Why I ended up going with the Phantom 3 Standard?

I did a lot of research when deciding on what drone to buy. I ended up going with the Phantom 3 Standard due to US government regulations: you can’t fly more than 400 feet in the air or make your drone beyond your line of sight, which made it unnecessary for me to buy a super high-end drone if I couldn’t use it to its full extent. So I just needed something with a decent camera and a good control.

My Phantom 3 Standard arrived on time. You can detach the quadcopter’s battery from the quadcopter and charge it separately. Meanwhile, the controller also needs to be charged. You stick your smartphone in a clamp at the top of the controller the way you may put it in a holder on the top of your car dashboard for map directions.

The quadcopter comes with stickers so you can replace the red bands. At first I didn’t know how to use it so I wasted my bands by putting them on top of the red ones, not realizing I could remove the red bands first. I ruined my pink bands that way.

Some random facts for people who have never owned a drone:
-You can’t use these to spy on people because they’re loud. Not leaf-blower loud (thank goodness), but hair dryer loud. A lot of people who don’t own drones talk about using them to spy on people so that’s why I brought it up.
-You do have to register your drone, but it was 5 bucks and the registration lasts 3 years so I wasn’t bothered.
-It is fairy light. The weight of a filled coke bottle or so. When I carry it around I can stick my arm through the leg handles as if it were a weird plastic handbag.

As for flight, the quadcopter has its own SSID when you turn it on. You go into your phone, connect to the SSID, and that connects your phone to the quadcopter. You go into the DJI GO app and you will see a livestream through the app.

Now, nothing can be poking your camera. That means a completely flat surface, not grass, because the grass will keep the camera from turning which then means the drone automatically will not fly. It took me a while to figure that out. That can be annoying when you’re testing it out in a park so I wish there were a way to override that and say go ahead and fly anyway (or maybe there already is? I have my drone on beginner mode).

Flying is automatic. You drag your finger across a bar on the screen and the Phantom 3 Standard rises on its own. Landing is the same way–your drone can be a few hundred feet in the air and you just have to slide your finger across the screen and it descends slowly and carefully. In that sense it’s idiot-proof, although once I flew the drone into a wall on a windy day so it’s not completely idiot-proof, heh. Nothing broke but the propellers got a little scratched up, there’s a black smudge that I can’t get rid of no matter how hard I rub with soapy wet cloth.

The battery lasted me maybe up to 30 minutes but it starts shutting down at around 30%. I get a good 20 minutes of flight out of it though. I find myself staring at the phone’s live feed. The live feed lets you either take pictures or start recording a video, so I like to fly up and then slowly turn the drone with the video recording on. I don’t know whether I can include sound, as all my videos have been silent, but there are a lot of features so maybe I haven’t discovered it yet. Best of all the live feed measures the height and distance from the controller you are holding: that way you can see whether your drone is 100, 200, 300 feet in the air and you don’t break government regulations. I don’t dare fly above 200 because I’m paranoid it will stop receiving signals from my controller.

You can also put a radius limit so that if you try to take your Phantom 3 Standard beyond that distance it will not go any further. If you keep trying to make it go beyond that point it will simply hover in place. Great protection for a newbie like me.

Now, the wind can screw things up for you because the Phantom 3 is fairly light. The wind once blew my Phantom 3 into a wall, another time into a bush. Thankfully both accidents happened pretty low so then Phantom 3 fell only a few feet. The actual quadcopter is fine, only the propellers are a bit scratched up.

Overall it’s an excellent product, I just wish I lived somewhere where I have more excuses to use it.

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Phantom 3 SE vs Xiaomi Mi drone 4K:entry-level drone at war

DJI has just released a somewhat brand new drone called the Phantom 3 SE, while the Xiaomi Mi drone 4K will go on sale at March 3. Many people maybe not sure which one to go with, we’ve decided to do a comparison of features and specs.

MAXIMUM SPEED

The Phantom 3 SE has a claimed top speed of 57 km/h, while the Xiaomi Mi drone 4K can fly up to 57.6km/h.

Winner: Xiaomi Mi drone 4K

MAX FLIGHT TIME

The DJI Phantom 3 SE can fly for 25 minutes, and the Xiaomi Mi drone 4K can fly for up to 26 minutes.

Winner: Xiaomi Mi drone 4K

MAX DISTANCE

Both of them have claimed a max distance of 4km.

Winner: Tie

CAMERA

Both the DJI Phantom 3 SE camera and the Xiaomi Mi drone 4K are capable of 4K video. The former is capable of shooting both JPEG and DNG photos, while the latter could shoot JPEG and RAW photos.

We won’t know how the image quality of the cameras compare until they’re pitted against one another.

Winner: Uncertain (for now)

STABILIZER

Both drones feature a gimbal for 3-axis stabilization.

Winner: Tie

INTELLIGENT FLIGHT MODES

The Phantom 3 SE will return to you at the press of a button.Built-in GPS records your Phantom’s takeoff point and remember it as you fly. Then at your command, or if the control signal is ever lost, your Phantom comes back to you instantly.

