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Pros
- Wide-angle and mid-telephoto camera stack
- Sharp 4K footage with standard, flat, or HDR color profiles
- Gimbal-stabilized cameras with 60-degree upward tilt
- All-around obstacle avoidance
- Hyperlapse, slow-motion, and waypoint flight features
- Long battery life
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Cons
- Fixed-aperture lenses
- Requires FAA registration
- Meager 8GB of internal storage
DJI Air 3 Specs
Dimensions | 3.9 by 3.6 by 8.2 inches |
Integrated Camera | Integrated with Gimbal |
Live Video Feed | 1080p |
Media Format | microSDXC |
Megapixels | 48 |
Obstacle Detection | |
Remote | Dedicated with App |
Rotors | 4 |
Video Resolution | 4K |
Weight | 1.6 |
DJI's affordable, crowd-pleasing Mini family of drones has stolen the spotlight in recent years, but the company is once again turning attention to its mid-sized Air series. The Air 3 ($1,099) is notably the first in the lineup with a dual-lens camera and all-around obstacle sensors. It's an excellent performer overall and a worthwhile choice if you need a mid-telephoto lens, but it doesn't do enough to justify its cost compared with our Editors' Choice winner for enthusiasts and creators, the more affordable DJI Mini 3 Pro ($759).
DJI Doubles Down on Dual Cameras
DJI largely competes against itself in the consumer drone market, but it continues to iterate and innovate. The Air series was born out of a desire for smaller, more portable drones and paved the way for the even tinier Mini line. Battery life has continually improved, too, while obstacle avoidance sensors have made their way into all but the entry-level models. What's DJI left to do? The answer, it seems, is to add more cameras. The Mavic 3 introduced a dual-camera system, and it got a triple-camera upgrade in the form of the Mavic 3 Pro. And now, the Air 3 also has two cameras instead of one.
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The original Mavic Air wasn't large enough at 1.9 by 3.3 by 6.6 inches (HWD) to handle a dual-camera gimbal. But since the 249g Mini line hit the market, DJI's engineers have let the Air series creep up in size. The Air 3 is the largest yet at 3.9 by 3.6 by 8.2 inches (HWD), slightly bigger all around than the Mavic Air 2 (3.8 by 3.3 by 7.1 inches). Despite the size increase, you shouldn't have too much trouble finding a place for it in your camera bag or dealing with its weight (1.6 pounds).
Keep in mind that the drone does require FAA registration. Pilots who fly for fun need to shell out a $5 fee every three years, something you can avoid with the Mini 3 Pro and other drones that weigh 8.78 ounces (249g) or less. It's a minor nuisance for flying in the US, but other countries are much more restrictive, so we recommend the Mini 3 Pro instead for travel. Pros who use a drone to make money also need to obtain a remote pilot certificate even if their flier comes in under that 249g threshold.
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The Air 3's two cameras share equal space on a three-axis gimbal, and each benefits from DJI's previous miniaturization efforts. The main 24mm F1.7 lens comes over from the Mini 3 Pro, while the short telephoto 70mm F2.8 is the same one as on the Mavic 3 Pro. A Quad Bayer Type 1/1.3 sensor backs each lens for consistent picture and video quality. The lenses have fixed apertures, but you can add a set of four ND filters for $99 if you want. The gimbal's tilt range is ample, too: Like with the Mini 3 series drones, you can point the camera straight down at a 90-degree angle or tilt it up to 60 degrees.
As for alternatives, the aforementioned Mini 3 Pro is the next model down in the DJI line. It provides similar picture quality and also supports obstacle avoidance, albeit without upward coverage. The $1,599 Mavic 3 Classic is the upgrade option. Its Four Thirds camera with aperture control and Hasselblad color should entice photographers, in particular. The Autel Robotics Evo Lite+ ($1,549) is another one to mull. It's not as capable as any of the DJI models for video, but the drone has forward and aft obstacle sensors, plus integrates a 20MP Type 1 camera with an adjustable f-stop.
Go Standard or Fly More?
DJI rates the Air 3's flight battery for 46 minutes, but that estimate is a little bit optimistic. In testing, I got closer to 40 minutes of flight time per charge. That's still about the best battery life you can get from a small drone, though. For comparison, the Mini 3 Pro flies for about 30 minutes with its basic battery, and the entry-level Mini 3 lasts just a few minutes longer. An extended-life battery is available for the Mini 3 series that pushes flight time to 47 minutes to match the Air 3, but it causes those drones to go over the 249g registration cutoff.
