DJI has launched a new model in its drone lineup. The DJI Mavic Air is priced at $799 (approximately R 9,500) which falls between the pricing of the DJI Spark and DJI Mavic Pro. The drone will be available for sale from 28 January 2018. The DJI Mavic Air inherits its features from both the higher-end Mavic Pro priced at $999 (approximately R 12,000) and cheaper Spark, which is currently available at $399 (approximately R 5,000). This new drone is a mixture of the premium features of Mavic Pro such as longer flight times and 4K video shooting and comes in a compact size like the DJI Spark.
With regards to specifications, the built-in camera using a 1/2.3-inch sensor in DJI Mavic Air shoots 4K videos and with a wide-angle 24mm f/2.8 lens it can capture 12-megapixel images. It can also capture 32-megapixel panoramas. The camera on the drone is mounted on a newly designed three-axis gimbal. The Mavic Air also has a redesigned ventilation system that DJI claims keeps it from overheating.
The maximum flight time is around 21 minutes – five minutes more than the Spark and six minutes less than the Mavic Pro. On the other hand, the Mavic Pro Platinum, an upgraded version of the Mavic Pro is capable of 30 minutes of flight time.
With the DJI Mavic Air, you will be able to reach speeds of up to 68.4 kilometres per hour while withstanding winds of up to 38 kilometres per hour. The drone also features Advanced Pilot Assistance Systems (APAS), which is an obstacle-avoidance software.
The drone also features a microSD card slot alongside 8GB of inbuilt storage. You can also now save photos and videos directly in the drone. For exporting files the drone has a USB 3.0 Type-C port. The DJI Mavic Air comes with a dedicated remote controller. It also brings in special features like SmartCapture, QuickShots, and ActiveTrack. The drone comes in three colour variants – Arctic White, Onyx Black, and Flame Red.
