The Drone Files

Some two years ago, Hubsan released the X4 H107D. It became the world’s smallest FPV toy quadcopter to feature 5.8GHz video, quickly turning into a novelty as other manufacturers continued to favor the less reliable WiFi FPV due to lower costs.

This made the X4 H107D the only true blue micro FPV drone in the market at the time. Although way more advanced than its rivals, it was sold at an exorbitant price which put it beyond the reach of many enthusiasts.

Now, things are getting a little bit more exciting in the micro 5.8GHz FPV market.

Enter the WLToys Q242G — the latest and currently most affordable micro 5.8GHz FPV quadcopter around. Priced at just $81 at GearBest.com, the Q242G is about half the price of Hubsan’s latest X4 H107D+ Plus — successor of the H107D. Although the Q242G is no match for the H107D+ in terms of features, it certainly comes close.

In fact, it’s very similar to the earlier H107D in terms of specifications. The Q242 also comes in a cheaper WiFi variant — the Q242K, priced at $58.48.

Specifications

• Dimensions: 80 x 80 x 40mm
• Diagonal motor distance: 95mm
• Motor size: 8.5mm
• Weight: 52g (with battery and camera)
• Flight time: 5 to 8 minutes
• Battery: 3.7V 400mAh Li Po
• Charging time: approximately 60 minutes
• Control distance: 30 to 50m
• Transmitter power: 3.7V 500mAh (removable)

On the surface, the Q242G looks really good. It has a sleek body with a matte black finish that looks like a scaled-down version of the Walkera Scout X4. At the bottom of each motor are spiky landing legs made of silicone which do a good job in absorbing impact during hard landings. They are, however, a bit too bouncy and if your Q242G comes down hard on the ground, it may just flip over.

The Q242G’s propulsion is handled by 8.5mm motors paired to 55mm blades — a powerful combination considering the size of this micro quad. Perhaps one of the most impressive features of the Q242G is its battery which employs a push-to-install design similar to what you’ll find on smart batteries used on more expensive drones such as the Phantom 3.

To install the battery, simply slide it into the battery compartment at the rear until it clicks. To remove the battery, press on the mini latch and pull the battery out. The Q242G’s battery is a very neat aspect of its design and gives it a premium look and feel.

However, there is one thing conspicuously missing on the Q242G — a power switch.

Transmitter

In my opinion, the most impressive feature of the Q242G is not the quad itself but the transmitter. It’s quite rare to come across a transmitter this good-looking in sub-$100 toy quadcopters. The Q242G’s transmitter has a premium look and feel to it and you’d be forgiven to think that it came with a quadcopter that cost twice as much.

Taking center stage on the transmitter is a 5-inch display with collapsible sunshade that does an excellent job in shielding the display even when it is really bright outdoors.

The transmitter has rubberized grips for both hands which feel really good. At the front is the power switch and the various trim buttons. At the rear is the spacious battery compartment which houses a 3.7V 500mAh battery with a JST connector which provides just enough power for about 2 to 3 FPV flights. This is probably not enough for most people but fret not for the battery compartment is large enough to take batteries that are at least twice the capacity.

Considering that the 5″ display takes up a lot of power, I’m surprised that WLToys did not provide a power switch for it. If you intend to fly the Q242G without looking at the FPV screen or if you plan to fly it with a pair of FPV goggles, there is no way to turn the display off.

Overall, despite this flaw, I’d still give WLToys two thumbs up for providing such a cool transmitter with a sub-$100 toy quadcopter.

FPV Performance

The Q242G comes with a 2MP camera with built-in 5.8GHz FPV transmitter which is the key selling point of this toy quadcopter. Unlike other toy drones that use WiFi for their FPV video downlinks, the Q242G’s FPV transmission does not suffer from horribly slow latency.

Optical quality of the 2MP camera is reasonably good and is what you’d expect from a toy-grade product. One thing that I’d like to highlight is the Q242G’s built-in micro SD card slot which lets you record videos and photos on the drone instead of on your smartphone or FPV display — which is the method used by many other toy drones in the market today. This approach is by far the better way of doing it since recording your camera files on a remote device is a method that is susceptible to all kinds of problems such as signal interference and lags.

