It appears that the earlier leaks of DJI prepping up to launch an upgraded variant of last year’s Mavic Air 2 aerial drone were indeed accurate. As of recently, the company has officially unveiled the new Air 2S, which comes with improved optics, features and more.
Albeit looking mostly similar to its predecessor, DJI has included an extra pair of front obstacle avoidance sensors to the front of the drone. Combined with the original sensors, the new addition features “binocular zooming” which enables the drone to identify obstacles both from a greater distance and at faster speeds.
While we’re in the subject of safety features, complementing the aforementioned sensors is the DJI’s Advanced Pilot Assistance System (APAS) 4.0 for improved autonomous maneuvering around, under and over obstacles. As with other recent drones released by the company, the new Air 2S also comes with an improved Return-To-Home (RTH) feature when it loses contact with the pilot or reaches a critically low battery level, GEO 2.0 geofencing system to advise pilots from entering restricted airspace, and the AirSense system which warns pilots of nearby aircraft by detecting their ADS-B signals.
In terms of range, the new Air 2S is able to fly as far as 12 kilometers away, thanks to DJI’s OcySync 3.0 (O3) video transmission technology for a stable connection between pilot and drone. The company noted that the drone’s flight time is only at 31 minutes, which is a couple of minutes less than its predecessor. It is also much heavier, coming in at 595g – 25g more than the Mavic Air 2.
The biggest highlight on the DJI Air 2S is its new 1-inch imaging sensor. It is capable of shooting stills at 20MP, as well as videos in 4K resolution at 60fps and 5.4K at 30fps. The new sensor enables for higher zooming as well; where shooting in 4K allows for 4X digital zoom, 6X zoom for 2.7K resolution, and up to 8X when recording at 1080p. The camera’s video recording capabilities also supports three colour profiles: 8-bit, 10-bit D-Log, and 10-bit HLG. Other onboard video enhancement and subject tracking features by DJI include Spotlight 2.0, ActiveTrack 4.0 and Point of Interest 3.0.
Then finally there’s the new MasterShots feature, that enables the drone to automatically record a video while following a designated flight path. Upon completion of the flight, it will automatically merge the footage under one theme to create “an eye-catching video.” For reference, you can check out Camera Jabber’s demonstration of the feature in the embedded video below.
The new DJI Air 2S aerial drone is now locally available from the company’s official website and authorised retail partners. The standard combo which includes the drone, remote controller, a single battery and necessary cables and parts is priced at RM 4,499. Meanwhile, the Fly More Combo retails for RM 5,799 and includes everything from the standard package along with two additional batteries, ND filters, a charging hub and a shoulder bag.
(Source: DJI Malaysia press release / official website)
