DJI has published a firmware update for the Mavic 3 that fully unlocks all of the drone’s capabilities and lets it do everything the company promised it could when it was launched last year.
The Dual-Camera Drone
The DJI Mavic 3 and Mavic 3 Cine drones launched last November and feature a dual-camera system: one with a 4/3-sized, 20-megapixel sensor behind a 24mm adjustable aperture prime lens, and the other a 28x hybrid zoom camera. Together, DJI managed to combine the Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom into one device and upgrade it at the same time.
DJI chose to release the Mavic 3 before it had all of its capabilities, however. Likely in a bid to capture the end-of-year holiday season, DJI sold the Mavic 3 with most of the major features photographers and filmmakers would want with the promise that a later firmware update, scheduled for sometime in January 2022, would fill in the gaps.
Firmware Update v01.00.0500
That update has finally arrived. DJI has issued Aircraft Firmware v01.00.0500 and Remote Controller v04.13.0500 that can be installed through the DJI Fly App on iOS or Android (version 1.5.8 on both is required). It adds the last few features that bring the drone up to the full capabilities that were advertised at launch:
- Added QuickShots including Dronie, Rocket, Circle, Helix, Boomerang, and Asteroid.
- Added Panorama mode, capable of capturing in high resolution.
- Added burst shooting.
- Added digital zoom for normal video mode.
- Added Color Display Assist for D-Log.
- Added 4K/60fps and manual EI adjustment for MasterShots.
- Added QuickTransfer.
- Added zoom and D-Log for FocusTrack when recording video.
- Added support to set RTH altitude for Advanced RTH.
- Added USB mode for Mavic 3 Cine for copying data.
- Optimized accuracy of color correction.
- Increased image sharpness of Tele camera when shooting at high magnification.
- Optimized image area for Timelapse photos.
- Added support to DJI RC Pro to output clean HDMI footage.
- Added support for DJI RC Pro to cache video and download original video to an external SD card.
- Added support to use DJI RC Pro with DJI Air 2S.
- Fixed some minor bugs.
Great Even Before the Update
At launch, PetaPixel’s Ryan Mense recommended the Mavic 3 because, even with a few features absent and only promised at the time, the drone was the best from a photo and video standpoint for any fixed-lens consumer drone he had ever tested.
“Its leap into a 4/3-inch sensor for its main camera is a success and those that can pay the expense should be quite happy with the results,” Mense wrote in his review. “While the telephoto lens is effectively an insignificant and disappointing addition, the rest of the hype behind this new drone is warranted and fully redeemed by the main camera.”
DJI says that the drone will continue to get future firmware updates that will make minor improvements and optimizations, but all features that were promised at launch are now available.
