A DJI Mini 3 Pro with more battery and obstacle avoidance may be on the way

The hype for DJI’s next lightweight drone has certainly been brewing. After DJI updated its Mavic lineup with the Mavic 3 in November and recently released its Matrice 30 enterprise drone, they’ve been particularly quiet about the Mini 3. But now we have a revealing look through photo and video leaks that looks credible.

A short video was posted on Twitter by @DealsDrone showing off the front and the bottom view of the Mini 3 Pro model. In the video, you can immediately spot two large sensors in the front, alongside the two on the bottom, which means the Mini 3 Pro should have obstacle avoidance features. This would be a major upgrade from the Mini 2, which only had ground detection sensors on the bottom.

Sneak peeks — The leaked photos of the supposed Mini 3 Pro showed a power button and battery LED indicator on the top of the drone and a 2,453mAh battery. The larger battery could mean a longer max flight time since the Mini 2 and its 2,250mAh battery had a 31-minute max flight time.

One of the more interesting departures from the Mini 2’s design is the reworked gimbal. The camera looks like it’s still mounted on a three-axis gimbal, but one that’s only connected to the left side of the camera housing. This could be how DJI figured out how to turn its camera vertically for portrait orientation, making it more suitable for social media posts. A previous tweet from @DealsDrone also hinted that the drone would support vertical mode.

Staying true to the mini moniker, the Mini 3 Pro still weighs below 250g as seen with some labeling that says “Ultra Light” and “249g.” The upgraded camera is expected to be the E24 system that can open up to f/1.7. The previously rumored specs included that the Mini 3 would support ActiveTrack, where the drone dynamically follows a subject around, and that there would be a new remote controller with a built-in screen.

To be announced — According to other leakers, DJI may be announcing the Mini 3 series in a few weeks. There’s been no information about pricing, but the Pro label seen in the leaks could mean a higher price tag.

For comparison, the Mini 2 retailed for $449. But the Mini 3 Pro could be priced closer to its competition, the recently released sub-250g Autel Nano+ that retails for $949. And since these leaks are focused on the Mini 3 Pro model, we still don’t have much information about a potential Mini 3 base model.