The WLToys Q242G has a built-in 5.8GHz FPV transmitter.

The FPV range, with the supplied FPV monitor, can reach up to 100m without obstructions. However, there is some flickering that starts at around 30 to 40m. This flickering gets worse as the distance increases and is probably due to poor signal reception in the FPV monitor itself and a puny low power FPV transmitter on the quad. With a hobby-grade 5.8GHz receiver on a separate monitor, I was able to get flicker-free reception up to 100m. The problem with signal interference at such distances isn’t really a big issue. Being such a small micro quad, you wouldn’t want to fly the Q242G further than 40m anyway.

The camera’s only drawback, in my opinion, is its narrow field of view (FOV). This narrow FOV may not be a problem to some people but if you intend to fly the Q242G in tight spaces such as a small apartment, the narrow FOV can make it very challenging.

With a narrow FOV and flying purely on FPV, you can’t see what’s on the left or right of your drone, making it extremely difficult to estimate the clearance that you have around unless you happen to be a very talented drone pilot.

Having said that, the Q242G is very much at home in open wide spaces such as a soccer field. As long as there is a lot of space to maneuver, the narrow FOV will not be an issue.

Flight Performance

As mentioned earlier, the Q242G comes with an impressive motor and propeller combination that provides it with some serious propulsion. In the air, the Q242G feels very planted and stable with its 8.5mm motors providing plenty of thrust when needed. Where speed and power is concerned, the Q242G simply blows away most other drones in its size category with the exception of micro drag racers such as the UDI U841.

Aerial flips are also swift and impressive and the Q242G is able to recover very quickly from each flip.

Having such powerful motors isn’t without its flaws. The motors are so powerful that they can twist, mangle or even rip off the propellers during a crash, especially when you forget to throttle down so be careful when flying in tight spaces with plenty of obstacles around.

Three speed modes are available on the Q242G and they can be toggled via the left shoulder button on the transmitter. There is no visual indicator of which speed mode you’re in. Pressing the left shoulder button will result in beeps which tells you which mode you’re in. One beep indicates speed mode 1 while 2 beeps indicate speed mode 2 and so on.

Detaching Propellers

After several dozen flights with the Q242G I began to realize its biggest and most serious flaw — the protruding plastic tops of its motor enclosures. Due to these protruding tops, the propellers cannot be fully plunged into their motor shafts, causing them to detach in mid flight.

This problem did not come to light during the first few flights. It was only on the 7th or 8th flight that I witnessed a propeller detaching itself in the air. From then onwards, without fail, at least one or two propellers will detach in mid air at every flight. A quick search online revealed no other Q242G users facing the same issue although I did find a review video of one relatively new Q242G detaching a propeller in mid air.

I’m not sure if this is a quality control issue that affects only my copy of the Q242G or if it affects every single one out there but those protruding tops certainly give a clue as to why this is even happening. The motors and props on the Q242G are identical to the ones on my UDI U841 which has never detached a propeller in mid air. The motor shaft lengths and diameter, when measured with a vernier caliper, are also identical on both quads. However, while the shafts on the U841 can be fully plunged into the propellers, the shafts on the Q242G stop short at about 1 or 2mm due to the protruding plastic cover.

I have tried using new propellers on my Q242G and even swapped with the spare ones meant for the U841 but the problem still persists.

If the protruding plastic tops are indeed the cause of this problem, then WLToys should take note and remove them immediately from the design. For all Q242G owners who are facing this problem, I think the only solution would be to take a sharp blade and just slice off the extra plastic so the shafts can be fully plunged into the propellers.

Conclusion

Although the WLToys Q242G is a fantastic introduction to true FPV flying for anyone on a tight budget, it is a mixed bag of sorts. Priced at just $81, it provides the same FPV experience as what you’d get on a 250-size 5.8GHz FPV racer, albeit on a much smaller scale. However, its propellers are not secured properly due to a design flaw which can lead to plenty of crashes and missing propellers. Imagine losing 55mm propellers in a field with thick grass and you get the idea.

