomatic Exposure Bracketing (AEB): 20 MP, 3/5 bracketed frames at 0.7 EVTimed: 20 MP, 2/3/5/7/10/15/20/30/60 s
Video Resolution
Apple ProRes 422 HQ5.1K: 5120×2700@24/25/30/48/50fpsDCI 4K: 4096×2160@24/25/30/48/50/60/120*fps4K: 3840×2160@24/25/30/48/50/60/120*fps
H.264/H.2655.1K: 5120×2700@24/25/30/48/50fpsDCI 4K: 4096×2160@24/25/30/48/50/60/120*fps4K: 3840×2160@24/25/30/48/50/60/120*fpsFHD: 1920×1080p@24/25/30/48/50/60/120*/200*fps
* Framerates above are recording framerates. Videos will be played as slow-motion videos.
Max Video Bitrate
H.264/H.265 Bitrate: 200 Mbps
Supported File Formats
exFAT
Photo Format
JPEG/DNG (RAW)
Video Formats
Mavic 3:
MP4/MOV (MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, HEVC/H.265)
Mavic 3 Cine:
MP4/MOV (MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, HEVC/H.265)
MOV (Apple ProRes 422 HQ)
Tele Camera
Sensor
1/2-inch CMOS
Shutter Speed
Electronic Shutter: 2-1/8000 s
Lens
FOV: 15°Format Equivalent: 162mmAperture: f/4.4Focus: 3 m to ∞
ISO Range
Video: 100-6400Still Image: 100-6400
Max Image Size
4000×3000
Photo Format
JPEG
Video Formats
MP4/MOV (MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, HEVC/H.265)
Still Photography Modes
Single shot: 12MP Photos
Video Resolution
H264/H.2654K: 3840×2160@30 fpsFHD: 1920×1080@30 fps
Digital Zoom
4x
Gimbal
Stabilization
3-axis motorized (tilt, roll, pan)
Mechanical Range
Tilt: -135° to 100°Roll: -45° to 45°Pan: -27° to 27°
Controllable Range
Tilt: -90° to 35°Pan: -5° to 5°
Max Control Speed (tilt)
100°/s
Angular Vibration Range
±0.007°
Sensing
Sensing System
Omnidirectional binocular vision system, supplemented with an infrared sensor at the bottom of the aircraft
Forward
Measurement Range: 0.5-20 mDetection Range: 0.5-200 mEffective Sensing Speed: Flight Speed ≤ 15m/sFOV: Horizontal 90°, Vertical 103°
Backward
Measurement Range: 0.5-16 mEffective Sensing Speed: Flight Speed ≤ 14m/sFOV: Horizontal 90°, Vertical 103°
Lateral
Measurement Range: 0.5-25 mEffective Sensing Speed: Flight Speed ≤ 15m/sFOV: Horizontal 90°, Vertical 85°
Upward
Measurement Range: 0.2-10 mEffective Sensing Speed: Flight Speed ≤ 6m/sFOV: Front and Back 100°, Left and Right 90°
Downward
Measurement Range: 0.3-18 mEffective Sensing Speed: Flight Speed ≤ 6m/sFOV: Front and Back 130°, Left and Right 160°
Operating Environment
Forward, Backward, Left, Right, and Upward: Surface with a clear pattern and adequate lighting (lux>15)Downward: Surface with a clear pattern and adequate lighting (lux >15). Diffuse reflective surface with diffuse reflectivity>20% (e.g. wall, tree, person)
Video Transmission
Video Transmission System
O3+
Live View Quality
Remote Controller: 1080p@30fps/1080p@60fps
Operation Frequency
2.400-2.4835 GHz5.725-5.850 GHz
Max Transmission Distance (unobstructed, free of interference and aligned with controller)
2.400-2.4835 GHz; 5.725-5.850 GHzFCC: 15 kmCE: 12 kmSRRC: 8 kmMIC: 8 km
Max Download Bitrate
SDR:5.5MB/s (with RC-N1 remote controller)15MB/s (with DJI RC Pro remote controller)Wi-Fi 6: 80MB/s
Latency (depending on environmental conditions and mobile device)
130 ms (with RC-N1 remote controller)
120 ms (with DJI RC Pro remote controller)
Antennas
4 antennas, 2T4R
Transmitter Power (EIRP)
2.4 GHz: ≤33 dBm (FCC); ≤20 dBm (CE/SRRC/MIC)5.8 GHz: ≤33 dBm (FCC), ≤30 dBm(SRRC), ≤14 dBm(CE)
Battery
Capacity
5000 mAh
Voltage
15.4 V
Charging Voltage Limit
17.6 V
Battery Type
LiPo 4S
Energy
77 Wh
Weight
335.5 g
Charging Temperature
5° to 40° C (41° to 104° F)
$2,999 at Amazon
$4,999 at Amazon
I will follow up with a review after I get some hours under my belt with this drone.
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