Some fresh DJI Mavic 3 Pro rumors suggest the drone will have dual cameras and could even land later this year.
The DJI Mavic 3 Pro is expected to be the successor to the DJI Mavic 2 Pro, which is one of our favorite drones of the past few years. And after a quiet patch for new rumors, some fresh speculation has given us some potential hints about what we can expect from the exciting folding drone. It’s now been over three years since the Mavic 2 Pro landed – and with the new DJI Air 2S cramming most of its talents into a smaller body, a successor is certainly overdue. Well, it looks like we’re finally going to get one, if the latest rumors are to be believed – and the Mavic 3 Pro (or DJI Pro 3, perhaps) could even bring some radical new features, including dual cameras. It’s already been a pretty busy year for DJI, which perhaps explains the delay. It treated us to the DJI Air 2S in April, which joined the likes of the DJI Mini 2 and DJI Pocket as one of ten new products added to DJI’s lineup in the past 12 months alone. That’s not to mention the company’s recently-announced intentions to enter the automotive industry, which will see it partnering with big-name manufacturers to integrate its drone tech into the self-driving vehicles of the future. But if recent rumors are correct, the DJI Mavic 3 Pro is en route, just slightly behind its planned schedule. Apparently, an October release is possible, but we’ve rounded up all of the latest speculation below to help you decide whether to wait for DJI’s possible new folding flagship. The latest DJI Mavic 3 Pro rumors suggest that the drone may have been delayed, which has been a common theme for most tech products this year. According to a video posted by Dronemodelismo on August 28, the Mavic 3 Pro was originally pencilled in for an October launch. This matched the claims of a DroneDJ source in a post on July 19, which said «the latest plans are for an October release». But DroneDJ’s source added that «he has ‘doubt’ it will be ready for prime time by then» and Dronemodelismo’s source said that a postponement to January 2022 is also possible. Recent DJI launches, like the DJI Air 2S, have been preceded by big leaks at stores like Best Buy, and the fact that we haven’t seen anything close to that (or even really some credible photos, beyond sketches), suggests that a launch is still some way off. We’ve previously seen the DJI Mavic 2 Pro, Mavic 2 Zoom, Mavic Mini and Mini 2 arrive in an August-October window, but it seems the pandemic and chip shortages may have knocked DJI’s traditional launch cycles out of sync. As for the Mavic 3 Pro’s possible price, there have been no leaks so far on this and it’s still too early to tell. But we can make educated guesses based on the launch price of the Mavic 2 Pro and the rumored features coming to its successor. The Mavic 2 Pro cost $1,599 / £1,349 / AU $2,499 at launch, but it’s safe to assume that the Mavic 3 Pro would likely exceed that figure. A recent DroneDJ source claims that “the price [of the Mavic 3 Pro] will definitely be way up” – so the price could well end up north of $2,000 / £1,500 / AU$2,600, assuming it does deliver features like a new Hasselblad camera. But right now, this is all just speculation and we’ll need to wait until later in the year to get a clearer idea of the Mavic 3 Pro’s pricing. The Brazilian YouTube channel Dronemodelismo has published what appears to be the biggest DJI Mavic 3 Pro leak so far. It claims the specs and illustrations have come from a reliable source – and the channel does have a track record of leaking accurate information about drones like the DJI Mavic Air 2. But some unusual suggestions about the design and specs have led some to question the accuracy of the rumors. The biggest claim is that the Mavic 3 Pro will have dual Hasselblad cameras – one with a 7x zoom (which is presumably digital zoom rather than optical), and another 5.7K camera with a 24mm f/2.8 lens. According to Dronemodelismo, there will also be an adapter that can give this lens a wider 16mm focal length. The suggestion that the Mavic 3 Pro will have a 5.7K camera contradicts an earlier «trusted source» from DroneDJ, which claimed that the drone could become the first compact DJI model capable of shooting 8K video. If true, this would trump its predecessor’s 4K/30p video powers and match the likes of the 8K-shooting Autel Evo II, which uses a smaller 1/2-inch sensor. On the other hand, Autel’s Evo II Pro model shoots 6K video from a 1in sensor, and Dronemodelismo thinks the Mavic 3 Pro could even use the same sensor as that drone. The contradictory claims have likely arisen from the fact that DJI is probably testing different sensors with the Mavic 3 Pro. Earlier rumors suggested there could be also be two different versions of the Mavic 3 Pro. It’s certainly possible that DJI could, like Autel, offer 8K and 6K versions of its flagship drone, with different camera modules to suit the needs of different filmmakers. This would ape the launch of the DJI Mavic 2 Pro, which was released alongside its DJI Mavic 2 Zoom sibling. But we’ll have to wait for further leaks to help clarify exactly how likely this is.