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The Air 3 has a rather meager 8GB of storage onboard. Just 15 minutes of high-bit-rate 4K footage can fill that up, so you need to add a microSD card for longer record times. You should go with a 64GB card at minimum, but there's nothing to stop you from using a much bigger 512GB card. DJI recommends using SanDisk Extreme, Lexar 1066x, Kingston Canvas, and Samsung Evo cards with V30 or V90 speed ratings.
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The base model Air 3 includes the DJI RC-N2 remote, which requires you to load the DJI Fly app on an Android or iOS device for remote viewing and camera control. The $1,349 Fly More Combo adds two additional flight batteries, a three-way charger, and a zippered shoulder bag. Finally, you can get the Fly More Combo with the DJI RC 2 remote, which has a built-in screen, for $1,549. That's the version I received for review.
The three-way charger has a unique feature: It can pull power from one battery and move it to another, thus helping you get a little more flight time out of a set of batteries. It's never a good idea to take off with a mostly depleted cell from a safety standpoint, so consolidating power into one battery makes sense.
Obstacle Sensors for Safer Flights
In combination with a set of cameras on its undercarriage, the Air 3's forward and rear obstacle sensors cover a full 360 degrees. These sensors help you avoid crashes when you are flying low to the ground or through an area with lots of trees. The drone can either stop in place or intelligently fly around obstacles depending on how you configure it.
I set the drone to bypass obstacles with its 5th-generation Advanced Autopilot Assist System (APAS 5.0) and watched it navigate around backyard obstructions without breaking a sweat. After a few initial minutes of cautious maneuvering, I started flying with near reckless abandon—the Air 3 moved around trees, buildings, and vehicles flawlessly.
The obstacle sensors work along with the ActiveTrack feature, which lets the Air 3 act like a follow-me drone. Adventurers should appreciate the tight view of the 70mm lens for this type of footage. ActiveTrack works just with people and vehicles (it can't serve as a high-tech, roaming pet cam, for example), but it didn't have any issues following me around the yard. A new mode, Spotlight, promises to provide more dynamic tracking, but I didn't have much luck with it in my tests. The drone kept losing track of me and didn't seem to follow me around with this setting active. The standard ActiveTrack mode works better and even gives you the option to choose whether the drone follows from in front of, behind, or to the side of you.
The combination of the ActiveTrack feature, the superlative obstacle avoidance, and the mid-tele camera make it an appealing pick for adventurers who want a follow-me drone. The Skydio 2 previously filled this role in the market, but the latest 2+ model is out of stock with no replacement on the horizon. The Air 3's picture quality is a big upgrade over Skydio, but DJI doesn't include a wearable tracker option, so you need to keep the remote nearby or have a partner keep tabs on the drone, for safety's sake.
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The drone's GPS hardware also improves safety. It keeps track of the drone's location and altitude, so it can guide the quadcopter home in case of a communication interruption. The transmission range extends well beyond line of sight, however, and DJI rates its O4 system at up to 12.4 miles. I never lost communication with the drone in testing. I did notice that the GPS took a couple of minutes to establish a healthy satellite lock in a new location, a minor pain point. The Air 3 also supports a Find My Drone function, which can help you locate the device if you need to bring it down away from the takeoff point.
DJI FlySafe, a geofence system, is a more divisive feature. It prevents the drone from taking off in restricted airspace and includes an authorization system to unlock flight in areas near airports or other places that require permission. Casual pilots should appreciate its ability to keep you out of trouble. As an example, DJI drones warn me if I get too close to the airspace of a nearby non-towered airport, something Autel models don't do. On the other hand, licensed pilots might find DJI's unlocking procedures to be an unwelcome hassle, especially if they already have permission to fly.
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The Air 3 also supports DJI AirSense, a system that uses an ADS-B receiver to let you know if manned aircraft are nearby. It's an extra layer of safety you don't get with the Mini 3 Pro and might compel you to step up to this model if you fly in busy airspace. The Air 3 also supports Remote ID, an FAA requirement for drones set to go into effect this September. Remote ID broadcasts your drone's location on a public channel, so the FAA, law enforcement, and federal agencies can more easily locate pilots flying illegally or in restricted airspace.
