Because the Mini 3 series of drones are so compact, lightweight, and capable of taking great photos and videos, many enthusiasts, including, but not limited to hikers, mountain climbers, trail riders, mountain bikers, world travelers, and content creators reach for the Mini 3 and Mini 3 Pro to capture their surroundings.
With Live-Streaming currently being so popular, it’s encouraging to see DJI adding this capability to the DJI Fly app, which the Mini 3 line can benefit from.
In this article and the included YouTube video, we will go over, step by step, how to set up the DJI Fly App for the Mini 3 series to Live Stream via YouTube and also the necessary YouTube settings needed to do so.
Note: The instructions for live streaming in this article are also applicable to the DJI Air 2S and Mavic 3 lines of drones.
Live Streaming Use Cases
As a drone operator, one might wonder why you would want to stream a flight over YouTube, or any other Social Media outlet.
Content Creators
Live streaming drone flights is an excellent tool for Content Creators that focus on drones, since audiences online, ie Youtube, Instagram, Facebook, etc, oftentimes prefer live videos over videos that have been pre-recorded.
Going this route can raise the chances of the creators’ live videos ranking higher in searches than prerecorded videos, thus reaching more people.
Also, having a regularly scheduled, drone-related live stream helps build follower loyalty as the content creator can connect with the audience more and build anticipation for regular releases.
Service Professionals
Others that benefit from live-streaming drone flights would be those who use drones on a professional level. These individuals include those that do large commercial real estate shoots and document large construction projects.
In both of these industries live streaming has proven useful to show clients, located at long-distance locations, live and on-demand footage of certain pieces of property and critical areas therein.
Oftentimes, these are properties the clients might not have time to either visit themselves or wait for footage to be compiled and then sent over electronically for viewing at a later date.
How to Live Stream on YouTube
To stream via YouTube, aside from the Mini 3, there are 2 things needed:
- The DJI Fly app
- A YouTube account
To live stream, we will be using the DJI RC-N1 remote controller to run the DJI Fly app, as the DJI RC is currently not able to live stream.
Note: If you are live streaming via YouTube for the first time, upon starting the initial process of streaming, there will be a 24-hour verification and initialization period. Once the timeframe has expired, you should be able to live stream.
Copy the YouTube Stream Settings
The first thing that needs to be done for those streaming for the first time on the DJI Fly app is to copy the YouTube stream key and stream URL.
As long as these settings are not changed in your YouTube account at a later time, the stream key and URL will stay in the DJI Fly app and be correct.
STEP 1: Open YouTube on your PC or Mac. Make sure you are logged into the YouTube account you’d like to stream through.
Press Create, then select Go Live.
STEP 2: At the “YouTube Live Control Room” screen you are presented with two options pertaining to when you’d like to go live: Either Stream Right Now or Stream at a Later Date.
Choose “Right Now” by tapping START, so as to get the Stream Settings.
STEP 3: At the “Pick the type of stream to begin” screen, choose Streaming Software, and press GO.
Note: The Streaming Software option enables you to use DJI Fly as the streaming software.
STEP 4: You should now be in the Stream Settings tab.
Write down or copy to notepad or apple notes, the following two pieces of information to add to the DJI Fly app. Alternatively, you can input this information into the DJI Fly app while YouTube is open:
- Stream Key – Press the “eye” to Show Stream Key
- Stream URL – The rtmp address required for the RTMP protocol
After you have this information, feel free to edit your streaming details and information, shown below.
Input the YouTube Stream Settings in DJI Fly
STEP 1: Open the DJI Fly app and go to the settings screen. Tap on the Transmission tab and select Live Streaming Platforms.
STEP 2: Select RTMP. This is the protocol used to live stream.
STEP 3: Input the RMTP Address (Stream URL) copied from the YouTube settings earlier, along with the Stream Key.
Note: There are two different options for the Resolution and the Bitrate. If your internet connection is fast, use the 1080p and 2Mbps options. If you are experiencing slow internet, use the 720p and 1 Mbps options.
STEP 4: After the Resolution and Bitrate options have been set, press START.
Your live stream will count down, letting you know it will start in 3 seconds.
To verify that the live stream has started and is in progress, there is a notification at the top of the DJI Fy screen confirming the status.
TO STOP THE LIVE STREAM: Tap the notification and hit Exit.
You’ll be given a confirmation to end the Livestream.
