DJI Drone Waypoint Support
Many DJI drones do support waypoint navigation. Waypoint navigation allows one to program a drone to fly to specific GPS locations or waypoints, enabling automated and precise flight paths. This feature is particularly useful for mapping, surveying, and inspection applications.
To use waypoint navigation on a DJI drone, one needs to use either the DJI GO or Fly app or a third-party app such as Litchi, Dronelink, or Maven that supports waypoint navigation. It should be noted that DJI's implementation of waypoints should be considered a proof-of-concept only. Yes, it works, but it is difficult to do any serious work with it. Third-party apps such as Litchi, Dronelink, and Maven provide many more advanced mission planning features than what is available in the DJI apps.
It's important to know that not all DJI drones support waypoint navigation. Additionally, there are two primary implementations of waypoint navigation: "on-board" (firmware-supported) or "virtual-stick commands" (VSC). On-board waypoints are loaded to the drone prior to flying the mission and are executed autonomously by the drone without the need for a constant connection between the controller and the drone. Virtual-stick waypoints commands are sent from the controller to the drone in real-time necessitating a constant connection between the controller and the drone. On-board waypoint missions tend to result in much smoother execution than virtual-stick waypoint missions.
If waypoint navigation is a required feature, it is important to understand the different implementations and which drones support them. Researching each drone model's specifications and abilities is strongly recommended prior to purchasing a drone to ensure that it has the desired features.
Current Status of DJI Drone Waypoint Support
| Drone Release Date | Drone Model | Waypoint Support | SDK | Litchi Support |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr, 2015 | Phantom 3 (all) | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| May, 2016 | Phantom 4 (all) | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Sep, 2016 | Mavic Pro | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Nov, 2016 | Inspire 1/2 | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| May, 2017 | Spark | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Aug, 2017 | Mavic Pro Platinum | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Jan, 2018 | Air | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Aug, 2018 | Mavic 2 Pro/Zoom | On-board | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Oct, 2019 | Mini | VSC | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Apr, 2020 | Air 2 | VSC | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Nov, 2020 | Mini 2 | VSC | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Apr, 2021 | Air 2S | VSC | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Jun, 2021 | Mini SE | VSC | MSDKv4 | Yes |
| Nov, 2021 | Mavic 3 | On-board | No | No |
| May, 2022 | Mini 3 Pro | VSC | MSDKv5 (Android only) | Beta |
| Sep, 2022 | Mavic 3 E/T/M | On-board | MSDKv5 (Android only) | Beta |
| Nov, 2022 | Mavic 3 Classic | On-board | No | No |
| Jan, 2023 | Mini 3 | VSC | MSDKv5 (Android only) | Beta |
| Mar, 2023 | Mini 2 SE | No | No | No |
| Apr, 2023 | Mavic 3 Pro | On-board | No | No |
| Jul, 2023 | Air 3 | On-board | No | No |
| Sep, 2023 | Mini 4 Pro | On-board | Q2 2024? | No |
| Apr, 2024 | Mini 4K | No | No | No |
| Oct, 2024 | Air 3S | On-board | No | No |
Key to information displayed in the table above
- On-board: Waypoint mission is supported by firmware. Entire mission is loaded to drone prior to execution.
- VSC: Litchi waypoints supported by "Virtual Stick Commands". Litchi missions require constant connection between drone and controller. No DJI waypoint support.
- MSDK: Mobile Software Development Kit. A library of functions created by DJI to enable 3rd party control over selected drone functions.
- MSDKv4: Version 4 of the MSDK. Last release: 4.16.4 2022-11-11 (Android). Supports both IOS and Android.
- MSDKv5: Version 5 of the MSDK. Last release: 5.3.0 2023-04-07 (Android). Supports Android only.
References
- WikiPedia DJI Mavic
- DJI's Plan for Consumer Level Aircraft
- MSDKv4 / MSDKv5 compatibility
- MSDKv4 Release Notes
- Litchi
- Dronelink
- Maven