DJI O3 aerial unit
MSRP $230.00
“The DJI O3 Air Unit is a versatile image transmission and capture system for the FPV hobbyist.”
Avg
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Excellent image quality
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Excellent transmission power and clarity
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Perfect for creative FPV control applications
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20 GB of built-in storage
Against
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It overheats without constant air movement for cooling
Although I have many years of experience operating drones, I have hardly ventured into the waters of more advanced and technical first-person-view vehicles (FPVs). This is the perspective from which I reviewed the DJI O3 Air Unit, a camera and image transmission system designed for hobbyists who don’t mind getting their hands dirty with screwdrivers and soldering tools.
Testing the O3 Air Unit was an eye-opening experience in the challenging but very rewarding world of building and operating FPV drones and other RC devices. It took a lot of trial, error, and general troubleshooting — all in the quest to answer whether the O3 Air is something reserved for dedicated hobbyists, or whether more casual drone and RC enthusiasts would do well to consider taking advantage of the exciting possibilities it presents.
The design of the DJI O3 aerial unit
Andy Zahn / Digital trends
The O3 Air unit is a very simple system without a foundation. It contains a camera, an antenna and a portable unit — and these three components are connected by cables. The core of the device has a port designed to connect to a compatible flight controller, as well as USB-C and microSD card slots, plus a pairing button.
The construction of the DJI O3 Air unit is extremely robust and of high quality, although it is not waterproof. The compact nature of the high-performance device is such that it needs every bit of airflow it can get for cooling.
DJI O3 aerial unit setup process
Practical with the DJI O3 Air Unit
Getting the O3 Air unit up and running was a journey, although none of my difficulties were the fault of the unit itself. Instead, my trials and tribulations were the result of early firmware and my own inexperience with wiring and hobbyist remote control (RC) drones.
First I needed to power the device. This could be done most easily by simply connecting the O3 Air unit to a compatible flight controller. However, I lack such a flight controller, and my primary interest in the O3 Air Unit is as a device with which to experience ground-based RC vehicles. With that in mind and after a lot of research, I ended up ordering a 500mAh LiPo battery, a charger, and an adapter to go between the battery and the charger. I also bought a connector to connect the battery directly to the O3 air unit.
Connecting the battery connectors was the only tricky and technical aspect of this project, as it involved cutting the power and ground wires on the O3 Air unit and soldering them to the connecting connectors.
With this kit, I was able to turn on the O3 Air unit successfully for the first time. Here I want to give a big shout out to GetFPV.com for their excellent customer support, helping me figure out what parts to order.
Andy Zahn / Digital trends
If you plan to follow a similar path as I did with the O3 air unit, I recommend buying a high quality charger as you don’t want to mess with LiPo batteries. Also, if you’re building a low-speed vehicle, or if you plan to mount it in a location where the air unit won’t be exposed to a significant amount of air circulation, you should also plan to include some sort of cooling fan.
After I was able to power the O3 Air unit, I still had to pair it with my DJI Goggles 2 and controller. I was really struggling with it, but after a quick chat with DJI, we narrowed it down to pre-boot firmware, and after a quick update for the controller, headset and air unit, I was up and running. I quickly attached the O3 air unit to the RC race car using packing tape and took it for a spin around the garage.
Andy Zahn / Digital trends
With this successful test, I upgraded my setup to an RC monster truck, using double sided mounting tape and electrical tape to secure the truck cab. The O3 air unit worked admirably in this setup, although unfortunately the monster truck wasn’t as off-road capable as advertised.
Andy Zahn / Digital trends
I then put the O3 Air Unit to more traditional use as a drone camera, glued to the top of my DJI FPV drone. I was worried that the tape might not be strong enough, but luckily it turned out to be rock solid. Both the drone and the air unit performed great, although in the future I plan to mount the air unit at a better angle on the DJI FPV drone so that the propellers are out of sight.
DJI O3 Air Unit image quality
DJI O3 Air Unit vs DJI FPV Drone vs DJI Avata vs DJI Mavic 3 Classic – Video Quality Comparison
With the ability to record 4K video at 60 frames per second (fps) and 2.7K video at 120 fps, the O3 air unit is quite a powerful videography tool. With RockSteady image stabilization similar to that found in the DJI Action 3, the O3 Air Unit can serve as a suitable replacement for the action cameras commonly used by FPV drone pilots. This is potentially huge, as it means serious weight savings and thus improved performance in situations where every gram counts.
It’s a big improvement over the original DJI Air Unit in terms of image quality and a big improvement over the camera integrated into the DJI FPV drone. It is about the same as the DJI Avata camera, although in the next setup of this camera I intend to add some foam or rubber between the O3 Air Unit camera module and the RC vehicle to dampen vibrations and achieve a smoother shot.
Performance of the DJI O3 Air Unit
Andy Zahn / Digital trends
I’ve never had any reason to complain about the transmission quality or power of the O3 Air unit. Using the DJI Goggles 2 with it, I never experienced any noticeable lag or signal loss, although it should be noted that I never pushed the limits of its range. I used it like I would FPV drones in the real world, where I always make sure to stay in line of sight. However, I’ve driven it with RC cars with a solid wall between me and the car and haven’t experienced any signal loss or degradation.
The really impressive aspect of the O3 Air unit is its 20GB of built-in storage.
One significant problem I ran into was overheating, as I alluded to earlier. To be clear, this is a system designed for use with drones traveling at high speeds through the air. However, the rate at which it overheats is somewhat alarming when it is not actively cooling. This makes the O3 Air Unit quite difficult to update, and I ended up running my NiteCore BlowerBaby Air Purifier over the O3 Air Unit during the troubleshooting and setup process. When flying a drone, this is not a problem, and there is an automatic shutdown that occurs if the device overheats.
The really impressive aspect of the O3 Air unit is its 20GB of built-in storage. This may be the most built-in memory I’ve personally encountered on a camera of any description, and having this option as a microSD card backup can be a real lifesaver.
DJI O3 Air Unit price and availability
Andy Zahn / Digital trends
The DJI O3 Air Unit is available now and retails for $230, which includes the camera module, transmission module, antennas, and 3-in-1 cable. This is actually a pretty attractive price, given its capabilities, although it’s important to note that you’ll also need a headset like the DJI Goggles 2, which retails for $650.
If you’re starting from scratch, you also need to consider the cost of what you’ll be attaching the O3 Air Unit to. The battery, adapters and charger I bought cost me a total of $102, which is the bare minimum to get the O3 Air unit up and running. I spent an extra $30 on a cheap RC monster truck, but after being disappointed by the poor performance of this bargain junk truck, I’d recommend spending at least double that to get something with good power and shocks.
If you opt for a drone instead, which is more the intention of the DJI O3 Air Unit, expect to spend a few hundred dollars at least on the drone itself. All told, a complete FPV setup built around an O3 Air unit will cost at least around $1,000. That puts you in the DJI Avata range, which I would recommend to beginners who are just getting into FPV drone flying.
A versatile system for FPV hobbyists
Andy Zahn / Digital trends
The DJI O3 Air Unit is a clear winner when it comes to image transmission for FPV control of drones, cars and RC vehicles of various descriptions. While it’s certainly aimed at the hobbyist-minded with some degree of technical knowledge, the learning curve isn’t so steep as to seriously limit its accessibility.
It is almost undeniable that the O3 Air Unit will become the de facto camera of choice for die-hard FPV drone pilots. It is a camera that tickles the imagination and is suitable for creative projects. It’s reliable, powerful and delivers excellent image quality that’s good enough to replace a stand-alone action camera.
Editor’s recommendations
Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn