DJI Mavic Mini Leaks With 30-Min Flight Time And Pint-Sized Dimensions
Drone maker DJI is getting ready to release a new Mavic Mini model that is so small in size it can fit in a person's hand, when folded up. It also checks in under the size and weight requirement by the Federal Aviation Administration for having to be registered, and according to an early product listing, it can fly for up to 30 minutes per charge.
This very drone has been the subject of at least one previous leak, so it's not exactly flying into the scene completely out of the blue. However, a listing at Newegg Canada (via a marketplace seller) reveals some details about the Mavic Mini that we did not previously know.
One is the weight—it's listed at 249 grams, whereas the previous leak pegged the weight at 350 grams. That is an important difference, because at 249 grams, it falls just under the weight limit imposed by the FAA for drones that have to be registered.
"Unmanned aircraft weighing less than 55 pounds and more than 0.55 pounds (250 grams) on takeoff, including everything that is on board or otherwise attached to the aircraft and operated outdoors in the national airspace system must register," the FAA states in its Federal Drone Registration FAQ.
The Mavic Mini will not only be DJI's lightest drone when it arrives, but the first to not require registration with the FAA in the US. Previously, the company's lightest drone was the Mavic Air at 430 grams.
DJI's lightweight design is big factor in the claimed 30-minute flight time (a maximum rating). It can also transmit HD video from up to 4 kilometers, according to the product listing, and sports an onboard 3-axis Gimbal 2.7K camera. Some of DJI's other drones (including the Mavic Air) can record at up to 4K, and it seems the company wants to reserve the higher resolution for its costlier products.
The Mavic Mini is listed at $645.20 in Canadian currency, which works out to around $494 in US dollars. We'll have to wait and see if final pricing ends up being as listed. There is no mention of a release date, though a countdown timer on DJI's website suggests an announcement is coming on Wednesday, October 30.