There are also the drone-standard features you would expect, including takeoff, landing, return to home and point of interest functionality.

Xiaomi Mi Drone 4K has an auto-pilot feature included along with the easy to use flight controls. It has automatic takeoff and is also capable of landing and returning to you with just a simple command from the handheld controls.

Winner: Uncertain (for now)

PRICE

The Phantom 3 SE costs $430 while The Xiaomi Mi Drone 4K costs $460.

Winner: Phantom 3 SE

Conclusion

Both of them are entry-level drone with an afforable price. DJI is the old brand and professional, but Xiaomi drone is one of the new players in the drone industry. So consider well before buying.

 

 

 

 

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Why I choose the yuneec Q500 as my first drone?

If you are shopping your first drone, or you are searching a drone which is easy to fly and has a noticeable camera. Then I’d like to recommend you the Yuneec Typhoon Q500, just as I choose the Typhoon Q500 as my first drone.

When we choose drones, one model rules the skies. DJI’s Phantom drone, the Phantom 4 in particular.

Though similar in size, weight, and price, the Typhoon is no Phantom knockoff. It’s not a Phantom killer, either. Both have their strengths, and which one is best for you depends largely on what you plan to do with it. The Typhoon’s camera produces excellent results, and while the drone is slower and more sluggish than others, it’s remarkably easy to pilot. It’s a drone for people nervous about trying to control a $1,200 piece of flying equipment.

The Typhoon Q500 looks a bit more aggressive than DJI’s shining happy drones, with sleeker lines and a back end that resembles the head of the space-creatures in Alien. It’s also larger than the more familiar Phantoms, and made of plastic far flimsier than I’m used to seeing. That’s partly due to the fact that the Typhoon Q500 landing gear (and gimbal) can be snapped off with no special tools and stored in a much flatter package.

Unlike DJI’s offerings, the Typhoon’s base controller ships with a built-in screen in the form of a small Android device sporting 480p resolution. On one hand, it’s nice not to have so many different parts to keep track of. But there’s no way to add a bigger, clearer screen when, for example, a new iPad mini is released (the mobile device I currently use with the Phantom 3).

The screen is bright, though flying in direct sunlight remains difficult. To be fair, that’s true of every screen I’ve ever used to fly a drone. Yuneec helpfully includes a sunshade that attaches, awkwardly, to the controller with suction cups. It doesn’t completely solve the problem, but it does help.

I found the controller familiar enough to all but eliminate a learning curve. First-timers should have an easy time with it. The Typhoon’s video and still image capture buttons are chunkier than anything I’ve used, but that makes them easier to find without looking down at your hands. The included app is intuitive enough that I never cracked the manual. The touch screen is responsive as well, which is good because some of the menus and buttons are really tiny.

The Typhoon’s flight control system is great overall, it makes flying dead simple and trumps everything I’ve used save the new controller for the Phantom 3.

If you are a green hand, Yuneec Typhoon Q500 is quite a good choice.It might take a fairly skilled pilot to take advantage of all these options and features, but at the end of it all, it’s more than worth it.

 

 

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To anyone thinking the Phantom 3 Standard is substandard

The Phantom 3 Standard review is from Amazon.

THE GOOD: To anyone thinking the Phantom 3 Standard is substandard. I own one and love it. It is the perfect drone for a first-time pilot, and I know several experienced pilots who buy the Phantom 3 as backup drones. The main limitation of the Standard is that the range it can fly is about half of the higher up models, and it uses fewer GPS signals and has no downward looking visual “eye” like the Advanced and Pro, so it will drift more up down and sideways (but not a whole lot) and not land quite as accurately at the take off point automatically. I give mine a 15-foot radius for safety in landings and sometimes it will land 10-12 feet from take-off point on auto-land. Advanced and Pro stay within 2-6 feet usually. The controller is more limited with older technology. BUT the Phantom 3 standard flies just as fast, and as high, takes just as good video and pics and is just as much fun as the $1000 models for 1/3 the price. In the beginning, you always want to fly within line of sight (Standard’s limitations keeps you there) and legally you are ALWAYS supposed to fly line of sight.

THE BAD: DJI leads a new user to believe all the built-in guidance system will do everything for you from takeoff to landing. And it will, until it doesn’t. That will happen, not and if – it is a when… you have 3 sensitive components talking to each other (controller / drone / smartphone) using both Wi-Fi and radio, plus very sensitive onboard compass and GPS. This overly complicated plumbing will fail at some point and it can happen even a few feet away. At that point, you need to switch to manual control immediately – and hope you have time. I have had compass errors happen 3 feet off the ground in auto land and the dreaded “crazy flying meat slicer with 4 exposed blades” needed to be grabbed by the landing gear to stop it from hitting things as it got confused and would not respond to the controller. By the way: A pair of chef’s slice proof gloves is a great idea at take offs and landings, don’t ask how I know.

RULE NUMBER ONE: Always be prepared for the unexpected! Like flying a private plane the phrase “hours of calm punctuated with seconds of panic” applies here. Best advice for new pilots – learn to do everything manually first – especially landing – because at some point you will need that skill and need it FAST! Also never ignore the long boring preflight compass calibration. I do it every time I set up for flight. Not only does it recalibrate your compass – more importantly – it warns you if there are magnetic disturbances. If there are – my advice is pack it up and move elsewhere, or fly totally on manual control. Ignore any of those warning at your own risk. Compass or GPS warnings for a new pilot mean WAIT or RELOCATE.

SAFETY: Never forget how dangerous these drones are. 3 pounds with spinning blades plummeting from 400 feet is a deadly weapon. Don’t fly over people or roads. Warn folks near by to be aware of the drone. A drone, under the right set of circumstances with a simple malfunction could kill a pet or a human. It’s like owning a gun, be responsible or don’t own it. Never do like these YouTube folks and fly it miles away to see how far it can go or push the limits to see how fast you can swoop over a crowd of people. That is inviting disaster.

THE MIDDLING – should the worst happen with the Phantom 3 Standard, and you make a fatal flying error – more likely when a new pilot – then you are out only $400 or so max, instead of a grand, and actually less if you sell the remaining controller and battery etc. on eBay. Every piece of a DJI is worth money and easy to sell, so pick up the pieces if you can. If you can find your crashed drone DJI may fix it under warranty if it was the drone’s fault, but don’t count on it. DJI at this point in time has horrible support, if that changes, it would be wonderful. I would buy a 3rd party crash warranty over DJI’s coverage any day of the week, if that is important to you.

NICE PART: Battery lasts longest of all the DJI P3 models in the Standard version by 2 – 3 minutes because of fewer sensors. If you step up to a Phantom 3 Pro – batteries and case can come along (But not Phantom 4) and at $100 plus per battery, that is good news. Eventually you will want 3 or 4 batteries so you can fly an about hour with juice to spare for landings, trust me.

BOTTOM LINE: Most of the “Bad” I listed applies to any drone, from $49 to $5000. You can watch at least 3 videos on YouTube of folks crashing $3000 DJI Vision Drones on their very first flight, despite the Vision having much more tech and more sensors and collision avoidance. Sensors or not, if you tell it to go into a wall because you are disoriented and unfamiliar with the controls, it’s going to do what you say. This sad story happens every day. This is why I don’t encourage a new drone pilot to drop a grand or more on a first drone. Fly a while first and you will never get that disorientation that can cost you a fortune, as you will understand the principles and react instinctively to the inevitable unexpected situation. On the other hand, most any drone any cheaper or similarly priced as this is not a “real” drone, so you can’t take as many of the skills with you when you step up. Many drones in this price range have nothing better to step into. Once you learn to fly a DJI and get familiar with their software and controllers – you can fly their whole line pretty much. I haven’t yet mentioned the excellent camera that makes me often joke “for the price of a GoPro, I got a comparable camera with a stabilizing gimbal that flies.” Put all this together and that is why, in my opinion, this is the BEST DEAL in drones right now – by far.

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DJI Phantom 4 tutorial

In this article, we will guides you in getting the best results from DJI Phantom 4.

I’ve put together a video tutorial for achieving the best video settings on the DJI Phantom 4. Watch the above tutorial if you haven’t already, it features a nice cinematic intro. (All Phantom 4 Footage)

So having used the Phantom 4 on my last two trips abroad I was able to familiarise myself several of the video settings. My aim is always to try and get the best out of these drones where possible. I noticed quickly that the Phantom 4’s colour profiles are different to that of the Phantom 3’s. I actually prefer the D-LOG footage from my Phantom 3 than compared with the Phantom 4, it seems sharper and less muddy. Both my Iceland and Norway videos were shot on the P4 in D-LOG, you can see there are some nice scenes and some scenes where the software has failed to pick-out the detail. Whereas on my Phantom 3 D-Log footage I’d say it’s more consistent but can also depending on the natural light suffer in areas.

White Balance

One reason Auto White Balance is a ‘No No’, the color temperature can jump around in the same clip. This can look very unprofessional, use a Custom white balance of around 5600K which is quite neutral. It is easy to adjust again in Premiere using the Lumetri Colour System.

Recommended Phantom 4 Video Settings

I recommend shooting in any of the following Colour profiles :

• DJIColor (None) with a custom Style of either -1, 0, -1 or 0, -1, -1
• D-CineLike with a custom Style of either -1, 0, 0 or 0,0,0
• Art -1, 0, 0 or 0,0,0

Try to keep the variables to either plus or minus ‘1’ or ‘0’. That way we know our image should be more balanced.

Extra Tips for Editing Workflow

I can suggest if you have the time and hard drive space to convert your drone clips to ProRes HQ 422. This will give you more latitude for colour correction in Premiere, Final Cut and Davinci Resolve. If you have the Adobe Creative Cloud, use Adobe Media Encoder to transcode the h.264 drone footage to ProRes 422 HQ.

( Via rcgeeks )

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Xiaomi mi drone first flight test

Announced with technical characteristics, the Xiaomi mi drone is a competitor to the DJI Phantom 3.

The cardboard of the Xiaomi mi drone is relatively flat, which may seem surprising for a drone of this format. This can be explained by seeing the retractable landing gear which manually unfolds. It is therefore not intended to rise automatically when you fly, but rather for easy storage. Then you will notice the slightly different format compared to a DJI drone that forms a perfect X.

Then you find all the accessories to load the Xiaomi mi drone, notably with its charger of 1.5A and a power of 46.4W. It will recharge the 4S 5100mAh HighVoltage 17.4V battery. This battery weighs 442 grams and offers up to 27 minutes of flight according to Xiaomi.

The propellers are in the 1046 format, which means they have a length of 10 “and a pitch of 4.6”. They are called self-locking, for quick fixing by screwing them on each of the motors. The screw threads are not linked to the propellers, it can be tedious to fix these … To protect them we find protections of orange propellers to fix with the provided screws. For this, a screwdriver is included, but you will not be able to count on it for very long in view of its fragile design.

The camera was delivered to us separately, which confirms that the Mi drone remains the same in the version 1080p and 4K. Only the version of the camera changes according to your choice. The camera can be fixed easily under the drone by removing a small hatch, and by coming to the clip. We have not recorded any images yet, but the features look correct: Sony sensor of 12.4Mpx, lens with field of view of 104 ° and a video recording rate of 20Mbps. In version 4K, which we have not received yet, the field of view will be limited to 94 °, but it will have a recording rate of 65Mbps.

The remote control has five buttons, a smartphone holder and two USB ports. It is lit by the power button, pressing briefly and then pressing down. The diode will remain red until the drone and the remote control are connected. A take-off and landing button is available to perform these actions automatically. It will also remain red as long as you have not established the connection between the drone and the smartphone application. The orange button on the top of the remote control allows you to activate the RTH mode. Simply moving this button will automatically return your Mi Drone to its take-off point. Two adjustable buttons, A and B, are present at the rear of the radio control. The USB port allows you to connect your radio to your smartphone, and the microUSB port recharges the battery. The remote control has an internal battery that is recharged using the supplied USB cable on a 2A power supply.

To fix a smartphone, it is enough to extract the support integrated to the radio control, and to place it between the two fixations. This system is well thought out and will save you even more space during transport. Unfortunately you will not be able to fix a tablet since the distance is 8cm max … The two antennas will therefore be oriented downwards since the support smartphone does not allow to leave them up.

Our first flight test

We downloaded the latest version of the application, unfortunately in Chinese, to carry out our first tests. On Android, it is necessary to download the APK from the QRcode available in the manual. Once it is installed, registration to an account Mi is mandatory. Then it will be necessary to activate the sharing of your connection via USB, in order to update the radio control. For the time being, we have remained there since the application has stopped working at each of the attempts we have made. And yes, despite our many attempts on different media (tablet or smartphone) the application never managed to work properly … Xiaomi is working on it? We hope…

Do not worry, we still managed to steal the Xiaomi Mi Drone by downloading an English version of the application and taking advantage of the short time before the application closes … To start the engines it is imperative that the automatic take-off light changes to white. Once this is the case, then you press this button twice, once short, then a second long. The Mi drone then takes off on its own. Once in flight, the behavior is rather surprising with unwanted altitude losses when the drone is within two meters of the ground. This is certainly due to the analysis of the two sonars present under the drone probably disturbed by the tall grass. Once you reach altitude then the drone behaves normally.

We hope to see a stable version of the application in English soon to fully enjoy all the features of the Xiaomi Mi Drone!

Sure the drone is priced at $460 USD for the 4K version and $380 for the 1080P version. This may be a result of most drone manufacturers already making thin margins on most products to date.

When comparing the Xiaomi Mi drone against offerings by DJI. The lowest end Xiaomi Mi drone that will sell for $380 is comparable in many ways to the DJI Phantom 3 Standard that currently retails for $499.

Conclusion

The Mi Drone has potential that unfortunately can not yet be exploited because of its smartphone application which is not stable. We look forward to the upcoming updates and we will track the price evolution based on Xiaomi ads.

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Hover Camera Falters in Wake of Phantom 3 Standard

Norm Chan is a vlogger from San Francisco who reviews the latest technology. Chan took a look at the Hover Camera from Zero Zero Robotics.

The Hover Camera is a portable drone that is small enough to fit in a handbag. Priced at $599, it’s an entry-level aircraft that may attract an audience that is new to flying drones.

The Hover Camera has a unique and easily identifiable design. Out of the box, it is shaped like an average-sized book but unfolds to reveal propellers that are elegantly protected. The Hover has a downward sonar sensor to know how far it is from the ground. Theoretically, the Hover Camera should be able to hold its position. Unfortunately, it does not use GPS for positioning like the Phantom 3 Standard, which is renowned for its accuracy in the air.

The Hover Camera is controlled with an mobile device app and has a range of 20 meters. The Phantom 3 Standard uses the fully-featured GO app and the range is 1000 meters, fifty times that of the Hover.

The Hover Camera’s 13 megapixel camera can take 4K video but the camera can only be pitched up 30 degrees or down 90 degrees. It does not have the full-range camera movement options of the Phantom 3 Standard. The Phantom has a 3-axis gimbal, which makes video capture very stable. Any effect of wind or vibrations are cancelled out by the motorized gimbal.

Chan discovered several issues with the Hover including its stability outside, the tracking capabilities, and quality of the camera. Specifically, the Hover Camera does not have enough processing power on-board to provide high quality video and the aircraft struggles to remain stable in wind. “Not very impressive,” Chan comments.

The Hover battery lasts for about 10 minutes, whereas the battery flight time of the Phantom 3 Standard is an impressive 25 minutes.

The Phantom 3 can record in 2.7K and 1080p and the aircraft gives you proven multiple intelligent flight options. With the Phantom you can live stream in 720p to your smartphone from the camera and you can broadcast your stream to social media. This capability is unavailable on the Hover.

The wealth of features of the Phantom 3 priced at only $499, $100 less than the Hover Camera, makes it a challenge for many consumers to justify opting for the latter.

Chan found that the flight features referred to as Face Tracking and Body Tracking did not perform in all conditions. “Where the Hover does fail is in the promise of subject tracking and delivering good quality video,” Chad said. It remains ironic, then, that those very features are often touted as the main selling points of the Hover aircraft.

In conclusion, while the Hover Camera Passport has some interesting features, it can’t match up to a trustworthy drone like the Phantom 3 Standard.

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The Most Complete Aerial Cameras Development History (II)

Yesterday we have published “The Most Complete Aerial Cameras Development History (I)” in which we focused on the core point—camera and analyzed the development history of previous drones carrying a GoPro, Panasonic GH4 or Sony A7. The results show that the all-in-one design is necessary because it’s better for flight experience and the combination of cameras with video transmission and app can make the operation and parameter settings more convenient.

Now taking DJI as an example, this article will explain what independent attempts the drone manufacturers have made in recent years to realize “all-in-one aerial photography”.

I. 【The First Ready-to-Fly Drone】Phantom 2 Vision

The Phantom 2 Vision released on October 2013 is DJI’s first all-in-one drone carrying an independent R&D camera—the DJI FC20. This ready-to-fly drone has unfolded the all-in-one design trend, freeing the consumers from installing gimbal camera and setting video transmission signal. Afterwards, a series of drones released by DJI and other drone manufacturers start to follow the “all-in-one” design trend.

This drone camera uses a 1/2.3-inch CMOS sensor and supports 14 megapixel RAW and JEPG photo shooting and 1080 30p/60i video recording. Besides, its built-in single axis gimbal can be used for tilt stabilization. So it is literally the first “gimbal camera”.

Half a year later, DJI released Phantom 2 Vision + equipped with a 1/2.3 CMOS senor and 14 megapixel camera, but smaller and more delicate appearance. Moreover, the built-in gimbal improved a lot in that the previous servo was replaced by brushless motors and the stabilization effect was enhanced by a 3-axis gimbal.

II. 【Clearer and More Flexible】DJI Inspire 1

In November 2014, DJI released its professional drone Inspire 1. This drone with an awe-inspiring transforming design is equipped with Zenmuse X3, the first Zenmuse series camera which improved a lot in image quality and parameter adjustment.

This camera features 4K video shooting and offer various parameter adjustment options, such as 100-3200 ISO scale and shutter speed. The camera lens comes with 20mm infinite focus length and wide angle. Compared with motion cameras, it is specially optimized to eliminate distortions for aerial photography. Besides, the 3-axis gimbal with retractable landing gears enables a full 360⁰ unobstructed view and allows separate pilot monitoring and camerawork, enabling flexible and multi-angle shooting.

III. 【Let Your Creativity Fly】DJI Phantom 3 Series

So far, DJI has released four Phantom 3 Series including Phantom 3 Professional and Advanced in April 2015, Phantom 3 Standard in August 2015 and Phantom 3 4K in January 2016. Similar in appearance, the Phantom Professional and 4K supports 4K video shooting while the Phantom Advanced and Standard only supports 2.7K video shooting. Compared to the Phantom 2 Series, the Phantom 3 Series cameras have made a qualitative leap in their image quality. The cameras on Phantom 3 Series all have 12 megapixel sensors and 20mm f/2.8 lens, which can rival DJI Zenmuse X3.

