DJI battery voltage refers to the amount of current in the battery and the amount of electrical pressure to move electrons from the battery to the drone. The more powerful the drone, the more voltage is required to keep the motors running. More powerful motors mean that there has to be a higher electron push to provide the power required to keep them running.
DJI battery voltage is between 7.3 V to 17.5 V depending on the size of the drone and the energy requirements of the motors and drone systems. Drone battery cells should be kept above 3 V to avoid entering hibernation mode.
To simplify the concept of a volt in a battery you can think of the battery as a pipe. The voltage of the battery is the amount of water pressure in the pipe.
To demonstrate the range of voltages found in different intelligent flight batteries in the DJI range, here are all of the different voltages reported by the different drone models.
Different drone battery voltages
The current DJI range includes drones of different sizes and capabilities. The larger the drone, the bigger the motor needs to be; therefore, the batteries are often higher voltages.
Here are the voltages of different DJI batteries in the current range.
| Drone | Standard Voltage |
|---|---|
| Mavic 3 | 15.40 |
| Mini 3 Pro | 7.38 |
| Air 2S | 11.55 |
| Mini 2 | 7.60 |
| Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 | 17.50 |
You can see that the lowest standard voltage found in an intelligent flight battery is in the DJI Mini 3 Pro. The batteries are smaller because the drone ways less than 250 g and has less energy requirements than the largest drone on the list – Phantom 4 Pro V2.0.
The Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 is a much larger drone weighing up to 1388 g which requires a lot more voltage in the battery to allow it to fly for up to 30 minutes.
The intelligent flight battery of the DJI range has plenty of features that keep the battery safe and can auto balance the voltage during charging and flying.
Intelligent flight battery features (Protecting and balancing voltage)
DJI intelligent flight batteries consist of multiple battery cells. The complex chemistry of a lithium-ion or lithium polymer battery requires a little bit of processing power in the battery to keep it operational and safe.
Here are the features that allow the voltage to be maintained at a safe level for the drone and longevity of the battery/
Auto balancing
During charging, the voltages of each of the battery cells are automatically balanced.
You can view the voltage of the individual cells in the flight app.
Hibernation mode
If the battery cell voltage is lower than 3.0 V or the battery level is less than 10%, the battery enters hibernation mode to prevent it from over-discharging.
Because of the complex interactions and chemistry in the intelligent battery, over-discharging a battery will permanently damage the electrolyte of the drone battery.
How to check your DJI battery voltage
You can check the health of your DJI battery and its cells by placing the battery in your DJI drone and monitoring the cell voltage in the flight app of your choice.
In my YouTube video, below, I talk you through how to check your DJI battery health
How many volts is a DJI battery
DJI battery voltage depends on the drone model and power requirements.
Here is the maximum voltage of a few of the current DJI drone models.
| Drone | Standard Voltage |
|---|---|
| Mavic 3 | 15.40 |
| Mini 3 Pro | 7.38 |
| Air 2S | 11.55 |
| Mini 2 | 7.60 |
| Phantom 4 Pro V2.0 | 17.50 |
The numbers in this table refer to the maximum voltage of the battery. However, the lower limit of the battery is not zero.
You should always keep your DJI battery above 3.0 V to avoid it entering hibernation mode. It is probably best to avoid flying your drone if the voltage is 3.7 V or lower.
Because DJI uses high-voltage lithium batteries your battery should never drop below 4.2 V in an ideal use case.
If your battery detects that it is at risk of damage it will alert you to the problem via the app or the indicators on the front of the drone or battery.
Low battery voltage alerts
Your battery will do a lot to keep itself safe. However, many people have reported that if you do not start with a full battery at the beginning of your flight you run the risk of inaccurate warning alerts.
The voltage display colour is one way that the drone alerts you to the voltage and how long you have got left for your battery life.
Voltage display colour
The display colour of the battery level indicators will change in the DJI GO 4 App based on the different battery levels, as shown below:
The display color would be green when the voltage is 4.35 V–3.62 V, yellow when the voltage is 3.62 V–3.5 V, and red when the voltage is 3.5 V–3.0 V.
If there is no error message on the App, the battery can be used normally
Battery cell damage Protection
DJI Fly app will display a warning prompt when a damaged cell is detected. If you get a battery error like this:
Battery Error. Return home and land soon, View the checklist after landing
Your drone battery cell voltage has likely gone out of the margin required for voltages between the internal lithium polymer cells. In the example, below, you can see that one of the three cells is very different to the others.
You can check the voltage of the cells in the app by navigating to the battery information.
When is the voltage difference a concern?
Even though the DJI app will alert you to any issues with the internal cells of your intelligent or smart DJI battery you can keep an eye on it manually and a voltage difference of 0.1 V is the general rule of thumb that indicates an issue with your battery.
Deviation of the voltages in the cells typically increases with age and cycle count of the cells as internal resistance increases and excepted wear and tear occurs.
If 0.1 volt deviation happens in flight it doesn’t mean your aircraft is coming down, but if you are aware of it happening regularly, you should mark that battery that way you have a visual cue of which battery is wearing more.
Another thing to keep an eye on is the temperature of the battery as you are flying. An overheating battery is an indication that the internal resistance of the battery is increasing and it may cause a fatal error in the battery cell balancing system.
Ensuring your DJI battery voltage is stable
To ensure that your DJI battery voltage remains stable and within the 0.1 V between each cell, people recommend that you do full charge cycling and monitor your battery voltage regularly.
Cycling charge
Mavic pro pilots have been able to get around a battery error by charge cycling.
You should let the drone battery drain completely by leaving the drone on and then charging it using the DJI charger. Do not charge the drone battery via a hub – ensure that you are using an official DJI charger that came with your drone.
Cycling the charge should balance out the internal cell voltage.
If it doesn’t balance out after approximately 5 to 10 full recharge cycles, you’ll probably need a new drone battery to replace your current one.
Rules of thumb
Some other rules of thumb that are often recommended in the DJI drone flying community include:
- Never trust the battery % – always use the voltage of the individual cells
- Be sure that the cell deviation is not more 0.1 V when under load.
- Your target should be 3.5 V as you land your drone – no lower.
- Only ever start your flight with a freshly charged battery at 100%. Your voltage should read 4.2 V for each cell.
- Prepare to land at 30% or 3.7 V for each cell and be on the ground by 3.5 V to ensure that you do not over-discharge your DJI battery.
Wrapping up
This article covered everything you need to know about DJI battery voltage – what voltage means, how to ensure that your DJI battery health remains high and the rules of thumb to ensure your cells remain within 0.1 V of each other.
Looking after your battery is essential as it is the powerhouse of your drone. If you do not look after it you run the risk of premature battery ageing and electrolyte decomposition which will mean you will have to replace your batteries more often.
