DJI Mavic 4 Pro review

As the latest in the DJI Mavic line, the DJI Mavic 4 Pro has quite a bit to offer, more than what’s already on offer from the DJI Mavic 3 Pro and I was lucky enough to get an early sample and was able to get in loads of flight time in order to write this DJI Mavic 4 Pro review. While I don’t have a Mavic 3 Pro, I do have a Mavic 3, which happens to be my go-to drone with many hours of happy flight and reliability, ease of use and image and video quality that I have yet to see any other drone rival. That is until now, with the DJI Mavic 4 Pro essentially coming in and wiping the floor with one of my favourite image capture devices in almost every way.

From the design, to the stability, to overall image quality and features, every aspect of the drone just seems to boost the already impressive features of the DJI Mavic 3 and therefore the Mavic 3 Pro.

The main difference between the Mavic 3 and Mavic 3 Pro is that the Pro features a triple camera, but in almost every other way, including size, shape, and overall design, they are the same. The DJI Mavic 4 Pro is something different in design. From the front-mounted 360º gimbal camera through to the extended arms and enhanced sensor system, you can instantly see that two years of additional development have gone into this new drone.

As with the 3 Pro, the 4 Pro is aimed at professional rather than enthusiast pilots and comes with a string of features that have been specially designed to appeal to that market. While the Air and Mini are ideal for enthusiasts and offer camera technology that is hard to beat, the Mavic takes that image quality up another notch by offering a huge 4/3 sensor and a choice of three built-in lenses to capture the scenes before you.
DJI has also ensured that the new Mavic is an out-of-the-box filming solution for film crews on the move, unlike the traditional choice of the Inspire, which offers a camera with a similar-sized sensor. While it might not have the flexibility of lens choice, the three lens options, including the ultra-high-quality Hasselblad sensor, should ensure that the visual capture quality will blend in perfectly with any professional-level camera.

When it comes to users, think of the Air for keen enthusiasts, the Mini for anyone getting started, and then the Mavic for entry into the mid-level professional market, including TV and commercial video.

Pulling the Mavic 4 Pro from the bag, it’s instantly apparent that this is a very different drone. While the Mavic 3 Pro felt solid, the Mavic 4 Pro takes this up another notch, although the use of materials and colour seems to remain much the same.

As the drone has quite a few enhanced features nd the hardware has grown in complexity, the physical size of the body of the drone is noticeably larger, with more sensors placed all around the outer surface.
Folded and compared side by side against the Mavic 3 Pro, you can see that body size increases, and while visually it looks larger, in reality that size increase is in fact only marginal.

As with the 3 Pro, the 4 Pro comes with a harness and folded measures in at 257.6×124.8×106.6 mm. The unfolded span is 328.7×390.5×135.2 mm, ignoring the span of the propellers. When it comes to weight, it comes in at 1063 g, and in my review sample, that weight was pretty much spot on with a Microsd card loaded.

Camera and Gimbal System

One of the most notable features of the Mavic 4 Pro is the triple camera setup, which is mounted within a single integrated strengthened gimbal block. This block is far more robust than the old suspended gimbal style that I’ve seen on all previous generations of DJI drones, and from the outset has been an instant stand-out feature.

The main camera here is the 100mp 4/3 CMOS Hasselblad main camera, which is joined by a 48mp, 1/1.3″ sensor (70mm equivalent) and Telephoto: 50mp, 1/1.5″ sensor (168mm equivalent).

This camera array is mounted onto DJI’s Infinity Gimbal, which is a completely new design and offers a 360° continuous yaw rotation and 70° upward tilt, which again wasn’t possible with the restrictions of the previous design seen on DJI drones.

While the body of the DJI Mavi 3 Pro always seemed good and solid, DJI has noted that the new drone is even tougher, especially with the integration of the gimbal. Having broken several of the gimbals over the years and also been hit by the repair prices, anything that helps to future protect the gimbal can only be good, and this new redesign seems to be a pretty major move in reinforcing this weak point.

Arms and Deployment

One interesting change in the design that I noted as I folded out the arms was that the folding arm mechanism has been reversed from Mavic 3 Pro: As in the front arms, now rotate outward, and the Rear arms fold downward. This seems to have been done to enable a slightly more compact design, considering the extension of the length of the arms.

Sensors

Localisation and object detection sensors have become a major feature of these drones, and here there is a selection of Omnidirectional obstacle sensors with enhanced low-light capability. These included three fisheye visual sensors on the top and three on the underside, a Forward-facing Lidar, and then a Three-dimensional infrared sensing system which can operate in conditions as dim as 0.1 lux, enabling use in near-total darkness. While I was tempted to give this a go in the garden, I decided against it.