IV.【Aerial Camera】Zenmuse X5 & X5R

In September 2015, DJI released two professional aerial cameras, Zenmuse X5 and X5R compatible with Inspire 1. As the updated version of Zenmuse X3, Zenmuse X5 and X5R can also work with DJI Matrice 100 and DJI Matrice 600.

As the best in DJI’s independent R&D cameras, Zenmuse X5 & X5R are equipped with the M4/3 sensor, a significant progress compared to the previous 1/2.3 sensor.

Zenmuse X5 & X5R can take 16 megapixel photos with 12.8 stops of dynamic range. High lighting ratio allows Zenmuse X5 & X5R to capture images with stunning details. And the ISO range from 100 to 25600 empowers Zenmuse X5 & X5R with higher image sensitivity and better noise reduction performance compared to previous cameras. Besides, Zenmuse X5 & X5R support LOG mode shooting. In addition, Zenmuse X5 & X5R come with interchangeable lens compatible with several M4/3 lenses through the MFT mount. Zenmuse X5 & X5R feature a maximum aperture up to F/1.7, Focus Remote Controller and video streaming at 4K 30p and 1080 60p. X5R mainly differs from X5 in that X5R can record 4K RAW Cinema DNG sequence, uses DJI’s SSD for storage with 1.7Gbps average bitrate, allowing more space for post-production. This is really an exciting surprise for filmmaking professionals who expect higher image quality.

V. 【Professional Advancement Thermal Imaging Camera】Zenmuse XT

Three months later, DJI released the thermal imaging camera Zenmuse XT which can be mounted on the Inspire 1, Matrice 100 and Matrice 600. Zenmuse XT made specifically for industrial application offers two different resolution ratios (640*512 and 336*256), 6 lens options with different focus length and digital zoom up to 8x. The Zenmuse XT is a joint product created by DJI and FLIR. As the global leader in infrared thermal imaging technology with 50 years’ experience, FLIR has produced thousands of thermal imaging systems applied in different industries over the world.

VI. 【Visionary Intelligence, Elevated Imagination】Phantom 4

In March 2016, DJI released the latest Phantom 4. Compared to earlier generations, the Phantom 4’s aircraft performance has been significantly improved with remarkable breakthrough in obstacle avoidance. Just as DJI’s founder Frank Wang said, “The sexiest drone that DJI ever designed, welcome to the era of VISION.” Regarding the imaging system, the Phantom 4’s biggest progress lies in that it supports 1080/120p video recording. Besides, the optimized lens enables clearer images with stunning details with the distortion degree reduced by 36% and colour aberration decreased by 56%. Featuring a specially designed U-frame structure, the Phantom 4’s gimbal enables the camera to capture more stable and smooth footage even during high-speed flight. So to speak, the Phantom 4 is a perfectly designed all-in-one drone.

VII.【Zoom Camera】Zenmuse Z3

In July 2016, DJI released the first zoom drone camera, the Zenmuse Z3 with 22-77mm equivalent focal length and 7x zoom obtained by 3.5x optical zoom and 2x lossless digital zoom (only under 1080p mode). The 2x lossless digital zoom here means that compared to the digital zoom technology based on pixel interpolation algorithm, the Zenmuse Z3 won’t lose image qualities when you zoom in the 4k footage. Thanks to the reaction wheel stabilization technology, Zenmuse Z3 can capture clear and stable footage even at long focus. The Zenmuse Z3 can be mounted on the Inspire Series, Matrice 100 and Matrice 600 and it is made specifically for industrial application.

In only three years’ time, from the single axis gimbal camera FC20 to the current 4k RAW aerial cameras, we can see that DJI has been striving for higher image quality to meet the users’ demand as well as the industrial development trend.

Will DJI make major breakthroughs in aerial cameras in the future after it becomes a shareholder of Hasselblad? What improvements can be made for the aerial imaging system? Whether there will be any aerial camera solutions that can rival DJI in the drone industry? For more details, please stay tuned to us.

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Yuneec Breeze aims for sky already covered by DJI Phantom 3 Standard

Yuneec Breeze,the starter RC quadcopter from Yuneec, falls short.

Initial marketing says the Yuneec Breeze is an RC quadcopter for beginners with a price just shy – and marks an important entry point for casual drone users who want some close-up aerial video and photos.

That seems wonderful until you realize that the DJI Phantom 3 Standard claimed that title and space more than a year ago. At the same time, the low-cost entry-model Yuneec Breeze has some major limitations.

The maximum flying speed of the Yuneec Breeze for example is 5 m/s—mostly because of software-imposed limitations linked to the smartphone app controller. That is significantly slower than the 19.4 m/s for the bulky Yuneec Typhoon H hexacopter, which isn’t all that great either.

And flight time of the Yuneec Breeze is about 12 minutes, compared to around 25 minutes for the DJI Phantom 3 Standard and the same for the Typhoon H. The beetle-shaped Yuneec Breeze is also called a “selfie drone” for a reason; you need to keep it at arms-length to avoid getting a hand caught in one of the unprotected blades. The Yuneec Breeze unit is compact and is certainly divergent from other Yuneec models such as the Q500 4K.

