Autel vs. DJI is a battle as outdated as David and Goliath. Okay, possibly not that outdated, however should you’ve been within the drone sport lengthy sufficient, it may well actually really feel prefer it!
That’s why I made a decision what higher option to determine which comes out on high than to place them head-to-head?
The Autel EVO Lite+ and DJI Mini 3 are two flagship light-weight drones designed for excellence in dealing with and – better of all – being light-weight and transportable.
I’ve all the time cherished the DJI Mini line, so when the three got here out, it shortly turned mine. Autel intrigued me with its EVO Lite+, a drone I’ve cherished simply as a lot and used almost as often.
Nevertheless, there could be just one!
This information will put the EVO Lite+ and Mini 3 in a heated competitors, evaluating them, figuring out their variations, and presenting their strengths and weaknesses. I’ll additionally share my private expertise flying these drones and why the Mini 3 soars greater than the EVO Lite+.
Though gentle drones are sometimes cheaper than their heavier counterparts, you continue to don’t wish to waste a cent of your hard-earned cash. I get it!
This information is designed that can assist you make a drone determination you are feeling nice about.
With out one other second’s delay, let’s get going!
Temporary overview
Autel EVO Lite+
Debuting in January 2022, the Autel EVO Lite+ got here out as a revised model of the EVO Lite (its sensor shrunk) and an improved version of the EVO Nano.
It’s one of many smaller drones within the Autel arsenal, but it’s nonetheless foldable for glorious portability. Let’s take a more in-depth take a look at a few of its different superior options:
- A one-inch CMOS sensor that shoots in main 6K video at 30 frames per second and 20 MP picture high quality.
- An impressively lengthy 40-minute flight time for longer pleasure rides and finishing extra skilled duties in a single go.
- SkyLink transmission of over seven miles in 2.7K high quality at 30 fps for HD-quality livestreams to your social media viewers when on the go.
- An ultra-wide impediment avoidance system. The included sensors permit the drone to understand 150 levels in entrance of it for fewer blind spots and collisions.
- A improbable assortment of good modes, together with cinematic choices like Rocket and Fade Away, topic monitoring with Dynamic Observe 2.1, and automated selfies with SkyPortrait.
- Three enjoyable colours to pick out from, so you’ll be able to select a shiny neon orange if you would like your EVO Lite+ to face out or decide extra normal hues like white or grey.
» MORE: Autel EVO Lite+ Evaluate
DJI Mini 3
The DJI Mini line has developed so quick that typically it’s onerous to maintain up with, so permit me to get you on top of things.
The Mini 3 is the predecessor of the Mini 2 SE and was launched in 2022. It was adopted inside that very same yr by the Mini 3 Professional, then the Mini 4 Professional in late 2023.
The Mini 3 barely had an opportunity to be the brand new child on the block earlier than the follow-up launch of the Mini 3 Professional, however this DJI drone nonetheless holds its personal remarkably effectively.
Take a gander at these options:
- Light-weight sufficient that you simply don’t need to register it with the FAA for leisure use, saving you a step between getting on the market and flying (you will need to register your drone for industrial functions no matter its weight).
- A number one 1/1.3-inch CMOS sensor that shoots in crystal-clear 4K HDR video high quality and 48 MP picture high quality. You could be on the chopping fringe of drone know-how with out having to spend an arm and leg on a brand new mannequin.
- Surprisingly good wind resistance for its dimension (Degree 5), so you’ll be able to fly your drone in situations that would depart you grounded with one other mannequin.
- DJI’s suite of Clever Flight Modes, together with Vertical and Horizontal Taking pictures and QuickShots for dependable footage each time.
- A battery lifetime of 38 minutes with the default and over 51 minutes by upgrading to the Clever Flight Battery Plus for longer flights.
» MORE: DJI Mini 3 App (Learn This Earlier than Downloading)
Fast Verdict
We solely prioritize the very best right here at Droneblog, and I chosen the Mini 3 after many hours of testing it and the EVO Lite+.
We’ve concluded that the DJI Mini 3 is the higher choice over the Autel EVO Lite+. This drone has distinctive portability, a light-weight profile, nice aerodynamics, staunch wind resistance, and glorious picture high quality. It’s designed to facilitate enhancing on the go together with the inclusion of the LightCut app.
I’ve had the Mini 3 because it got here out, having fun with it for leisure flights with out having to fret about registering it.
The EVO Lite+ later caught my eye, and whereas I like its options, it doesn’t fairly reside as much as the Mini 3.
It’s not even that the EVO Lite+ is dearer (though it’s).
The Mini 3 is only a higher worth, with its Clever Flight Options, a comparable battery to the EVO Lite+ out of the gate (with the choice to make the battery final even longer should you don’t thoughts paying extra), sturdy wind resistance, and the superior digital camera high quality.
