Compared with the Mavic 4 Pro launched in late April this year, which has a triple-lens design, the recently updatedLightweight drone Air 3Although the camera has only been upgraded to a dual-lens model and has not even adopted Hasselblad lens technology, the overall performance has been significantly upgraded. It is even claimed that a single battery can provide a flight time of up to 46 minutes.
compareMini 3 Pro launched last yearThe flight time is greatly improved. With a high-capacity battery, the flight time can be extended to 47 minutes. It also adds three-way environmental sensing, as well as 4K HDR video recording, focus tracking, lossless straight-line shooting and other functions. This makes it DJI's top-of-the-line drone design that weighs less than 249 grams and can be used without real-name registration.
The newly launched Air 3 follows the high-end Mavic 3 Pro's addition of a triple-lens design and Hasselblad lens technology, and also features enhanced night photography capabilities. It includes a second telephoto lens, a battery that offers up to 46 minutes of battery life, and an omnidirectional obstacle avoidance system, allowing users to shoot with greater peace of mind, thereby repositioning the product between high-end and entry-level models.
While mainstream models positioned below the Mavic 3 Pro haven't adopted Hasselblad lens technology, the Air 3 adds a 70mm focal length, f/2.8 aperture, and 4800-megapixel telephoto lens, allowing for more diverse and flexible framing options.
The video shooting specifications support dual 4K 40fps HDR and 4K 100fps, and also support 10-bit D-Log M or 10-bit HLG format, thereby retaining more highlights and shadows during the video shooting process, or recording high dynamic range image content.
The Air 3 also supports shooting in portrait mode, but unlike the Mavic 3 Pro or Mini 3 Pro, which can rotate the lens 90 degrees, it directly records the center crop of the image content in 9:16 format on the sensor, rather than cropping the recorded 16:9 image. This allows it to record 2.7K resolution images with a wider vertical range.
As for the enhanced night shooting performance, there are indeed significant improvements in dark noise, but if you zoom in further, you may notice that the image details are still overly smoothed. However, for general use needs, it is already quite sufficient.
Still images:
Panoramic images can be captured by drone:
Comparison of shooting with a wide-angle lens (left) and a telephoto lens (right):
The extended flight time allows users to confidently perform flight photography tasks exceeding 30 minutes. It can even be used with the newly released charging hub accessory to concentrate the remaining power of up to three batteries into one, allowing the Air 3 to fly again after using multiple batteries.
On the other hand, the charging hub accessory also makes it easier to charge multiple batteries simultaneously, which is a very convenient design for users who need to perform frequent flight photography.
Another key update of Air 3 is the addition of all-round environmental perception and obstacle avoidance capabilities, and the APAS 5.0 mechanism is used to automatically avoid obstacles and bypass them.
In an old residential area with relatively narrow roads and numerous obstructing branches, I used the follow-and-shoot feature to capture footage of my cyclist. The Air 3 was able to automatically steer and adjust its height to avoid obstacles, allowing users to operate the drone with greater confidence and enabling even first-time drone users to quickly get started.
In terms of operational responsiveness, the Air 3 offers three modes: Cine, Normal, and Sport. It also increases vertical ascent and descent, as well as oblique climb and dive speeds, allowing users to operate the Air 3 with greater flexibility and speed.
In terms of shooting functions, in addition to manually adjusting the Air 3's shooting angle or pointing the lens directly downward to capture a "God's perspective" image, you can also use the Master Lens function to automatically shoot multiple short videos based on the environment, and through intelligent editing and automatic music functions, you can output high-quality video content.
Other functions also include time-lapse photography, slow motion, night scene mode, Smart Photo 3.0, and support for mobile phone quick transfer function, or planning flight routes and shooting actions through the waypoint flight function, thereby using "tail drift", "lollipop", or difficult camera movements completed with a telephoto lens.
Even with the LightCut App, when directly connected to Air 3 wirelessly, it can automatically identify video clips, quickly edit them, and then generate video content with one click, allowing users to create videos faster.
Another update this time is the adoption of the new O4 high-definition image transmission system, allowing the Air 3 to correspond to image transmission distances of up to 20 kilometers and can instantly transmit up to 1080P 60fps image content. It is expected that it will also be applied to DJI's subsequent drone products.
summary
The version I tried this time was a free-flying set that included two batteries, a charging hub, a shoulder bag, and other accessories. Basically, you just need to take the shoulder bag containing the drone, controller, and all the accessories out of the box and you can go out and experience it (but it is still recommended to charge the batteries at home first and complete the installation of the drone's rotors in advance).
Although the Air 3 has found its proper position between the Mavic Pro and Mini series, and is indeed a significant upgrade over previous models, there are still some minor shortcomings that must be pointed out.
For example, the hood accessory that protects the obstacle avoidance system's lens during storage and also secures the camera lens is flimsy compared to the Mavic 3 Pro's. It even requires careful adjustment of the angle and a bit of pressure to snap it on. It also can't simultaneously hold the rotors like the Mavic 3 Pro's hood accessory does, causing the rotors to occasionally get stuck when the drone is folded up and stored in a single bag, which is quite inconvenient.
Furthermore, while the upgraded obstacle avoidance system is nearly on par with the Mavic 3 Pro, even successfully identifying nearby tree branches and utility poles, which were previously difficult for the obstacle avoidance system to identify, it is still recommended to actively avoid these obstacles unless necessary, or to minimize the drone's operating speed and movement changes when flying in environments with such obstacles.
Compared to the Mavic 3 Pro, the DJI Air 3 is indeed a significant upgrade. Although there are still some functional differences, it can almost meet the daily shooting needs of ordinary people. It can also serve as a convenient tool for imaging workers who need to enhance the visual effect of the picture from different aerial perspectives.
Even if you're unsure how to frame your shot, the system offers automated features like the Master Lens to assist with shooting, and can also be used with an additional telephoto lens to capture even more detail from the air. Furthermore, the operation function incorporates an all-around obstacle avoidance system to ensure that drone operation is less prone to problems, allowing users to compose their shots with greater confidence.
DJI has officially launched the Air 3. The set including the standard DJI RC-N2 remote controller is sold for NT$31690, while the free-flying set that adds two batteries, a charging hub, a shoulder bag and other accessories to the standard version is sold for NT$2. In addition, a free-flying set including the DJI RC-38490 screen remote controller is also available, with a suggested retail price of NT$2.
