DJI Air 2S announced, specs, price, release date confirmed

DJI, the leading drone manufacturer has announced the DJI Air 2S, which it claims is the first drone of its size to feature a 1-inch type sensor and capture 20Mp stills or 5.4K video. This size of sensor and video resolution has previously been the preserve of larger drones.

Like the DJI Mavic Air 2, the DJI Air 2S is a folding, portable drone with a gimbal-mounted camera onboard.

The DJI Air 2S also introduces a new MasterShots feature that uses automatic flight path planning to set the drone’s course as video is recording. At the end of the flight, the drone joins the footage automatically to create a composite video.

In addition, the Air 2S has four-way obstacle sensors which are designed to prevent collisions. It also features APAS 4.0 (Advanced Pilot Assistance System), DJI’s most advanced autopilot system that, when activated, flies the drone around objects automatically.

For the third generation of its OcuSync transmission system, DJI has renamed it O3. DJI claims that O3 is the most reliable and stable transmission technology currently available in the drone market.

DJI has also upgraded the FocusTrack modes available on the Air 2S to replicate the focus, control and flight capability of a professional drone operator shooting video.

Read our DJI Air 2S review

Video and stills capture

Whereas the Mavic Air 2 has a 48Mp 1/2-inch type sensor that outputs 48 or 12Mp images, the DJI Air 2S has a 20Mp 1-inch type sensor that’s capable of recording 20Mp stills (raw or Jpeg) or 5.4K video at 30fps or 4K video at 60fps and 150Mbps.

The larger size of the sensor means that the Air 2S’s photosites (aka pixels) are bigger (they measure 2.4μm), which is good news for image quality.

The camera has a fixed lens with an effective focal length of 22mm, delivering a field of view of 88°. The aperture is fixed at f/2.8 but neutral density filters are available separately or in the ‘Fly More Combo’. These four filters run from ND4 to ND32 to enable the shutter speed to be kept within the 180° guide of twice the video frame rate.

Read our DJI Air 2S review

As we’d expect, the DJI Air 2s has a 3-axis mechanical gimbal onboard to deliver smooth footage. There’s also 8GB of internal storage onboard, which is great news if you forget to install or clear the microSD.

Video can be recorded in the H264 or H265 codec with one of three video colour profiles, Normal (8 bit), D-Log (10 bit) or HLG (10 bit) depending upon the requirements.

Also, for those occasions when you can’t fly close to the subject, there’s a digital zoom of 4X at 4K 30fps, 6X at 2.7K 30fps, 4X at 2.7K 60fps, 6X at 1080P 60fps and 8X at 1080P 30fps.

Along with familiar options like Timed Photo (self-timer), AEB and Panoramas, the DJI Air 2S has a SmartPhoto mode that uses scene analysis and deep learning to automatically select one of three options HDR, Hyperlight and Scene Recognition, to capture 20Mp stills.

In HDR mode, the Air 2S merges several images while Hyperlight mode is intended for use in low-light conditions. Scene Recognition mode sets the camera to identify the appropriate settings for the scene.

Read: What are the drone laws in the UK, Europe and USA?

QuickShots, MasterShots and more

DJI has given the Air 2S more programmed flight modes and image capture modes than any of its similar-sized predecessors. These modes include:

MasterShots: When MasterShots is activated, the Air 2S automatically plans a flight path, choosing from three image capture modes, including Proximity, Portrait or Landscape, and starts recording aerial footage. The drone pilot can choose the theme for the DJI Fly app to use to generate a video that’s ready for sharing.

FocusTrack: In this mode you can select your subject by drawing a box around it on your connected mobile device, then choose from Point of Interest 3.0, which triggers an automated flight around the subject; ActiveTrack 4.0, a tool that seamlessly tracks the subject and keeps it in the frame; or Spotlight 2.0, where the drone movement is controlled by the pilot while it locks the subject into the frame.

QuickShots: A popular feature of DJI drones, QuickShot modes include Rocket, Circle, Dronie, Helix, Boomerang and Asteroid. When activated, they fly the drone in a particular way to capture smooth video automatically.

Hyperlapse: This is available in resolutions up to 4K (with or without digital stabilisation) and enables an aerial speed-up view of the world below.

Read our DJI Air 2S review

Easy and safe flying

The DJI Air 2S’s upgraded transmission system, O3, uses four rather than two antennas for a more stable feed at up 12Km distance – even in areas with lots of potential interference.

According to DJI, the Air 2S’s battery enables a flight time of 31 minutes while the four-way sensors keep an eye out for objects above, below, in front of and behind the drone to reduce the collision risk.

At normal speeds, the improved APAS 4.0 has a wider field-of-view for object-detection than earlier versions. At faster speeds, the drone pitches forward more and the new upward obstacle sensor plays a critical part in assisting obstacle detection.

As with DJI’s latest drone models, the DJI Air 2S’s AirSense system warns drone pilots of nearby airplanes and helicopters transmitting ADS-B signals, so they can land quickly or fly to a safer location.

Other standard DJI safety features onboard the DJI Air 2S include an improved Return-To-Home (RTH) feature and the GEO 2.0 geofencing to advise pilots of airspace restrictions.

The DJI Air 2S uses the latest version of the DJI Fly app.

Read our DJI Air 2S review

DJI Air 2S price and availability

The DJI Air 2S is available in a standard kit or in a Fly More Combo. The standard kit retails for £899 or from €999 (depending on VAT) and includes the drone, remote controller, one battery and all the cables and parts needed to get into the air.

The Fly More Combo retails for £1,169 / from €1,299 (depending on VAT) and includes everything from the standard combo with the addition of two extra batteries (taking the total to three), ND filters, a three-battery charging hub and a shoulder bag.

DJI Care Refresh

The DJI Care Refresh protection plan is available to purchase for the DJI Air 2S covering accidents such as water damage, collisions and flyaways etc.

For an additional charge, DJI Care Refresh offers up to two replacement units within one year, including coverage for one flyaway incident.

The two-year plan provides three replacement units in two years, including coverage for up to two flyaway incidents and an extension of the original warranty period by one year (extension durations vary by region).

For form information, follow the link to DJI’s website.