Now, please don’t get me unsuitable. I don’t have blinders on.
The shortage of any kind of impediment avoidance is a large deterrent within the Mini 3, particularly contemplating how modern and high-tech the impediment avoidance system included with the EVO Lite+ is.
The Mini 3 additionally has poorer picture high quality, though it’s not by such a protracted shot that it is a evident problem. Its greatest detriment is that it has zero impediment avoidance, so it’s not as beginner-friendly.
» MORE: Autel EVO Lite Plus vs DJI Avata (Which One Is Higher?)
What are the primary variations?
The EVO Lite+ is Autel’s reply to DJI’s Mini collection, however these two drones are disparate in some ways. This info can push you towards a buying determination, so don’t miss it.
Listed here are the variations between the Mini 3 and EVO Lite+.
- Picture and video high quality: These drone producers proceed to push the envelope for what’s doable in at present’s drone tech. Their video and picture high quality aren’t equivalent, with every mannequin excelling in several areas. The Mini 3 wins within the pictures division, whereas the EVO Lite+ has higher-quality video.
- Colour choice: Tailoring your drone your method doesn’t require slapping a pores and skin on it when you should buy an Autel drone. The EVO Lite+ is out there in three colours, together with an incredibly shiny orange. By comparability, you’ll be able to solely select one colour for the Mini 3, and that’s not even actually a selection. The drone is available in gentle grey, and that’s that.
- Impediment avoidance: In fact, colour doesn’t matter a lot within the grand scheme of issues. What’s the greatest distinction between these two drones is the dearth of impediment avoidance. That was a characteristic DJI added once they launched the Mini 3 Professional not a lot later, however if in case you have the Mini 3, you’re left within the lurch. The EVO Lite+’s impediment avoidance is great by itself, however any impediment avoidance would have been higher than none.
- Weight: Regardless of that the EVO Lite+ known as, effectively, the Lite, it’s not precisely that. It weighs 835 grams, over twice the load of the Mini 3. You would need to register the EVO Lite+ even when utilizing it recreationally, shelling out for the $5 registration charge. Bummer.
- Social media-friendliness: The Mini 3 has so many includes a social media famous person wants to face out, comparable to Vertical Taking pictures, autonomous flight modes, and the included LightCut app for enhancing video and pictures from anyplace.
» MORE: Autel EVO Lite+ vs. DJI Air 2S
Autel EVO Lite+
The EVO Lite+ is the second entry within the Lite collection, launched after the OG EVO Lite. It’s an awesome drone for the intense photographer, videographer, or skilled pilot.
This successor acquired all the things proper that buyers cherished in regards to the first model, comparable to a extra reasonably priced value, the return of its CDAF and PDAF autofocus, at the least 40 minutes of marketed flight time, and a large sensor.
The EVO Lite+ shrunk the sensor dimension from the OG Lite, as that had a 1/1.28-inch CMOS sensor versus the one-inch EVO Lite+ sensor.
It additionally diminished picture high quality from 50 MP to twenty MP however elevated the video footage to 6K.
And though the EVO Lite+ doesn’t have a four-axis gimbal, that’s advantageous. A four-axis gimbal continues to be a rarity, and a three-axis gimbal will get the job finished simply advantageous.
Its glorious digital camera, foldability, transmission vary, and good options make the EVO Lite+ corresponding to any DJI drone. Pound for pound, this dangerous boy holds its personal.
It has greater than sufficient superior options for photographers to extend their abilities, together with aperture settings and HDR mode.
With one flick of a swap, the EVO Lite+ will take a collection of photographs, then generate one composite picture constructed from the picture’s greatest traits, together with an optimum diploma of highlights and shadows.
» MORE: Autel EVO Lite+ Video Evaluate (VIDEO)
It’s the type of characteristic designed to avoid wasting you time in post-processing, because the EVO Lite+ virtually edits on the go for you.
This Autel drone has the model’s esteemed Moonlight Algorithm for element after darkish (and fewer noise), Defog Mode for vibrant pictures in pure environments, and pure colour restoration for feeling like a professional.
You may as well launch single-click cinematographic modes, like Flick, Fade Away, Orbit, and Rocket, and the drone’s monitoring is enjoyable and useful.
I had a blast exploring these options. And my post-processing time? The EVO Lite+ halved it.
Autel EVO Lite Plus
Premium Bundle, NEWEST 1-Inch CMOS Drone with 6K HDR Digicam, F2.8 – F11 Aperture, 6K/30fps Video, 40 Minutes Flight Time, 3-Approach 360° Impediment Avoidance, 12Km (7.4 Miles)
We earn a fee should you make a purchase order, at no further value to you.
