DJI Mini 5 Pro First Flight: The Best Mini Yet?

DJI Mini 5 Pro. Let’s that sink in. Bliss. Pure bliss and joy. If I had to choose words for what I felt when I took off and looked at my screen, those would be the ones. The crispness of the image, how sharp and clear everything looked, how smoothly the drone cruised through the air… and when I pressed that C1 button while using the zoom dial on the controller… I was in awe. The entire experience was recorded for my YouTube channel, of course. Having been a DJI Mini user for the last five years, feeling the progress of the technology in my hands with this latest iteration is incredible. The feeling of being part of pushing this technology to its limits and watching how well it delivers… it’s just out of this world.

A Bigger Bag is a Big Deal

The first thing I noticed when I opened the box wasn’t the drone, but the size of the bag.

It’s at least 30-40% bigger than the previous bags, which is fantastic: Isn’t mini at all! You have way more space to store things. I can put my Sony FX30 with a small lens and my DJI Mics 2 inside, and they fit perfectly.

The bag also fits better on big guys like me, and the strap is long enough to get the bag down to waist level. So, I was comfortable enough to head out and get that first mini flight in!

A Spectacular First Night Flight

Due to a day full of errands, the only possible time for my first flight was at 9 p.m. And oh my, what a great time for a flight that turned out to be. Just look at these first pictures. I’m showing you a few versions of a panorama. The first is straight out of the drone (SOOD), the second has the auto-develop settings from Adobe Lightroom Classic applied, and the last one is my own edit in Lightroom.

Small Details, Big Improvements

One of the things that I really love about this Mini 5 Pro are the small details that make our lives easier. For example, the auxiliary light that turns on when taking off or landing is back. I didn’t have that on my Mini 3 Pro (remember I skipped the Mini 4 Pro generation), and it was a feature I missed from older drones. I also love the fact that you can now take off in three different ways:

1. Manually: Move the joysticks to the inner corner positions and then push up on the left stick.
2. Automatically (Screen): Press the take-off button on the screen and then press and hold until the circle completes.
3. Automatically (Button): Press the take-off button, and then, instead of holding the screen, just press the C1 button.

High Altitude Performance Check

This drone was announced as the fastest Mini yet, regarding flight speed, ascent speed, and charging speed. I couldn’t test the charging speed yet because I don’t have the DJI fast charger (but I’ve already ordered it). The ascent speed, however, was announced to be 10 meters per second. In my test, the drone behaved better than previous Minis but still fell short, reaching only 7.5 meters per second. I believe this is because my tests are inherently more challenging. I live in Quito, Ecuador, which is already at 9,350 ft (2,850 meters) above sea level. Drones just don’t perform as well at this altitude.

I’m also about to do a battery hover test. It’s supposed to get 52 minutes per battery, and I’m very curious to see how many minutes we can get up here. Here’s a quick suggestion for DJI: please sell a Fly More Combo Plus that includes the 65-watt charger. It’s an easy sale for them and saves us the time of having to order it separately.

Flight Feel and Signal Strength

Regarding the actual flight of the drone, I can only say it’s smooth and responsive. But don’t think that by “smooth” I mean weak or anything like that. I mean smooth like “precision-smooth.” It feels like pulling focus on a cinema lens—that buttery, creamy feel. And the signal? It’s STRONG. I flew one mile in a city environment and had all five signal bars the entire time.

I have a lot more flights to do, including testing and comparing it against other drones and sensors. In the meantime, I am more than sure that this drone is the best combination of price and quality ever. I’ll keep flying and will keep you guys updated. If you have any specific questions, just drop them in the comments section!

Photo credit: Rafael Suarez