Testing...

1... 2... 3.  Well, maybe it should be: 3... 2... 1... liftoff.

I have really been enjoying the 360 camera - so many different perspectives from one shutter press.  I have been trying different techniques with it, to move on up the learning curve.  One of those techniques is called a "drone look": you start with the camera down low on a selfie stick or monopod, then raise it quickly over your head (and look out for any nearby tree branches).  Rufus was my subject, and it really did look like a drone pulling away.

That got me thinking.  I have a drone at home, but it is HUGE.  I'm talking the case that holds it is the size of a foot locker.  Not an easy thing to bring along, but it is very stable when flying.  It has about a 10 minute flight time on a battery, so you aren't going far with it.  A small drone would be a lot less hassle.

Research led me away from the toy drones and to the DJI Mavic Mini.  I watched a bunch of videos and read a lot of reviews.  In my research, I found that the technology has gotten much better and the flying is easier.  And, this Mavic Mini, when folded, has the footprint of a typical cell phone.  But, thicker.  Surprisingly, it can be flown in winds stronger than my large drone.  More range, both distance and time; the battery is good for up to 30 minutes flying time.  Well, that's the "advertised time," but real world is more like 25 minutes.  Still, more than enough time to launch, take some photos or videos, and get back to a landing site.

I convinced myself.  When this first came out, no retailers could keep them in stock.  We are beyond that first rush, and when I looked, the local Best Buy had a couple in stock.  Since we were in town on some other errands, we made a stop at Best Buy.

They are stopping you at the door to find out what you are interested in today.  Then, if a sales associate is available, they direct you to that person.  This was easy: I told the guy what I was looking for, he took us to the locked cabinet where their stock is, then directly to a register when he rung it up.  No "looking around."  Fast and easy, and other than having to touch the electronic pen at the check out, no contact.  He did give us some disinfecting spray.  Sure beats having to wander around looking for someone to open the cabinet and wait in line for lookie-loos in front of you.

I brought it home and started the charging process, then the firmware updating; seems to be the standard on electronic things that run on batteries these days.  ("You kids have it easy these days - why back in my day, we didn't have all this interweb stuff... our drones were coal and steam powered and they weighed as much as a refrigerator.")  Yeah, that's a joke.

It was dark last night by the tine I had all that stuff done.  I did turn on the controller and the drone to test out the camera (no propellers turning - no flying in the motorhome).  Today, I took the Mini outside and fired it up on our patio.  Hart Ranch supposedly has a "no drones" policy, but this thing is small and reasonably quiet and I was under our patio awning... not "going" anywhere.  Just a test to make sure it would launch, land, and rotate.  And, to try out the camera...

And, landing...

I cropped in on one of the images to see how it holds up...

You can see all my gray hairs and wrinkles - that seems plenty good on the resolution.  ;-)  And: small.  "Mini" is a good name for it.

No, I won't be flying it while riding my scooter.  There are a lot of new rules and restrictions since I last flew my other drone.  But, I may stop, get off my scooter, pull this out of the top case and get a photo or video where it is allowed.  "Allowed"?  Yeah, drones are not allowed in National Parks, which would include Mt Rushmore, since it is a National Memorial.  Some states don't allow them in State Parks.  You can't fly them around/over large groups of people, like at a stadium or ball field.  Only the FAA controls airspace, but some state and local government entities have gotten around that by saying you can't "launch, land, or operate the controls of an unmanned aircraft" in their boundaries.  Meaning: you can fly in that area, but you can't control the drone if you are standing in their jurisdiction.  I will be studying up, but the app that connects to the controller on the Mini lets you know if you are in restricted air space and won't allow you to take off. 

Custer State Park allows you to use a drone in the park, but with some restrictions: you can't fly over groups of people, can't "harass wildlife," or fly in any unsafe manner.

Unfortunately, some dumbasses with a drone have made it bad for all the safe, competent flyers.  Drones over 250 grams of weight (about 8.8 ounces) have to be registered with the FAA... this drone weighs 249 ounces.  Intentional?  Absolutely.  Still, you have to follow all the FAA rules, regardless of the weight.  There are plenty of "toy" drones out there that weigh less and are far less capable... the FAA set that weight to distinguish the "toys" and not have to deal with them.

Not a toy, the Mavic Mini seems to be a capable flyer and able to produce decent images (12meg) and videos (2.7k resolution with a 3-axis gimble).  I am sure I will get more use out of this at home and on the road, compared to my (much) larger drone.