The transmitter comes with a built-in 5″ FPV display with collapsible sun shade. It looks great, feels like a premium product and is a joy to use. The only issue I have with it is the lack of a power switch to turn off the display screen. The camera’s narrow FOV (Field of View) is also something that I’m not a fan of.

If the 5″ display isn’t enough, you can even fly the Q242G using any 5.8GHz FPV goggles for a more immersive flying experience. If you plan to use FPV goggles, do take note that the Q242G uses a random FPV channel every time you turn it on.

At press time the Hubsan X4 H107D retails for $132, making the Q242G (costing $81) an attractive alternative, price-wise. However, due to the serious design flaw which causes propellers to detach themselves in mid flight, I’m not sure if the Q242G is a wise option for those looking to experience 5.8GHz FPV flying on a micro scale.

If you’re bent on getting one, there is still hope in making it reliable — simply slice off the protruding plastic and this may just solve the problem.

Alternatively, you can also consider the newer and pricier Hubsan X4 H107D+ which comes with altitude hold.

The WLToys Q242G is available at GearBest for $81.

UPDATE (3/8/2016): It seems WLToys has updated the latest batches of Q242G with a much wider gap for their motor enclosures, allowing the props to be fully plunged in. Detaching props are no longer an issue thanks to this update. After flying at least two units of Q242G over a few dozen flights, I have yet to witness brand new props detaching on their own. The ratings for this drone have been updated to reflect the latest changes.

Nothing beats an aurora borealis display in the sky. However, on 4 November 2015, Intel in collaboration with Ars Electronica Futurelab came very close when they set a new Guinness World Record for the Most Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) airborne simultaneously.

Known as Drone 100, the amazing drone display lit up the night sky to the accompaniment of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony performed live during Intel CEO Brian Krzanich’s keynote on the opening day of CES 2016 technology tradeshow in Las Vegas, USA.

“The past can be replaced by new creativity powered by drones,” he told the CES audience. “This is what it means to reinvent experiences using new technology.”

Similarly, Horst Hörtner, Senior Director of Futurelab, wanted to show how drones can be used to create beauty and socially meaningful experiences. He sees people as naturally curious and filled with hope.

“It’s the only thing that can be created,” he said. “Everything else is already created. Hope and curiosity is the drive that helps you get things done that have never been done before,” he said.

And the drone “fireworks” display has really never been done before. Supervised on the ground and led by Martin Morth, each of the four pilots controlled 25 drones using PCs with Intel software. However, before the drones could be flown, engineers had to create a software that would allow the drones to follow flight paths (which created the geometrical designs and words), turn on and off lights and move succinctly with one another to dramatic orchestra music.

“We developed our own ground-controls software,” said Futurelab’s Andreas Jalsovec, who led the choreography and show design for Drone 100. “We just took technology and made art out of it.”

Guinness World Records adjudicator Pravin Patel was on hand to verify the new record and congratulate the technology company.

As Anil Nanduri of Intel said, this the dawn of a new era for UAVs.

Newcomer XIRO made quite a splash earlier in January when they showcased their latest Xplorer 2 drone at CES 2016. It is probably the world’s first working prototype of a drone to feature obstacle avoidance in the 350-size category.

While the Xplorer 2 and its predecessor the Xplorer 1 took most of the limelight for the company in Las Vegas, XIRO had also showcased two other models which received less press coverage — the XIRO Xplorer Mini and Xplorer Xtreme.

Both drones look like they’re still in the development stages with the Xplorer Mini looking more like a finished product than the Xtreme. The smaller Xplorer Mini is aimed squarely at the lifestyle market and will probably appeal to fashionistas with its interchangeable fuselage covers that feature funky graphics and colors — probably another industry first for commercially available drones.

