After several iterations over the years, what improvements could one ask for from DJI’s professional drones? Well, the latest Mavic 4 Pro now comes with a fresh design and upgraded features to elevate the aerial photography experience.
What’s most apparent, once you get it up in the air, is the drone’s sleeker, more aerodynamic body, which is paired with a redesigned gimbal that allows greater freedom of movement.
This gimbal houses three cameras, including two zoom cameras, and offers smoother control compared to previous models. Its flexibility opens up new creative possibilities, such as Hitchcock-style shots and vertical image capture for social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
This is done without needing you to crop the image, similar to the earlier DJI Mini 4 Pro. The 360-degree sphere image will cover the top of the drone, something earlier drones could not do due to the overhang housing the obstacle-sensing cameras.
One standout feature for the Mavic 4 Pro is the camera system. At the core is a powerful Hasselblad-branded 100-megapixel micro four-thirds CMOS sensor capable of recording 6K video at 60 frames per second and 4K at 120 fps, ideal for slow-motion footage.
The new DJI drone includes two zoom lenses for capturing distant subjects in great detail – a 48-megapixel 1/1.3-inch sensor with a 78mm focal length and a 50-megapixel 1/1.5-inch sensor with a 168mm focal length at full-frame equivalent.
At a recent launch event in Singapore, my zoom tests produced detailed images of tourists milling around the Merlion across Marina Bay, showcasing the drone’s new capabilities.
Creating custom panoramic shots is easy too. Just dictate the starting and ending point of the scene and the drone automatically captures and stitches them together to form a panorama. I’m working on more in-depth reviews with the main camera, especially in low-light conditions.
The obstacle-sensing system has also been refined to perform better in dim lighting, and the drone’s new arm design ensures propellers won’t interfere with sensors, thus reducing crash risk.
One practical feature is the ability to view exactly what each camera of the system is capturing on the controller’s screen, which helps pilots stay aware of their surroundings mid-flight.
The Mavic 4 Pro pairs with the new DJI RC Pro 2 controller, which features a 7-inch tiltable screen that can switch between vertical and horizontal modes. This makes it especially convenient for content creators focused on vertical video formats. The new controller’s joysticks now retract into the controller body for easier packing, eliminating the hassle of unscrewing and storing them separately.
Flying the Mavic 4 Pro feels familiar for experienced pilots of DJI drones so the learning curve is not steep. During testing, it remained airborne for over 40 minutes, so there’s plenty of time to get various still and video images.
However, not everything was perfect. I noticed there was signal interference in the Marina Bay area, despite DJI touting its new communication technology. Of course, you also have to consider Singapore’s congested airwaves in the central business district area.
Weighing in at 1,063 grams with the battery, the drone is large and heavy enough to require registration in many jurisdictions, including Singapore, so that’s something to remember before purchase.
How much does it cost in Singapore? The new DJI Mavic 4 Pro is out now, bundled with the new controller and two batteries for S$4,419. You can also go for the cheapest option that comes only with the DJI RC 2 controller for S$2,799.
