so ive been going back and forth on this for like three weeks now and im driving myself crazy reading spec sheets. i mostly fly on weekends, hiking trips, occasional family stuff, nothing professional. i had a Mini 2 for about two years and loved it but the camera always felt a little limiting especially in low light situations.

the Mini 4 Pro seems like the obvious upgrade from where i am but then every time i think im settled on it i see someone say the Air 3 dual camera setup is a game changer and now im second guessing everything again. the price jump is pretty significant for me so i dont want to just guess. anyone actually used both or switched between them? real world stuff not just what the dji website says

had the Air 3 for about 8 months now and honestly the dual cam thing is more useful than i expected. i thought id mostly ignore the 3x tele but i end up using it constantly, especially for wildlife stuff where you just cant get close. the omnidirectional obstacle sensing on the Air 3 also feels noticeably better in tight spots compared to what the Mini 4 Pro has, though both are pretty good.

that said if youre mainly doing wide landscape shots on hikes the Mini 4 Pro is genuinely excellent and the size advantage is real when youre stuffing things into a pack. i dont think you can make a wrong choice here honestly but if low light was your pain point with the Mini 2, both of these are a massive step up. the Air 3 sensor is bigger though so if that matters to you its worth the stretch.

i went with the Mini 4 Pro after the same debate and im happy but i wont pretend i dont occasionally look at Air 3 footage and feel a twinge lol. for hiking the weight thing really does matter more than i thought it would before i owned it. fits in basically any bag.