Weighing just 450g and with a footprint no larger than an iPad, the Xplorer Mini was designed primarily as a portable lifestyle and travel photography drone. Its motor arms can be folded and tucked in without the need to remove the propellers, making it highly portable when you need to travel. No bags or cases are needed when transporting it. Just drop it into your backpack or sling bag and you’re ready to go.

The Xplorer Mini’s small form factor can be a bit deceiving, giving you the impression that it is just another toy quadcopter but don’t let that small exterior fool you. The Mini is packed with some high-end features commonly found in bigger and more expensive aerial photography drones. The list includes dual-GPS (GLONASS + GPS), optical flow sensors, brushless motors, a 1300mAh intelligent flight battery and a 13MP HD camera.

The availability of dual-GPS also means that the Mini is capable of intelligent flight modes such as Follow Me and 360 Selfies (hover around point).

To keep things simple, XIRO has decided not to include a conventional transmitter with the Xplorer Mini. Instead, the drone uses a smartphone app as its primary control device. Assuming the app uses WiFi to communicate with the drone, this is both good and bad. Having a smartphone app to manually pilot a drone may result in some serious control issues. If a smartphone uses WiFi to communicate with the Mini, it may take some time for the Mini to respond to pilot input which will result in sluggish pilot control.

The 2.4GHz frequency used by WiFi could also potentially interfere with GPS reception.

With that said, we believe most pilots would probably avoid manually flying the Xplorer Mini unless it is absolutely necessary. After all, the Mini wasn’t designed for precision drone racing so we don’t expect anyone to fly it fast around tight spaces. Future Mini owners will probably feel more comfortable using the app to do automated stuff such as automatic landing and take off, instead of manually flying it.

On the other end of the spectrum in the latest XIRO lineup is the aptly named Xplorer Xtreme. Designed primarily for professional aerial photography, the Xtreme features retractable motor arms that also double as landing legs. It is pretty much inspired by the DJI Inspire 1 and was probably designed to compete directly with the DJI flagship.

The Xtreme carries a 3-axis gimbal-stabilized 4K micro 4/3 camera with a 720P HD video downlink that can reach a distance of 2km. Not much detail is available yet on the Xtreme and there is no official word on when it will be available for orders.
At the top of the Xplorer Xtreme’s dinner wishlist is the DJI Inspire 1.

At the top of the Xplorer Xtreme’s dinner wishlist is the DJI Inspire 1.

With the unveiling of its new product range for 2016, XIRO makes industry behemoth DJI look so yesterday.

It would be interesting to see how drone industry leaders respond to this new disruptive force rattling the cage.

GearBest are having a clearance sales for their US and EU warehouses focusing on RC parts and accessories. Some really good deals are up for grabs with discounts up to 77%.

If you’re into RC and living in any of these two regions, now is the right time to splash some cash on that shopping wishlist you’ve been keeping for a while.

The promotion includes items such as RC cars and buggies, toy drones and accessories and Walkera Runner 250 packages and acessories.

Let’s take a look at some of the good RC warehouse clearance deals on offer at GearBest.

KD-Summit S600 RC Truck

The KD-Summit S600 is an entry level enthusiast-grade micro monster truck that has some features commonly found in more expensive RC trucks and buggies.

But don’t let the price fool you. At just $27.72, it may seem like just another gimmicky RC truck you’d find at Walmart or Tesco but the S600 actually has proportional speed control and proportional steering with a hobby grade servo. It also has a differential gear, independent suspension and can go up to 25km/h with a maximum control range of 60 meters.

The S600 has actually been selling at GearBest for roughly $28 since over a year ago so we’re not quite sure how this qualifies to be a clearance sale since there is hardly any drop in price. Still, GearBest has the lowest price for the S600 when other online sellers are retailing it at nearly double the price. This gives you a total discount of roughly 50 to 70% which is a lot.

HP P401 4WD

If you think the KD-Summit S600 is puny, try the HP 401 for size. This 1:10 scale 4WD car is a monster in terms of size and comes with independent suspension and 6 gear settings for tackling super steep off-road climbs. It also has an adjustable wheelbase.