Build Details and Features

A few of the other more hidden features include the landing gear with compact legs that feature built-in antennas. At the back above the battery bay, there’s an integrated USB-C port and microsd slot.

The Battery system also takes a step forward with a huge 95Wh Intelligent Flight Battery that is capable of supplying power to the drone for up to a quoted 51 minutes, although this is less in my test. There’s also auto power-on/off via folding/unfolding the right rear arm, which again is a nice addition feature and one that just feels like it should be there and natural for a modern device.

Handling Innovations

One of the other noticeable differences over the previous generation is the wider span of the prop arms, which, in flight, seems to add an extra element of stability to the flight.

An all-new controlled

As with the huge design innovations that I’ve started to witness with the Mavic 4 Pro, the new RC 2 controller also seems to innovate and features a completely new design with an articulated built-in screen.

This screen offers a massive 7-inch rotatable Mini-LED display with decent brightness, which all makes it easy enough to see in bright conditions. Another nice feature is that the screen is able to rotate so that you can see it in portrait or vertical orientation, which also relates to your preference when filming.

Another key feature is that it has a collapsible design that sees the screen fold over the controller sticks. This means that, unlike previous designs, there’s no need to unscrew the stick when packing away the controller; This is a huge benefit and, for me, one of the best design innovations yet.

The layout of the control has also been enhanced and is far more intuitive for adjustment with dials that can be used for gimbal tilt. At the same time, the other can be utilised for zoom or configurable settings like ISO, EV, and shutter speed. There are, as ever, Dedicated buttons for Photo shutter/focus, Video record, Flight mode switch (Cine, Normal, Sport) and RTH/pause.

Transmission and Connectivity

One of the features that has really helped push DJI drones as the choice for creatives is the DJI video transmission system, which sees an upgrade to the DJI O4+ system. This enables transmission of up to 30 km in places where flight restrictions are not in place., Here in the UK, you always need a line of sight, so if the drone has this feature, it won’t be possible to use it.

Another interesting feature is the addition of an Integrated HDMI port that enables external display output, which could be fitted to a transmission system and then used in a live recording setup, essentially bringing an incredibly expensive feature within reach of anyone.
While there is 128GB storage built in, there’s also the option to install a Microsd card to expand on that internal storage.

Expanding a little on the features briefly mentioned in the build and handling section, some of the major points of interest has to be the Triple-Camera System, this array includes the headline 100MP Hasselblad main camera (4/3 CMOS), 48MP medium tele camera (1/1.3″) – 70mm equivalent and 50MP telephoto camera (1/1.5″) – 168mm equivalent.

This selection of three cameras is mounted on the innovative and completely new Infinity Gimbal that enables those cameras to spin through a 360° continuous yaw rotation with a 70° upward tilt – essentiallyt the design of this is far more robust withthis intergrated design compared with the suspended gimbal style that I’ve seen in the past.

Those cameras are able to capture the highest resolution images. Still, they will also capture high-quality video with 6K/60fps HDR video (main camera), 4K/120fps slow motion (main and medium tele) and the option to capture that footage in 10-bit D-Log M, D-Log, and HLG colour profiles with up to 16 stops of dynamic range.

Away from the cameras, imagine that flight performance has also been enhanced by up to 51 minutes maximum flight time. However, as I’ll explain in the performance section, this proved to be closer to 40 minutes in the test. One of the noticeable differences is the speed, with this drone reaching up to 90kph, which is incredibly fast. It also has a range of 41 KM and with the new DJI 04+ transmission, it has a 30 km range and 10-bit HDR video feed.

Sensing technology features have also been enhanced with an impressive Omnidirectional sensor and forward Lidar, which will work in 0.1 lux low-light, helping to keep things safe and stable for positioning even when there is no GPS.

Once again, the drone features a history of Smart Tracking & Cinematic Modes with ActiveTrack 360° with object recognition and predictive tracking, which is again incredibly impressive. There’s also FocusTrack, MasterShots, Waypoint 2.0, QuickShots, and Hyperlapse. Waypoint 2.0 proved especially impressive through the test, allowing the repeated retracing of the same route as if attached by wires.

When it comes to storage, there are 64GB available in the standard version and 512GB Creator Combo, which is the version that I’ve looked at in this review. Whichever version you opt for, that internal storage will support ALL-I 4:2:2 recording.

Once the flight is over, there are several options for downloading the footage, including QuickTransfer & Connectivity, with the Transfer of files being possible via Wi-Fi 6 and all without needing to power on the drone. Or if you want a more traditional approach, you can use a USB-C for direct Transfer to your computer.

