DJI Mini 2: The Best Affordable Mini Drone
Up your photography game with a DJI Mini 2
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Updated 10 June 2023
This is how you take your scenic adventure content to the next level. DJI released the Mini 2 in 2020 and three years later it’s still the best affordable small drone available for the money shots and all round experience. It’s easy to fly, has a long flight time, and takes stunning footage. If you want to buy a drone that’s perfect for your outdoor adventures, without breaking the bank — this is it!
We’ve used our Mini 2 aboard to capture our sailing and hiking adventures for the past two years and we absolutely love it! It’s been super easy to learn to fly and it has so many cool features that make you look like a pro. If you’ve never flown a drone before it won’t take long to get confident and take incredible shots.
And it can’t be overstated just how fun flying this drone is.
This easy guide on this clever mini drone will give you the important details, and personal insight into the features we enjoy most that I guarantee you’ll love too. And you’ll see why it’s quickly become a firm favourite of experienced drone pilots, photographers and videographers worldwide.
In a snapshot
The DJ Mini 2 has a long list of impressive features, including:
A powerful 1/2.3-inch CMOS camera that can shoot in 4K resolution at 30 frames per second
A 3-axis gimbal that helps to keep your footage steady, even in windy conditions
A long flight time of up to 31 minutes
A compact, foldable design that makes it easy to transport
Advanced features like QuickShot, and three speed modes
Read About the Best Features:
Compact Size
First of all, let’s talk size. The DJI Mini 2 is incredibly small and lightweight, weighing in at just 249 grams (that’s a key number because it doesn’t require Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) registration in the US). It fits in the palm of your hand, is almost as light as smartphone, and you can easily carry it in your backpack or pocket. This makes it the perfect drone for boating and outdoor adventures. Its small size also means that it’s easy to maneuver and fly. But just because it’s compact, don’t underestimate its power!
The DJI Mini 2 is small enough to justify taking a little extra weight on your hiking trips
Excellent Camera
Despite its compact size, the DJI Mini 2 is packed with a 12-megapixel camera that can shoot 4K video at 30 frames per second, as well as slow-motion video at 120 frames per second. The camera is mounted on a three-axis gimbal, which ensures that footage remains stable and smooth, even when flying in windy conditions (up to 22mph or 19knots).
It’s easy to switch between filming video and photos — and even the auto-settings capture terrific images. We use the auto white balance setting when photographing our yacht so that the white highlights aren’t blown out. We also love that we get both RAW and JPEG images from our shoots, for greater options during post-processing and for enlargements. Having said that, we don’t need to do a lot of editing because the high quality camera, and stability of the drone in flight, gives consistently great photos.
Videographers making technical colour edits may wish it had colour profiles and better than 2x zoom capabilities but even within the professional realm, it’s acknowledged the Mini 2 captures impressive footage.
It’s nerve wracking the first time you fly your drone but putting it up in the air is addictive
Easy to Fly
The DJI Mini 2 is also incredibly easy to fly, thanks to its intuitive controls and intelligent features. It has a range of sensors to help it maintain a stable hover, even in windy conditions. It also has a range of intelligent shooting modes, such as QuickShots, which allow you to capture cinematic footage with just a few taps.
Your smartphone connects to the top of the remote controller and acts as the screen showing you real-time footage from the drone's camera. The remote controller is easy to use with two small joystick controls and buttons.
One of the things I love most is that it calculates the amount of battery fly time you have based on how far away the drone is and how long it will take to get home. If the battery gets too low, it has a failsafe automatic Return to Home (RTH) feature to bring the drone safely back to the GPS spot you’ve set as ‘home’. If you’re flying it fast and high it will let you know when it’s time to fly home, and automatically initiate Return to Home (RTH) if you don’t take action. This is pretty helpful when you’ve got it out over the ocean taking shots of your boat, and you don’t want to lose your drone!
It’s also easy to land or catch when you’re bringing it back to ground — something that’s important if you’re worried about getting your fingers too close to the blades.
Note: The Mini 2 doesn’t have obstacle avoidance sensors or front and rear sensors (the DJI Mini 3 Pro does). In our experience this hasn’t been an issue — we always keep the drone in sight and because it’s easy to control, have found it safe to fly amongst tall obstacles (masts in a marina, and trees outside). Navigating through the sky and feeling like a real pilot is ridiculously fun!
