The smart AI-powered camera drones are the dream of every tech enthusiast, and no spying on your neighbours is not a good idea, sometimes it’s fine, but not every time.
Coming to the topic, the successor of the famous Mavic Air 2 is finally here, and its name is the Air 2S. The new machine brings a lot of camera muscle at the same price as the Mavic Air 2.
The drone now has a 20MP 1-inch CMOS with 2.4μm-sized individual pixels – compared to the 1/2-inch 48MP sensor on the Mavic Air 2 and its 0.8μm pixels. It can capture up to 5.4K (5472×3078px) footage at 24/25/30fps from the full width of the sensor and 4K up to 60fps (compared to Mavic Air’s 4K@30fps) at a slight crop. The DJI Air 2S also captures video at a higher 150Mbps.
The zoom-in capacity of the device is also increased, and it can video capture in 4x in 5.4K and up to 8x in 1080p. The Air 2S is also serious about video colours with Normal 8-bit, D-Log 10-bit, and HLG 10-bit capture.
In terms of looks, the design of the new member is quite similar to its predecessors, and the battery capacity of 3,500mAh has also been kept unchanged. However, the Air 2S is 25g heavier than its predecessor and has a reduced flight time estimate of 31 minutes – down from 33 minutes.
The extra weight is due to the addition of two sensors on the front of the Air 2S. These sensors enable something that DJI calls “binocular zooming”, which means that the drone can see obstacles farther and at higher speeds.
The new Air 2S also supports the latest OcuSync with a maximum control range of 12km and can do something called MasterShot, which combines all pre-programmed trick shots in a single action – select the target and let the drone do all the work.
The new DJI Air 2S is on sale now, starting for $999/€999. The prices will fetch you the drone, a single battery + charger, 3 pairs of propellers, and the DJI RC-N1 controller. Moving up to the $1,299/€1,299 Fly More combo adds three batteries, four ND filters, and a shoulder bag.