Powering the Mavic 4 Pro with energy is an all-new Power System with the 95Wh battery at its heart, and this can be quickly charged on the 240w Parallel Charging Hub. Another great feature of this Parallel Charging Hub is that it converts to a 100-watt power bank on location, so you can use it to give your laptop a boost if needed.

When it comes to the performance of the DJI Mavic 4 Pro, it had a lot to live up to, considering its predecessor, the Mavic 3 Pro, is the best drone that I have ever flown. From the outset, the 4 Pro didn’t fail to impress, and the first thing that struck me was the design. As I mentioned in the intro, the Mavic series—as with the Air and Mini—has, for the last few iterations, had a distinctly sharky look about their nose end. Now with the more integrated triple lens camera at the front, it all looks a little more dragonfly and elegant.

Along with the major change in the front end, the rest of the drone has also been redesigned, but a little more subtly. But, as I pointed out in the build section, the Pro arm design has been changed, and as I folded out those arms for the first time, it was also apparent that the added length. This has no doubt been done to add even more stability to the flight, and sure enough, after a few initial checks and a take-off and landing, the craft once again felt good and solid in the Air.

Checking back to the flight of the Mavic 3 Pro, the robustness in the Air was again impressive, and side-by-side, it was difficult to really feel much difference in the quality of that stability. Running a few pans, and both performed equally.

After a good amount of future flying, the flight characteristic improvements started to come through. The turns with the 4 Pro were smoother and more elegant, and it was far easier to get the drone to do sweeping turns. What really appealed here was that using the ActiveTrack, I was essentially able to pan around a subject without issue neatly, and with the large screen enabling me to select the subject, the process really couldn’t have been easier. Also, switching between cameras was relatively easy, although I did have to refer to the manual to work this one out.

In the Air, the drone performs incredibly well and is easy enough to fly. However, here are a couple of comments on the flight: The new object detection system works well, almost too well, and if you do need to fly in any technical environment, then you will need to switch off the object sensors. While in some situations the sensors can be a little over-sensitive, they do work incredibly well, although still not quite where I want them to be—essentially being able to follow me through a woodland walk.

The other major factor in the flight is the speed. This is one fast drone, and switching over to the S mode, I wasn’t quite expecting the acceleration that this drone was capable of—it very quickly accelerated off into the distance. Still, it was thankfully stopped just as quickly by the auto air brake.

The final bit on the flight has to be the new controller. Firstly, this is larger and, with the big screen, incredibly easy to use and navigate. It’s a sort of blend of controllers past and ultimately seems like a great enhancement of the previously screened RC. While I liked the RC, there was always the issue of reflection and no way to shade the screen in sunlight. Here, with the almost modular screen design, it’s far easier to position and view.

Of course, the image and video quality is really where the interest of this drone lies, and there’s no doubt that with that 4/3-inch sensor, image quality leaps forward. This is the image quality that I would have expected from the pro-grade Inspire—it’s just that now that’s possible in this relatively compact drone.

The new integrated camera and gimbal have obviously enabled DJI to increase the sensor size, and the increase in tone and detail is instantly apparent. While the Mavic 3 was good, this is just reaching another level.
Checking through the two other camera options, and again, in both stills and video, the results are exceptional—but for me, the pure quality of that 100mp camera is just on another level.

To be honest, it was about time that the Mavic line took a step away from the rest of the DJI drones. The Air and even the Mini, in all their iterations, are now fantastic options, and for beginners and enthusiasts alike, there’s plenty of offers here to please the masses. Since its first release, the Mavic Pro has always been something a little bit different. It really stepped into the shoes left by the Phantom, although they inhabited the same space for a short time.

It’s good to see that DJI has gone back to the drawing board, and it’s interesting that while there have been some design tweaks to the main body, the basic structure remains a noticeable DJI drone. However, that new head is something altogether new and a little more DJI than anything that we’ve seen from the company for a while.

It now looks even more like a creature with its two eyes and large mouth on the bulbous, round head, but it also looks ready for action. Sure enough, in use, this is the fastest drone yet to deploy. Once you fold it out, it automatically starts and gets set. Likewise, with the controller and the fact that you don’t need to remove the sticks each time is a huge advantage.

In flight, that larger span seems to give the 4 Pro a great elegance and grace in the sky, and sure enough, in the footage, you can definitely see the difference between this and the Mavic 3 Pro.

When it comes to the all-important visual quality of the footage, again, there’s a leap, and while the video footage is once again impressive, it’s with the 100mp stills that things become really impressive.

Essentially, if you’re a pro or very keen enthusiast, then above all other drones, this is just the best you can get, which, for the pro of pro lens for your mirrorless camera, seems like an ideal next purchase.