DJI Fly App and Features
The DJI Fly app is a strict requirement for product activation, camera control, and settings adjustments. If you get the base model Air 3, you need to load it on your phone to use the drone. If you buy a kit with the RC 2, you can enjoy all of the same features on the remote itself because it runs the Android version of DJI Fly. The activation process is the same as with a phone.
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The DJI RC-N2 remote handles basic controls—the left control stick sets the altitude and yaw, while the right one moves the drone forward, backward, left, or right in space. First-time pilots should take some time to get familiar with the controls, but if you've ever flown a drone before, the Air 3 will be old hat.
The app opens up more advanced flight modes. You can set up planned waypoint missions for perfectly repeatable flight paths, for example, a feature previously only available with the full-sized Mavic series. It's especially useful for preplanning time-lapse routes, as well as for non-creative applications like mapping. You also need the app to change settings, everything from swapping from metric to imperial units to configuring the obstacle avoidance system.
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The app interface is straightforward. The main screen shows the view from the drone's camera, inlays a map at the bottom left corner with the drone's global position, and places touch controls for swapping between different camera modes along the right side. The Air 3 does some beyond-basic things, including automated camera movements in the form of QuickShots and MasterShots, plus Hyperlapses with either manual control or a preset orbit.
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The Telephoto Camera Adds a New Perspective
As mentioned, the Air 3's camera system includes two lenses with matching picture quality. A Type 1/1.3 Quad Bayer sensor backs each for up to 4K100 video with 10-bit color in a D-Log, HLG, or standard profile. For stills, you can snap 8-bit JPG or 12-bit DNG photos at 12MP or 48MP. Swapping to 48MP gets you a bigger file size with more pixels, but the downsampled 12MP shots look crisper overall. I like that both cameras offer similar image quality because you can pick between them with no compromise.
The downside is that you don't get any image quality advantage over the cheaper Mini 3 Pro in terms of wide-angle coverage. In DJI's current lineup, the Mavic 3 Classic is the most sensible upgrade for creators who want the picture quality benefits of a larger sensor. As mentioned, it opts for a single 24mm F2.8 Four Thirds camera with Hasselblad color science and can capture up to 5.1K30 or 4K120. Value-minded photogs should look at the Air 2S, an older model that's still on sale, as its 20MP Type 1 sensor beats the Air 3 for photos, though its 31-minute battery and more basic obstacle avoidance system are drawbacks.
Nevertheless, the drone's 4K footage looks excellent. The standard profile shows natural color and sharp detail; it stays far away from the shimmering oversharpened tendencies of Autel's video processing engine. I didn't spot any ugly rolling shutter distortion either, even when I panned with the 70mm camera. Both lenses have a fixed aperture, so there's no way to stop down the 24mm F1.7 or 70mm F2.8 lenses. Videographers should pick up the aforementioned ND filters to maintain proper shutter angles in bright sunlight. For night flights over cities, the drone has a new 4K30 Night Mode that fine-tunes video settings accordingly.
The Air 3 supports vertical video too, a plus for creators who make reels for Instagram or are big into TikTok. The 9:16 footage comes with just a couple of caveats. First, it's limited to 2.7K or 1080p, which is not a problem for social. But more problematic is that the lens just takes the central strip from the sensor and crops away the sides. It's a nice option to have in a pinch, but the Mini 3 Pro is better for this type of output because its camera twists between landscape and portrait orientation. As such, you can grab either type of footage with no drop in resolution.
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Still quality is on par with a quality smartphone, many of which use similar Quad Bayer sensors. The JPG engine produces photos with pleasing color and punchy contrast, although with a little too much sharpening. I like the look of DNGs better and enjoy the flexibility to fine-tune exposure and color. Of course, the same is true of the Mini 3 Pro, which matches up in photo quality, minus the second lens.
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Do You Need a Dual-Camera Drone?
The DJI Air 3 is a worthwhile purchase if you love the idea of a telephoto camera or want to take advantage of all-around obstacle avoidance and a waypoint system, but it doesn't do enough to differentiate itself from the less expensive Mini 3 Pro. The latter's 249g takeoff weight, optional extended battery, and more versatile twisting camera help it retain our Editors' Choice award for creators and aerial imaging enthusiasts. If you want a tangible upgrade in image quality, budget more for any version of the Mavic 3. And if you have less to spend, the Air 2S remains a good value option for photographers, though the Air 3 wins easily on video and safety features.