The DJI Pocket 2 is a creator-friendly little camera mounted on a handheld 3-axis gimble. It can record up to 4K videos at 60fps perfectly stabilized on a mechanical gimble.
For people who go on tough hikes and don’t want to bring along a 2 lb DSLR for the cinematic shots, the DJI Pocket 2 can get the job done and is just 120g (0.26lb).
A big concern is, how is DJI Pocket 2 battery life since the battery is not removable and DJI doesn’t provide any additional batteries (like their drones).
The DJI Pocket 2 has an 875 mAh battery that provides 2 hours & 20 minutes of recording time at a 1080p 24fps setting. However, the actual recording time varies depending on your camera settings.
Let’s look at the DJI Pocket 2 battery life in detail and see how it performs in different camera settings and how you can get the best out of your small gimble camera.
DJI Pocket 2 battery specs
The Pocket 2 comes with a rather small LiPo battery with a charge capacity of 875 mAh. A single charge can store up to 6.738 Wh of energy and is charged through a USB-C port.
The battery can be fully charged in 73 minutes (1 hour 13 minutes).
As mentioned earlier, the battery is an integrated one and cannot be removed or replaced during normal use. This might seem inconvenient but I believe it was necessary to make the Pocket 2 portable.
An LED indicator blinks while the battery is on charge and turns solid green when the battery is 100% charged.
Like most LiPo cells, the DJI Pocket 2 battery can give you good 400 lifecycles before it degrades substantially (below 80% of initial charge capacity)
Battery life under different camera settings
The battery life of any camera is different under different settings. A recording at 4K resolutions consumes more juice than a 1080p recording.
Unlike other mini-action cameras like the GoPro Hero 9 or Osmo Action 2, the Pocket 2 is mounted on a motorized gimble. Depending on the gimble motion during the shoot, the battery life can vary even on similar camera settings.
Below are some of the most common camera settings and their corresponding estimated battery life.
| Recording Mode | Estimated Battery Life |
| 4K @ 60fps | 1 hour 10 mins |
| 4K @ 30fps | 2 hours |
| 2.7K @30fps | 2 hours 10 mins |
| 1080p @ 30fps | 2 hours 20 mins |
| 1080 @ 60fps | 1 hr 30 min |
| 1080p @24fps | 2 hours 20 mins |
There is an additional setting inside the camera to switch between High Quality mode and Battery saver. The High-Quality mode applies additional in-camera noise reduction processing to the shots and thus consumes more energy.
Many users argue that the difference between the two modes is barely noticeable and in some cases, the HQ mode produces worse results. I would suggest sticking with the battery saver mode to get better images and battery life.
Can I charge pocket 2 with a battery bank?
Although the Pocket 2 battery cannot be shuffled in-between recordings like the DJI drones there is one thing you can do – you can charge your Pocket 2 via a battery bank while recording.
You do not need any special kind of battery bank. Any battery bank you use to charge your phone will work perfectly to charge your Pocket 2 as well.
Battery banks can be bulky but I really like this one from Anker. I have used it to charge my iPhone and it works great.
There are a few third-party extension sticks that increase your recording time. They not only provide additional grip but have a built-in battery to extend your existing charge capacity. I found this one to be quite interesting.
DJI official Charging Case add-on
If you don’t want to carry around a bulky power bank, there is one more solution to increase the recording time of your Pocket 2.
You can use the official DJI Charging Case for Pocket 2. It will charge your camera 1.5 times and can give you additional 3.5 hours of recording time.
- Convenient spin-to-open design, allowing you to store and charge Pocket 2 instantly
- 1500 mAh battery gives you 3.5 hours of additional recording time.
- Can also hold 2 microSD cards, 4 ND filters & 2 adapters
- Lanyard hole for convenient carrying
- Compatible with DJI Pocket 2 and DJI Pocket 2 Creative Combo only
It’s a little more expensive than a regular battery bank but gives you a few extra functions. You can store 2 SD cards and 4 ND filters and 2 smartphone adapters inside the casing.
DJI also offers many other add-ons for the Pocket 2 including a Pocket 2 waterproof case and wireless mic unit. All these add-ons improve the usability of Pocket 2.
Does Pocket 2 overheat with continuous use?
Any compact device that processes a lot of data in real-time is bound to overheat. The same is the case with Pocket 2. Since it has no heatsink or air vents to dissipate heat, it gets hot when used continuously
Especially if you are using the camera in High Quality mode (which doesn’t make that much difference anyway) it gets even hotter due to additional processing in real-time to denoise the footage.
To save battery and not overheat your camera, always use it in battery saver mode especially during the daytime when there is good lighting and no noise in the footage anyway.
DJI might address this aspect of the Pocket 2 in the upcoming DJI Pocket 3 but for that we have to wait for its release date in November.
How many charge cycles the Pocket 2 battery will last?
When we talk about the battery life we also need to discuss the overall life of the battery. As you know batteries degrade with time and use and the Pocket 2 battery is not any different.
It’s a LiPo battery that will serve you between 300-400 charge cycles. If you take good care of it (no deep discharge, no storing in full or empty state) it can go beyond 400 cycles as well.
That doesn’t mean after 400 cycles, it will become useless. It will only lose 20% of its charge capacity (same concept used in iPhone and other devices). After 400 charge cycles, your battery capacity will be reduced to 80% or below.
400 cycles are A LOT. Even if you charge and use your Pocket 2 every other day, your battery will last for more than 2 years.
But most people don’t use any device that frequently.
Most people use their Pocket 2 for an occasional hike to the mountains or on a city tour and in that way, the battery will last well beyond 5 years.
DJI Pocket 2 battery replacement
The DJI Pocket 2 battery is built-in and non-removable. Although there is very little chance of your battery dying out of the blue if that happens, can you replace your battery?
I have not personally done it but I did some digging and it turns out that DJI doesn’t provide battery replacement service. If you check their repair page, there is no mention of battery while you can replace other parts.
However, you can find 3rd-party compatible batteries like this one on Chinese marketplaces. Any skilled repair shop can open your Pocket 2 and do a quick replacement.
DJI Pocket 2 battery life – conclusion
The DJI Pocket 2 is a great companion camera for your travels or vlogging. You can use it as your primary camera or as a B roll. Apart from its other features, it has considerably good battery life.
Depending upon your camera setting, your battery can last for up to 2 hours. If you are shooting in 1080p 30fps (pretty good shots with low storage consumption) it can last for more than 2 hours.
You can get the official DJI charging case to bump up the recording time or use a standard battery bank to charge the camera on the go.
I hope you find this article helpful. If you are on a verge of deciding to get your hands on the Pocket 2, I would highly recommend it. It’s a great product.