DJI Mini 4 Pro

Source

JORDAN HETRICK

Key Takeaways

• Equipping the heavily marketed 'Plus' extended battery shoots takeoff weight past 290g, illegally shattering the 249g regulatory exemption trap for unknowing travelers.
• Omnidirectional sensing remains blind to thin bare winter twigs, suspended cables, and mirrored glass facades, triggering catastrophic obstacle collisions during ActiveTrack.
• Ultralight mass struggles against coastal gusts; screaming motors drain battery cells prematurely to fight drift, forcing panic return-to-home landings.
• The built-in display of the bundled DJI RC 2 remote lacks sufficient outdoor nits, washing out under intense midday sunlight.

✅ Pros

• Omnidirectional visual obstacle avoidance brings massive psychological confidence to beginners
• Crisp 4K/60p HDR recording with 10-bit D-Log M color grading flexibility
• Physical vertical camera rotation provides lossless 9:16 short-form video

❌ Cons

• Flight with Plus batteries illegally breaches sub-249g global regulations
• Sensors remain completely blind to thin overhead wires and leafless branches
• Weak wind envelope burns battery rapidly battling coastal gusts
• DJI RC 2 screen washes out completely under scorching direct sun

📝 Verdict

"Superb imaging hobbled by the overweight 249g Plus battery regulatory trap, lethal twig blindspots, and coastal wind instability."

Source

• Video: DJI Mini 4 Pro - One Year Long Term Review
• Channel: Air Photography | Type: Long-term review | Based on: YouTube transcript

Key points

• Sean shot the entire video with the Mini 4 Pro, recording audio with the DJI Mic 2 with noise cancellation on to remove propeller noise
• In Canada, rules for mini drones are more relaxed, so he flies the Mini 4 Pro more than the Air 3; it works for vlog B-roll or slider-like tracking shots
• 10-bit D-Log M, and DJI's first mini drone with omnidirectional obstacle avoidance, which is important for flying backward and intelligent flight modes; you can view the surroundings through the obstacle avoidance cameras (black and white, low resolution)
• Both the drone and batteries are very light, making it great for backpacking and day trips; supports DJI Goggles 3 and the Motion 3 controller
• Vertical shooting doesn't require cropping and keeps the resolution, which helps for short-form video

✅ Pros

• No compromise in image quality or features
• Light and portable
• Omnidirectional obstacle avoidance
• Supports FPV goggles

❌ Cons

• Obstacle avoidance camera view is only black and white and low resolution

📝 Verdict

After a year of flying, it's been his main drone; he recommends it whenever friends and family buy their first drone, and for most people it's the only drone they need.

Source

• Video: DJI Mini 4 Pro: The Flying Camera Review
• Channel: Philip Bloom | Type: Professional review | Based on: YouTube transcript

Key points

• He loves the Mini 3 Pro; the Mini 4 Pro is a better drone, but the improvements are incremental: still 4K, a single camera and a 1/1.3-inch sensor, with most improvements coming from software and computation
• Only three obvious exterior differences: pads added to the front legs, fisheye sensors that provide 360-degree omnidirectional obstacle avoidance, and a new landing auxiliary light; file names now use dates, which makes organizing easier
• D-Log M only goes up to ISO 1,600 (the Mini 3 Pro reached 3,200), so low light is worse than its predecessor; normal mode goes to 6,400 but the image is very rough; he suggests setting noise reduction and sharpening to -2 and processing in post
• DJI drones can't measure height above ground, which matters with the EU's 120-meter altitude limit in hilly or mountainous areas; using the Mini 3 Pro's Plus battery pushes it over 249 grams and out of the C0 class
• ActiveTrack is greatly improved, and OcuSync 4, waypoints and cruise control are all upgrades; he still wishes it had proper timecode

✅ Pros

• Greatly improved ActiveTrack
• Omnidirectional obstacle avoidance
• 4K 100p and D-Log M
• Landing auxiliary light

❌ Cons

• Low light worse than its predecessor
• Limited upgrade
• Altitude limit issues

📝 Verdict

If you want the best sub-250-gram drone, this is definitely the top choice; but for those who already have a Mini 3 Pro and mostly fly manually, the reasons to upgrade are less compelling.

Source

• Video: DJI Mini 4 Pro review: The best lightweight drone gets even more powerful
• Channel: Engadget | Type: Professional review | Based on: YouTube transcript

Key points

• The camera is largely the same as the Mini 3 Pro's, but obstacle avoidance is greatly improved, eliminating the side blind spots; ActiveTrack 360 is new, letting you make camera moves while following a subject
• Still under 250 grams, so in many regions no license or registration is needed; the gimbal can tilt up 60 degrees and down 90 degrees, and the camera can rotate to shoot full-resolution vertical video; 2GB of built-in storage
• It uses the new O4 video transmission, which only works with the new controllers; top speed in Sport mode is 35mph, and it can withstand 24mph winds; official flight time is 34 minutes, but in practice the return-to-home warning appears after about 25 minutes
• The optional 18mm wide-angle lens has noticeable barrel distortion and can cause focusing issues; low-light performance is OK but not outstanding, better than the GoPro 12 and worse than the Mavic 3 Pro
• 48MP photos are sharp, and RAW DNG files make exposure easy to correct; prices are US$760 (RC-N2), US$960 (RC 2) and US$1,100 for the Fly More Combo

✅ Pros

• Omnidirectional obstacle avoidance
• ActiveTrack 360
• Registration-free weight
• Best-in-class image quality

❌ Cons

• Real-world flight time shorter than official
• Wide-angle lens distortion
• Average low-light performance

📝 Verdict

The Mini 4 Pro once again sets a high bar for small drones; if your budget is at this price, he'd recommend it without hesitation.