Still, the smaller Yuneec drone lacks a collision sensor, an intelligent rechargeable battery or a dedicated controller for solid gimbal handling, thereby making the Yuneec Breeze cheaper for a reason. It is true that mastering a flight controller may be more of a challenge for users used to phone screen touch commands.

But that touch pad ease has a downside too, as the range is limited to about 80 m before the phone WiFi signal gets choppy, potentially sending the Yuneec Breeze on its way to home base, or worse, a flyaway.

And as a review on Stuff says, the short range goes with the short battery life, which itself is another hidden cost because a spare is certainly needed.

“Admittedly, you won’t get far before the Breeze’s battery life gets you, either,” Tom Morgan writes. “Twelve minutes per charge really isn’t a lot, so it is a good job the battery pack is removable. You only get one in the box, so it might be worth picking up a spare if you’re going to be out all day.”

Morgan also wonders about the comparison of the Yuneec Breeze to the $499 DJI Phantom 3 Standard, which does have lower specs than models such as the DJI Phantom 4, but also comes with more features and a dedicated controller and also works with most phones.

Skimping on features does help lower the price, but it also makes the Yuneec Breeze a poor comparison with other low-end models that retail for as little as $99. There is certainly a market for a reliable beginner drone that can allow close-up video and photography—it just seems that the Yuneec Breeze has missed that spot.

 

 

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DJI Mavic Coupon code!?

Now many great DJI drones are out there to choose from.Here are part of drones come with DJI Coupon codes to save a lot for you. Don’t forget to use.

Inspire 1

Price:$1999 ( 5MDG9H4F )

The DJI Inspire 1 is probably one of the most advanced quadcopters I’ve ever seen. There isn’t much that the Inspire 1 CAN’T do. it comes standard with all of the features of the Phantom 3 Professional, but with a much bigger, cooler and higher quality design. It’s almost twice as big and twice as fast as the Phantom 3 and with it’s transforming design, the propellers will almost never be seen in your videos. Additionally, the Inspire 1 comes with a 4K camera on a 360 degree panning gimbal, which means that you can control the motion of the camera completely independently of the Inspire 1. This makes it great for dual pilot operation, but also for getting locked in shots in almost any wind conditions.

For Professional video use, the Inspire 1 comes in two other variants with superior image quality to even the most expensive aerial platforms in its size. If you need a high quality camera for shooting pro quality video The Inspire 1 Pro is a version of the Inspire 1 that features a micro-four-thirds 4K camera with 13 stops of dynamic range, interchangeable lenses and a sensor that’s 8 times larger than the standard Inspire 1 camera. If you’re looking for an even higher end solution, DJI now offers the Inspire 1 Raw, featuring a 500GB SSD and 4K Raw video recording for working in professional post-production environments. The great thing about all of the inspire 1 models is that the camera is detachable, so even when your not in the air you can use cameras like the X5R with DJI’s Osmo to get professional ground shots as well.

If you want to learn more about the Inspire 1, you can find a ton of info about it in this article: ” WHY YOU’D WANT TO GET AN INSPIRE 1 INSTEAD OF THE PHANTOM 3? “.

Pros

• 4K video recording
• 360-degree camera rotation
• Excellent operating range
• Very fast
• Superb carbon fiber build quality
• Separate flight and camera control possible with second remote
• Removable, upgradeable camera
• Vision Positioning System for indoor flight
• Includes carrying case

Cons

• Bulky
• Roughly 15-minute flight time per charge with standard battery

Phantom 4 

Price:$1199 ( MCBRYFU9 )

The DJI Phantom 4 is a small quadcopter that measures about two feet from wing-to-wing and weighs 3 lbs. A 5,350 mAh (milliAmpere-hour) Intelligent Flight PH4 battery powers the aircraft’s electronics, four motors, and camera. The Phantom 4 has a non-detachable camera that puts out 12+ MP (MegaPixel) photos and 4K UHD (Ultra High-Definition) video. The Phantom 4 flies up to 45 MPH and as long as 28 min. The Phantom 4 camera shoots 1080p in slow-motion 120fps (frames per second).

The Phantom 4 also uses advanced satellite navigation and hi-def live streaming. The US Global Positioning System (GPS) and Russian GLObal NAvigation Satellite System (GLONASS) can geo-locate the Phantom 4 anywhere on the globe. Even better: DJI’s integrated “Lightbridge” system allows the aircraft to live-stream HD video to a user from over a mile away. See more about how the Phantom 4 stacks up to its predecessor at our Phantom 4 vs Phantom 3 page.

Pros

• Easy to fly
• Extremely stable
• Obstacle avoidance
• Incredible operating range with 720p Live View
• Return-to-home and other safety features
• Automated flight modes
• High-speed Sport mode
• Smooth 4K video capture
• 20mm wide-angle lens
• Subject recognition and tracking
• Raw and JPG still capture

Cons

• True mission planning requires third-party app.

