Will DJI Drones Get Banned?

The FCC has officially decided that aerial roof photos taken by DJI drones might be aiding Chinese espionage. While the agency is not immediately banning DJI drones, it voted 3-0 to give itself the authority to retroactively ban previously approved electronic devices if they are later deemed a national security threat.

In practical terms, DJI drones could be removed from the U.S. market starting December 23, right before Christmas. Home inspectors are already noticing shortages, and once the ban begins, no new DJI imports will be allowed. Existing U.S. distributors will also be prohibited from selling any remaining inventory.

There’s a strong chance DJI will attempt to rebrand or white label its drones under a different name to get around the restrictions. The Anzu Robotics Raptor series, for instance, looks nearly identical to the DJI Mini Pro 4.

This kind of move has become more common as U.S. dominance in electronics manufacturing continues to decline, largely due to higher production costs. Huawei phones were banned in 2019 for similar reasons, and Chinese electric vehicles are produced so cheaply that the average new EV in China costs around $25,000. By comparison, the average cost of a new vehicle in the U.S. is roughly $50k. The U.S. recently imposed a 100% import tariff on Chinese EVs, effectively matching that of a Tesla.

For home inspectors, this means that if you’re planning to buy a drone, you’ll soon need to consider non-Chinese options. After using the DJI Mini Pro 4 with InspectSnap, it’s clear that the only features that really matter for inspection work are fast, simple photo transfers and a controller with a clear camera view. Everything else is just marketing. The DJI era might be coming to an end, but the tools inspectors truly need will remain the same.