It’s Quiet
As far as drones go, the Mini 2 is one of the quietest available. This makes a huge difference when you’re flying it in public places and there’s other people around. No one wants to be that annoying person buzzing their drone — rather the Mini 2 offers a low level noise experience. You’ll especially appreciate this aspect when you’re in a quiet anchorage, or there’s wildlife around that you don’t want to disturb.
Fun Flight Modes
Quickshot
The DJI Mini 2 has a number of fun QuickShot flight patterns such as Dronie, Helix, Rocket, Circle and Boomerang. You can set these to fly automatically and capture a scene that looks totally Hollywood pro! Some zoom out and back in, others spiral upwards and away. One of our favourites is setting ‘Circle’ around our yacht. Try this in an anchorage and have the DJI Mini 2 fly around your boat — capturing the 360° view!
3 Speeds
Play around with the three flight modes in your filming — with Cine, which slows the drone down to 13 mph for cinematic-type footage, Normal (22 mph), and Sport which lets you fly up to 36 mph.
Long Battery Life
One of the best things about the DJI Mini 2 is its long battery life. It can fly for up to 31 minutes on a single charge, which is longer than many other mini drones on the market. This means that you can capture more footage and enjoy flying without worrying about running out of battery.
Recommended: DJI Mini 2 Fly More Combo
The DJI Mini 2 has an optional charging hub and spare batteries for purchase in a Fly More Combo that allows you to charge three batteries consecutively. It’s well worth buying this for extra flight time, and non-stop availability of your drone as you’ve got a full battery ready to go at all times. The charging hub actually charges other devices too (via USB C) and it plugs into 12 volt power which is super handy onboard!
DJI Mini 2 Fly More Combo
Great Flight Distance
Another great feature of the DJI Mini 2 is its range. It can fly up to 6.2 miles (10 km) away from the controller, and has a maximum altitude of 4,000 meters. This means that it can capture stunning aerial footage from a wide range of perspectives, and is perfect for capturing landscapes, anchorages, and other sailing and outdoor scenes. This is a powerful little drone — it’s got a strong reliable engine and comes with a sport mode for high performance speed, and agility.
We trust our DJI Mini 2 to keep its connection and return safely onboard
Super Reliable
An important feature of the DJI Mini 2 is its reliable connection. Unlike the original Mavric Mini, the Mini 2 uses OcuSync 2.0 which operates on radio frequencies and transmits 1080p or 720p video previews over a super-long range (just over 6 miles unobstructed). While it’s still nervewracking at first seeing your drone disappear into the distance, you don’t need to worry about your drone losing connection, and not coming home!
Affordable Price
With the Fly More package priced at $599, the DJI Mini 2 is half the price of the DJI Mini 3. Given extensive range of features it offers, and high-quality results you can trust — this is still the best, most affordable drone on the market.
FAQs
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DJI Mini 2's Maximum Service Ceiling Above Sea Level is at 13,100ft / 4000m.
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The calmer the day, the easier it will be to fly your drone and get smooth, crisp shots. We try and stick to flying in 10knots and less, but DJI have well tested the Mini 2 and it flies in up to up to 22mph or 19knots.
Important Notes
No Fly Zones
DJI UAVs cannot takeoff in Restricted Zones. The DJI mini has Geofencing Technology that uses the GPS signal to detect where you are and prevents your drone from taking off if it detects that you are in a no-fly zone, which is roughly 9 km radius of the closest airport. You can if you’re in a no-fly zone by visiting the official DJI Fly Zone Map page, selecting your area, and the drone you want to buy and you will see all the restricted and recommend flying zone
Check your Country’s Aviation Policy
Aviation policies vary from country to country. To ensure you know what’s legally required to fly a drone in your area check what rules and regulations you may need to follow before purchasing your drone.
Stay updated
Stay updated with your local aviation rules, and keep your DJI Fly app updated. Plan ahead and do the DJI updates while you’re connected to Wi-Fi at home, rather than being caught short standing on a hillside trying to do it (I suggest this by experience lol).
In Summary
There’s a lot to love about the Mini 2. And it’s the best mini drone to take your photography game to the next level and capture some epic memories!
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