The P401 reigns supreme when driven on rough off-road conditions and can even travel on very wet surfaces or on a few inches of water. GearBest is offering the HP401 at a special price of $99.99 — that’s roughly $50 to $70 cheaper than what most other sellers are offering. Now that’s what you call a great deal!

MJX X901 Mini Hexacopter

Micro toy drones normally come in the quadcopter guise but the MJX X901 is no quadcopter and is one of the few toy hexacopters out there available at such affordable prices — $14.92 to be exact. Why pay the same price for four motors when you can get the X901 with all its six motors?

Walkera Runner 250 – Basic 3 Package

The Walkera Runner 250 is one of the most popular ready-to-fly FPV packages out there and the Basic 3 package gives you all the bells and whistles you need sans FPV goggles. With the Basic 3 you get the Runner 250 quadcopter, battery charger, Devo 7 transmitter, one battery, HD camera, FPV transmitter and one OSD (On Screen Display) module.

All you need for the complete FPV experience is a FPV monitor or goggles of your choice. Priced at $264.50, the Walkera Runner 250 Basic 3 package at GearBest is one of the cheapest deals you can find for this 250 racer.

GoPro today released yet another short teaser video featuring footage taken with its Karma drone. The footage was shot at Aspen Snowmass, showing celebrity Bobby Brown and friends snowboarding on a closed course.

Keen-eyed observers have pointed out that a reflection of the Karma drone on one of the snowboarders’ reflective goggles has been carefully blurred out but still provided some hints on the Karma’s form factor which is said to resemble a conventional drone such as the Phantom 3.

Since it announced plans to develop its own drone last year, GoPro has released several teaser videos said to have been shot using its new drone but have left fans with very few clues as to the specs of the drone or what it looks like.

GoPro hopes to release the Karma alongside its highly anticipated Hero 5 action camera which has seen several delays since it was unveiled last year. The Karma drone will not only be compatible with the upcoming Hero 5 but also all other earlier GoPro cameras.

According to GoPro founder and CEO Nick Woodman at the recent CES 2016 (as reported by EndGadget):

We make everything backwards compatible, our goal is that your older GoPro will work with anything new we make, and vice versa.

Since its shares hit rock bottom end of last year losing over 90% of their value, GoPro has been struggling to maintain its brand presence and cope with increasingly stiff competition from overseas manufacturers such as Xiaomi and SJCAM.

Many regard the Karma as not just another new consumer drone but a product that could either make or break the California-based company.

There are rumors circulating within the UAV industry lately that Xiaomi is currently working on developing its own drone and plans to release it some time this year.

According to a Chinese tech website, a patent filed in China last August has hints on what’s coming from the Chinese smartphone giant.

Xiaomi’s patent application indicates that the company plans to use the Mi Band and its built-in accelerometer as a device to control the new drone. The Beijing-based company will not be developing the drone on its own but instead has invested in a smaller firm called Flymi to focus on developing the product.

A sketch from Xiaomi’s patent application showing the Mi Band as a drone control device.

Some industry insiders claim that Xiaomi was very close to releasing its drone at the end of last year but stopped short of doing so due to the striking resemblance it had with DJI’s latest Phantom quadcopter.

Other sources speculate that the drone will have a camera and is expected to cost around $109, staying true to the Xiaomi spirit of producing high quality products that sell at razor-thin profit margins.

This of course translates to plenty of excitement for UAV enthusiasts. Having a Xiaomi drone in the market will certainly bring drone prices tumbling down.

DARPA, otherwise known as the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, recently showcased a few test flights featuring its latest project — an autonomous drone that can travel indoors at blisteringly fast speeds without the need for a human pilot.

In a recent video, the drone is shown flying indoors at speeds of up to 45mph without crashing into obstacles — a milestone achievement and probably the world’s fastest autonomous indoor flight for a multirotor to date.

