The leading manufacturer in the drone biz, DJI recently unleashed a pocket sized drone which they call the DJI Mavic Air. This drone looks like a cross between their high-tech Mavic Pro and the entry level DJI Spark.
The Mavic Air shares a lot of similarities with it’s elder brother the Mavic Pro but in a small and foldable form factor. The drone is less expensive too and is priced at $799.
You get all the accessories straight out of the box including the drone’s remote controller, a battery, four pairs of extra propellers, two pairs of propeller guard and a carrying case.
You can also opt for the Fly more combo which comes with additional accessories like two extra batteries, six pairs of propellers, a travel bag, a power bank adapter and a charging hub. This package will cost you around £949.
If you are having a hard time in deciding whether you should pick up this drone for yourself or not then don’t look any further as here is everything you need to know about the DJI Mavic Air:
• Design:
Looking at the Drone you will realize that the company has put a lot of thought into the design and the built quality. The foldable arms make the Mavic Air a lot portable and easier to carry which is a feature that the Spark lacked. Basically, the Mavic Air looks like a squished up Mavic Pro.
It weighs only about half a pound and is currently the most portable drone by DJI. There is a subtle improvement in the controller, now you can unscrew the joysticks and store it in a tiny place inside the controller which gives it extra portability.
• Camera:
Now let’s talk about the camera on this tiny beast. It is a 12 megapixel f/2.8 wide angle shooter that can capture stills and can record video in 4K resolution at 30 FPS. The video that comes out of this device is buttery smooth thanks to the all new three-axis mechanical gimble.
The Drone produces perfect videos for cinematic vlogs and tour guides. There are few auto modes which will allow you to shoot professional looking videos even if you are a beginner. Like the ‘Quickshot Asteroid’ mode will zoom out of the target and will produce a tiny planet effect by stitching together a spherical 32 megapixel paranorma.
• Sensors:
If you are a rookie and are worried about crashing your expensive new drone while flying then you are in luck as there are total seven cameras and IR sensors onboard which will help the Mavic Air to maneuver easily in compact areas.
According to the company, the algorithms have been optimized and with more sensors, the drone will better track objects and make for a 3D map environment which will improve precise hovering and flight performance.
The all new Advanced Pilot Assistant System (APAS) will help you easily control the drone and. even the area is there are many obstacles too close it will just likely come to an abrupt stop – which is still better than a head-on crash. This setting can be toggled ON or OFF in the DJI GO app.
The SmartCapture Gesture Control is present and seems to be improved. This feature will allow you to control the drone by just using your hand gestures like you can bring your palms close to each other to make the drone draw towards you and move the palms away to make it go back. You can also click a selfie by holding up the peace sign or making a frame with your thumb and fore finger.
• Range And Battery Life:
The DJI Mavic Air’s max range using your smartphone WiFi is 50 meters high and 80 meters away. The range can be stretched out to 4 kilometers if you use it with the DJI controller.
On a full single charge, the drone can provide 21 minutes of flight time which is pretty impressive. An additional feature is the 8 Gigabytes onboard storage, though you should still carry a micro SD card as the storage will get full within minutes if you record videos in 4K.
• Final Verdict:
The DJI is currently ruling the drone industry and is almost competing with itself. The company has made the GoPro out of the running and quit the drone business.
The DJI Mavic Air is shaping up to topple the current drone king, it is certainly not a cheap drone but it is the best options for those who want all the features of the Mavic Pro in a portable package. It shoots best quality videos and will take your aerial photography game to the next level.
Hey Stan,
Great post on the Mavic Air. I agree that it is a great drone. I’m sure the gestures control will be improved in next generation drones not only by DJI but also by its competitors.
I also love its design, since these days, portability is a crucial feature on everything.
Something you mentioned that got my attention, is that GoPro is now out of the drone business. I did not know this, but I think it was not too hard to think that could happen.
I remember when drones started, GoPro was the perfect fit for the most expensive models, but one thing that bothered me (and I think I was not alone in this) is that you had to buy a GoPro camera separately (which means more money spent) to have the full drone capabilities active.
DJI rapidly saw that, and expanded their market domination by releasing high quality drones with the camera included inside the box. I’m not sure but I think prices were not affected by this (I could be wrong), which is very good for the end user.
I hope DJI keeps doing this and as the technology gets more affordable, these drone models are reachable to more people as well, since drones are really changing the way we understand and interact with the world.
Thanks for the great post!