11/06/2023 05:42 am GMT
DJI Mini 3
That brings us to the DJI Mini 3, which is type of awkwardly sandwiched between the Mini 3 Professional and Mini 4 Professional.
Even if it has so many successors, it’s nonetheless a brand new DJI drone by many requirements, having solely been launched in 2022.
But DJI drone know-how comes quick, so the Mini 3 got here out amidst a flurry of others.
It’s actually a step up from the Mini 2 SE, and though it doesn’t have fairly as many options because the Mini 3 Professional, the Mini 3 is a strong little drone all throughout the board.
It wins factors for its light-weight high quality. For a drone that calls itself the Lite, the EVO Lite+ is hardly that.
The Mini 3, however, lives as much as its repute, weighing below 250 grams.
It’s a traveler’s greatest good friend, weighing so little which you can carry it with you anyplace and all over the place with out worrying about house limitations.
The Mini 3 has glorious video and digital camera capabilities for its dimension and age, and its 48 MP picture high quality is among the many greatest you’ll find in a DJI client drone.
You’ll respect how clearly you’ll be able to shoot with out having to make the most of a Hasselblad digital camera. And if you must zoom, this digital camera has 4x capability.
Zooming is all the time a useful characteristic to have. You may steer clear of harmful areas but seize pictures that make you appear like you’re standing proper there. YouTubers particularly ought to discover that characteristic useful.
» MORE: Methods to Join DJI Mini 3/ Mini 3 Professional to Wi-Fi (Step-by-Step Information)
The sensor is the stuff of surprise, and though you’ll be able to’t set the aperture, the four-in-one pixels of the sensor preserve your photographs clear and crisp.
The gimbal – an abnormal three-axis, thanks very a lot – can swap seamlessly from vertical to horizontal videography and pictures.
You gained’t need to spend valuable time orienting your footage for Instagram tales or Twitter when the Mini 3 does it for you proper out of the gate.
That’s removed from the one method the Mini 3 saves you time when enhancing. Its included LightCut app invitations you to discover picture and video templates in vertical and horizontal orientations.
Single-tap enhancing allows you to get your social media footage out quicker, so that you’re all the time high of thoughts to your viewers.
DJI Mini 3 (DJI RC)
Light-weight and Foldable Mini Digicam Drone with 4K HDR Video, 38-min Flight Time, True Vertical Taking pictures, and Clever Options.
We earn a fee should you make a purchase order, at no further value to you.
11/07/2023 01:36 pm GMT
Head-to-head comparability
Digicam system
Winner: DJI Mini 3
Whether or not you’re a technical drone photographer or somebody simply studying the ropes, the Mini 3 is the best drone for you.
I do know, I do know, the EVO Lite+ has an adjustable aperture, the Moonlight Algorithm, and its HDR characteristic. I like these inclusions, and the HDR is one in all my favourite options in any drone, interval. I take advantage of it on a regular basis.
The EVO Lite+ additionally wins within the video high quality class, however not by an enormous margin. It’s not such as you’re lacking out or settling for the Mini 3’s 4K HD video.
That’s greater than satisfactory, and solely a stickler would break up hairs over the Mini 3’s video in comparison with the 6K high quality the EVO Lite+ can obtain.
The Mini 3 has the higher picture high quality, and that is a lot much less of a small comparability. The EVO Lite+ solely shoots in 20 MP versus the 48 MP for the Mini 3.
Positive, it’s not fairly that good high quality should you zoom, and timed and single-shot modes produce 12 MP stills, however the 48 MP is head and shoulders above the EVO Lite+.
The gimbal additionally allows you to swap from vertical to horizontal videography and pictures within the Mini 3, a characteristic wherein the EVO Lite+ has no comparable different.
» MORE: Digicam Expertise in Drones (Defined)
Flight efficiency
Winner: DJI Mini 3
Now it is a biggie, as a poor flight expertise will restrict all the things else you are able to do along with your drone.
That stated, I needed to give this class to the Mini 3 for a number of causes.
For one, it’s a light-weight drone, a real light-weight. The EVO Lite+ has a reputation that belies its precise dimension.
Now, being light-weight helps in areas of efficiency, as a lighter drone is faster and extra aware of deal with.
Nevertheless, the Mini 3 isn’t as wind-resistant because the EVO Lite+, which I’m positive you just about anticipated, given the Autel drone’s weight.
The Mini 3 has Degree 5 wind resistance, making it able to withstanding gusts of about 24 miles per hour. The EVO Lite+ boasts Degree 7 wind resistance.
Now, right here’s the factor about wind resistance in drones. It’s an estimate, similar to battery life and lots of different components.