Phantom 3

Price:$499 (PFV2GSZ5)

If you’re looking for the easiest drone to fly with the most flight time, features and great video quality, the Phantom 3 is the only option that I would recommend to just about anyone. There are a few other drones that have similar functionality to the Phantom 3, but nothing else is going to give you a great all around experience with all of the most popular features for the same price.

When I flew the Phantom 3 for the first time, all I could think was “this thing flies like a mini Inspire 1!”. It’s much more stable than the Phantom 2 and the video quality is exactly the same as the inspire 1, however there are some big differences between them. If you aren’t sure which one to buy, read this article comparing the two.

Pros

• Very stable in the air.
• Easy to fly.
• Smooth 2.7K video capture.
• 20mm wide-angle lens.
• Raw and JPG still capture.
• Relatively affordable.
• Built-in GPS.
• Return-to-home function.
• Automated takeoff and landing.

Cons

• Propellers intrude into footage
• Battery requires more than an hour to recharge
• Requires Android or iOS device

Mavic Pro

Price:$999 (Not available now,but it can ship within two weeks if you order now)

Rather than have a large, rigid quadcopter design, the Mavic Pro is foldable, and it’s small enough to fit in your bag. Similar to the GoPro Karma drone , the four quadcopter arms fold in to the body, but do so in a very neat and incredibly compact fashion.

Although it’s small, don’t let that fool you in to thinking it isn’t powerful and full of top-notch features. For instance, it can last up to 27 minutes in flight on a full battery, and it takes less than a minute to set up and calibrate to get it flying. Mounted to the 3-axis stabilisation mount is a camera capable of recording up to 4K resolution at 30 frames per second, or full HD up to 96 frames per second.

It has a minimum focusing distance of 0.5m and a 12-megapixel sensor equipped with the ability to take still RAW pictures tuned purposefully for aerial imagery. Perhaps more impressive is that the new transmission system has a range of up to 4.3 miles and can live stream 1080p footage directly to Facebook Live, Periscope, and YouTube through the connected DJI GO app.

To immerse you more in to the experience of flying the drone, DJI says its new gadget will pair with a new set of immersive DJI goggles. With these on your face, you’ll see 90-degree view straight from the drone’s camera in 1080p.

Pros

• Small, foldable design
• Obstacle avoidance system
• Sharp, distortion-free stabilized 4K video camera
• 12MP Raw and JPG stills
• Records in portrait or landscape mode
• Compact remote control
• Strong operating range
• Orbit, follow, and other intelligent flight modes
• 23-minute flight time

Cons

• Requires a smartphone for full experience
• Unable to take off from grass in testing
• Not as steady in strong wind as Phantom models

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DJI Phantom 3 vs the Xiaomi Mi Drone:Which one I should buy?

I raised a question on Quora that should I buy the DJI Phantom 3 or the Xiaomi Mi Drone? Here are some answers for you if you also don’t know which one to choose.

#”The Xiaomi, as a brand new product, is definitely a risky choice. With the price point where it’s at, and the incredible specs, I can see why you would be interested in buying it. However, the DJI Phantom 3 series offers comparable specs at basically the same price point. DJI is the biggest player in the game, and they have excellent service and reliability.

I have dealt with these Xiaomi lowball products before, with the Yi Action Camera, and was pretty disappointed with the quality of product I received. I got it at the same price as the Gopro Hero, but it had higher specs. Despite this, The footage was basically the same. I would have much rather had the reliability and versatility of the GoPro if the video quality was the same.

I would suggest that you read as many reviews as possible. I’ve had my Phantom 3 Standard for two month now and I am very happy with my purchase.

One thing to keep in mind, that I noticed when looking at the specs, is that the descent speed for Xiaomi Mi drone is a painstakingly slow 1.5 m/s. I already thought mine was slow, at 3 m/s. I think the 2 extra minutes of battery life would be spent on landing, because it will take twice as long, which is a big deal if you flew high.”

#“If you are a beginner for drone or have the higher requirements on drones, of course DJI drones are the best options for you. You can choose from the beginner drones like DJI Phantom 3 standard(Buy Phantom 3 Standard | DJI Store) to the high end drones Inspire pro(Buy Inspire 1 Pro | DJI Store).

Xiaomi Mi drone is a new drone product, it may satify your basic aeriel photos, but there are some uncertain factors like the photos’ quality.

So I would like to suggest you buy DJI phantom series and or you can wait for the matured Xiaomi Mi drone.”

#“The DJI Phantom 3 Standard is a more tried and tested model and has better support in terms of spare parts and troubleshooting. The Xiaomi Mi drone however has better specs in many areas such as a longer flight time (27 vs 25 minutes), better range (2000m vs 1000m), has a larger field of view and also is much more portable which makes traveling with it much easier.

I would recommend the Xiaomi Mi drone for the price, however the price is higher now than it was initially advertised to be selling at, so it is not quite the bargain it was initially advertised to be.”

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