At the heart of the DARPA drone is a heavily customized Pixhawk flight controller with algorithms that allow the drone to navigate around obstacles and avoid crashing into them. Everything is held together by a DJI Flamewheel 450 open airframe and propulsion is handled by E600 motors paired to 12-inch propellers.

The drone was developed as part of the Fast Lightweight Autonomy (FLA) programme in which the agency hopes to develop autonomous drones that can be used to carry out tasks such as surveillance of disaster situations and military reconnaissance.

Also involved are the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the University of Pennsylvania, Scientific Systems Company (SSCI) and AeroVironment which helped develop the sophisticated autopilot algorithms.

Despite the recent progress, the drones are still incapable of performing complex tasks on their own without assistance from human operators and GPS signals. DARPA hopes to improve on the smart capabilities of its drones so that they would eventually be highly autonomous and be able to carry out tasks in highly challenging situations without relying on external help.

According to Mark Micire — DARPA program manager (as reported by International Business times),

What makes the FLA program so challenging is finding the sweetspot of a small size, weight and power air vehicle with limited onboard computing power to perform a complex mission completely autonomously.

The challenge facing DARPA now is to develop fully autonomous drones that cram as much computing power as possible into a compact and lightweight overall package that can be easily deployed in various missions.

Drones with massive computing power exist today but they are often huge, complicated and heavy so squeezing all that computing power into a small and light package is not going to be straightforward.

Eventually, that agency hopes that its customized autopilot software could be used by various autonomous vehicles on the ground and in marine environments where GPS assistance is not available.

DJI recently announced a massive price cut for its Phantom 3 Professional drone in conjunction with the company’s 10th year anniversary, fueling speculation that it is preparing for the release of the highly anticipated Phantom 4.

This all fits nicely in the Phantom’s product cycle which sees a new model released every year at or just before summer (the Phantom 3 was released in April last year and the Phantom 2 Vision+ in July 2014). In fact, the company has already sent out invites for a major event in New York on March 1. Though details are scant as to what DJI is planning to unveil during this event, we all know what’s coming on the horizon.

The Phantom 3 Professional is now selling for $999, down from its previous price of $1259. That’s a massive discount of about 21% so if you’ve been craving to get a P3 Professional and are willing to give the upcoming P4 a skip, now is the right time to splurge that cash.

After all, the P4 will probably occupy the P3 Professional’s earlier price bracket once it is released meaning it should be selling for anywhere between $1250 and $1500.

According to leaked photos and a report published by the Chinese website sb-dji.com, the Phantom 4 will have obstacle avoidance sensors, a redesigned battery and camera gimbal system and a few other improvements.

The quadcopter shown in the photos also appear to have a Phantom-style body with some slight changes — LED lights positioned at the bottom of the motors instead of the arms. The arms also have ventilation vents at the bottom.

One photo shows what appears to be sensors at the side of the body. Many speculate these to be obstacle avoidance sensors but we can only wait to confirm if any of these rumors are true at all.

Based on the rumors we’ve been hearing so far, here is a summary of what might come with the Phantom 4:

• Obstacle Avoidance
• Redesigned camera gimbal
• New camera (possibly 6K)
• Improved video downlink (possibly 1080P)
• Subtle body redesign

A British company recently made headlines when it successfully flew a drone across the English Channel — a feat which also became the longest flight ever for a quadcopter.

The flight, which lasted 72 minutes, started in France and stretched 32km across the Channel before ending in Dover. The company that conducted it — Ocuair, credited its success to sunny and calm weather. Turbulent weather with strong winds could have shortened the drone’s flying range, making the distance impossible to achieve.

To comply to local drone regulations, the company had a team follow the drone within a distance of 500m in a boat. The idea of having a team monitor the drone closely somehow saved the day as towards the end of the flight, a glitch occurred when the drone’s GPS system stopped working. This forced the team to fly the drone manually for the remaining 20 minutes of the flight.

Ocuair hopes that its record-breaking flight would help drone technology develop further in a meaningful way.