I’ve flown the Mini 3 in 35-mph winds, and it did simply advantageous. It did greater than advantageous, actually. It carried out remarkably.
I additionally love its collection of automated Clever Flight Modes. I do know, the EVO Lite+ has its personal comparable good modes, however DJI is the pioneer on this space.
I like how you should use modes like Rocket or Dronie and get good video footage each time. Though neither of those are newbie drones, this is among the Mini 3’s most beginner-friendly options.
It’s particularly superior for social media posters with a giant presence who possibly aren’t so nice at flying drones but however wish to appear like they’re.
» MORE: Autel EVO 2 Professional vs. DJI Mini 3 (Right here’s My Selection)
Portability
Winner: DJI Mini 3
This one ought to have come as no shock.
The Mini 3 and EVO Lite+ are each transportable in their very own methods, in that they’re foldable and stowable in a drone bag or backpack.
Nevertheless, the 2x further weight the EVO Lite+ carries will make it an even bigger ache to hold round…actually.
It would even be more durable to retailer it in a carry-on or checked baggage that meets your airline’s necessities.
The Mini 3 has no such points in that enviornment. It’s small and lightweight sufficient to suit into any piece of bags, and it’s prepared for flights inside your nation or internationally.
» MORE: Does the DJI Mini 3 Have to Be Registered? (Defined for Rookies)
RC compatibility and long-range flights
Winner: DJI Mini 3
The Mini 3 makes use of the DJI RC, a traditional controller within the DJI lineup suitable with extra drones than you’ll be able to shake a stick at. I imply it!
You need to use this distant with the Air 2S, Mavic 3 Cine, Mavic 3, Mavic 3 Traditional, Mini 3, and Mini 3 Professional. What a laundry listing!
I’m type of obsessive about this controller, and rightfully so. It’s gentle just like the Mini 3, ergonomic, and transportable. Its battery is 4 hours, and the HD display screen is a really giant 5.5 inches.
With a display screen that large and with that a lot readability, you’ll be able to depart your smartphone and pill at residence.
The DJI RC has a good diploma of video transmission utilizing the O3+ system, transmitting 1080p footage at 60 fps.
The EVO Lite+ makes use of the EVO Nano & Lite Collection distant controller, which supplies me Xbox 360 vibes. It’s a big controller that’s type of cumbersome however nonetheless ergonomic.
It has a transmission vary of seven.4 miles and is suitable with Autel’s Sky App.
The one downside? It doesn’t have a display screen, which implies retaining your smartphone useful to trace your drone’s actions. This distant controller can also be suitable with fewer drones.
What in regards to the video transmission price of the drones themselves? It’s 7.4 miles for the EVO Lite+ and 6.2 miles for the Mini 3. The Autel drone technically wins right here, however solely by a hair.
Battery life
Winner: Autel EVO Lite+
Talking of classes the place Autel wins, I’ve to present the battery life battle to the EVO Lite+. In spite of everything, its base battery can theoretically maintain flight for 40 minutes, an impeccable feat.
The Mini 3’s base Clever Flight Battery can fly for 37 minutes, which I acknowledge is a couple of minutes shorter.
You’ve the choice to increase the flight time to 50+ minutes should you’re keen to spend on the Clever Flight Battery Plus.
At that time, the DJI battery would beat the Autel battery, however since it’s a must to purchase the Clever Flight Battery Plus individually, that flight time doesn’t really feel like a good comparability.
In case you evaluate the 37-minute flight time of the Mini 3 and the 40-minute flight time of the EVO Nano+, these drones really feel extra neck-and-neck within the battery life class.
Neither drone will fly for precisely that lengthy, anyway.
It was extra like round 33 or 34 minutes of flight for the DJI drone and just a little over 35 for the Autel once I examined them, and let me inform you, I used to be thorough and intensive.
It’s not that these producers misled you. No drone ever flies precisely so long as marketed.
Bearing that in thoughts, I’m holding regular on my selection to select the EVO Lite+ right here.
Conclusion
The Autel EVO Lite+ and DJI Mini 3 are two exceptional small drones.
Neither is the most recent anymore, but they each characteristic cutting-edge options that make them price discussing in 2023.
The Mini 3 rises to the event in each method. It’s really light-weight, doesn’t require hobbyist registration, has a exceptional digital camera, boasts Clever Flight Modes, and has a battery life on par with what Autel presents.
Nevertheless, should you select the Mini 3 as your drone, be mindful it has no impediment avoidance.
That’s its greatest fault, which was corrected within the Mini 3 Professional, so maybe it would be best to discover that as an alternative.
And the intuitive distant management with its giant display screen will aid you fly safely with the Mini 3!
» MORE: DJI Mini 3 vs. Autel Nano Plus (All You Have to Know)