According to Richard Gill, team leader of the Ocuair flight:

I wanted to do something meaningful to stand out and show what this technology is capable of. Companies like Amazon, with their Prime Air service, have seen the commercial potential of drones. This attempt pushes the boundaries of what is technically possible.

DJI has unveiled the much-anticipated update to its popular Phantom line of quadcopters — the Phantom 4, at an event in New York yesterday.

The new Phantom appears to be the most intelligent one to date in the lineup, with features such as obstacle avoidance, object tracking, Smart Return Home and an improved Optimized Vision Positioning System capable of sensing the ground below at distances of up to 10m.

Flight time has also improved by roughly 25% over the Phantom 3 with the introduction of a new smart battery. The new Phantom can fly for about 28 minutes with a control range of 5km. Video downlink can also be viewed up to 5km at a resolution of 720p.

Exterior-wise, the Phantom 4 still retains the x-shape quadcopter body of its predecessor, albeit in a more polished and refined appearance.

The body shell is made out of composite material and has a glossy white finishing ala Storm Trooper-style with subtle nuances such as holes for its obstacle avoidance sensors and air vents at the bottom.

Phantom 4 Key Features

• Avoid obstacles automatically.
• Track moving subjects automatically using ActiveTrack.
• TapFly lets you fly with a tap of the finger.
• Smart Return Home allows the Phantom to avoid obstacles as it returns home.
• 28 minute maximum flight time, maximum control range of 3.1mi (5km).
• Maximum speed of 44mph (72kmh).
• Integrated gimbal for greater camera stability and smoother footage.
• Optimized Vision Positioning System raises positioning altitude up to 10 meters.

The 3-axis camera gimbal system has also undergone a redesign and now features a higher level of integration with the gimbal controller now sitting inside the body instead of underneath it. This approach gives the gimbal better protection during crashes and a cleaner overall look for the Phantom 4.

The latest DJI Phantom 4 is equipped with obstacle avoidance technology.

The camera is capable of shooting 4K video at 30fps and full 1080p HD video at up to 120fps with a field-of-view (FOV) of 94 degrees. DJI claims the camera now sports a redesigned lens consisting of 8 elements that produces sharper images with distortion reduced by 36% and chromatic aberration by 56% when compared to the camera on the Phantom 3. By photography standards, these are some pretty big improvements.

The camera is also capable of taking 12MP Adobe DNG RAW images and videos in D-Log and Cine-D profiles making the Phantom 4 a great entry-level choice for professional aerial photographers who want some level of post-processing freedom with their videos or images.

Debuting in the Phantom 4 is the TapFly feature which allows users to navigate the drone by simply tapping on the screen. This allows the Phantom 4 to fly to a spot chosen by the user while avoiding obstacles along the way — a great way to automatically fly your drone if you’re tired of doing it manually.

Another new exciting feature in the Phantom 4 is ActiveTrack which allows users to select a moving object on their screens for the Phantom 4 to follow. This is a neat feature to have if you’re filming outdoor activities such as cycling or motorsports.

Although this feature isn’t exactly new (we’ve seen it in the Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4K as early as last year), the Phantom 4 tracks objects visually via its camera without any need for a GPS device on the object itself. This makes it possible to track birds or other wildlife such as elephants making the Phantom 4’s ActiveTrack capabilities simply a class above the competition.

Overall, the Phantom 4 is smarter and better in many ways than its predecessor. It also looks a lot more refined as well. The only thing that could prohibit some users from buying it is its price tag. At $1399, it isn’t exactly very affordable and considering that consumer drones generally shed 30% of their value in the first year alone, the Phantom 4 may not be a feasible purchase for some.

Unless, of course, you have a fat bank account or don’t mind losing that much money just to have the latest DJI tech or if you’re very confident of earning a good income out of it. For those who can live without features such as TapFly, Obstacle Avoidance and ActiveTrack, the Phantom 3 Professional is still available at a much more affordable $999 and is still a relatively decent aerial photography platform.

For those who absolutely must have the Phantom 4 and its latest smart features, it is now available for purchase at the DJI Store.