New ultra-compact drone from DJI unveiled - The Mavic Air
On January 23, 2018, the global market leader in civilian drones, DJI, unveiled the new DJI Mavic Air. An ultra-compact mini drone to accompany you on all your adventures. Equipped with a 3-axis gimbal, 4K camera, a foldable design and modern flight aids, the Mavic Air surpasses all previous drone models on the market.
The best of two worlds
DJI's two most compact drones to date have been the DJI Mavic Pro and the DJI Spark. Even the Mavic outperformed all multicopters of comparable size when it was launched in September 2016 and particularly impressed travel photographers and filmmakers with its foldable design. The DJI Spark - presented in April 2017 - was the little brother of the DJI Mavic Pro. This selfie drone was aimed more at beginners and "non-photographers" who simply enjoy flying drones. The Spark is only suitable for demanding photography and filming to a limited extent, as it is very susceptible to wind due to its size and only has a 2-axis gimbal. The DJI Mavic Air combines the compact size of the Spark and the professional camera technology of the Mavic Pro!
The 4K camera & the 3-axis gimbal
Although the Mavic Air is very handy, a professional camera system has been built into it to ensure the best image results. During drone flight, high vibrations are generated by the rotating propellers. In addition, multicopters have to change their flight attitude to withstand the wind. This is the reason why no photo and video drone should be without a powerful gimbal. The electronic 3-axis gimbal of the DJI Mavic Air positions the built-in camera in such a way that you are not affected by vibrations and wind on the ground. The video recordings from the flight are perfectly stabilized and photos can also be taken with slightly slower shutter speeds. Of course, the camera is particularly important for all photographers and filmmakers. At its heart is a 1/2.3" CMOS sensor, as we already know it from the Mavic Pro. Photos are up to 12 megapixels (32MP in Sphere Panorama mode) and videos up to UHD 4K (3840x2160) at up to 30fps and a video bit rate of 100Mbps. Full HD video even up to 120fps. So you can also capture action sports in slow motion from the air. The lens used is a 24mm f/2.8 (full-frame equivalent)
Natural HDR aerial shots
A new HDR algorithm is designed to help automatically find the perfect exposure setting. This should give underexposed and overexposed areas a natural transition. We tested the HDR mode and found that success also depends on the weather. In strong winds, it can happen that the images are not composed correctly and ghost images are created. A practical feature is that all the pictures taken are also saved. If the automatic stitching did not work, you can try again on the computer.
DJI Mavic Air - unique in its class
The Mavic Air is the first drone from DJI with an internal memory of 8GB. So you can "quickly" take a few shots and always have some storage space on board. Of course, the memory can be expanded with a micro SD card. Using the USB-C connection, you can transfer the recordings quickly and easily to your PC/ laptop/ Mac. The foldable design, which we already know from the Mavic Pro, makes the Mavic Air an ideal companion for every adventure. With a weight of only 430 grams and a size of 168x83x49mm - when folded - the Mavic Air is only slightly larger than a smartphone.
Technical data & comparison
So small and so powerful? Even we were surprised at first! In this comparison we show the most important technical data at a glance! DJI Mavic Air vs. DJI Mavic Pro vs. DJI Spark. The maximum flight time of the Mavic Air is approx. 21 minutes. The Mavic Air Fly More Bundle includes a total of 3 batteries, so you can fly even longer.
| DJI Mavic Air | DJI Mavic Pro | DJI Spark | |
| Take-off weight | 430g | 750g | 300g |
| max flight time | 21min | 27min (Platinum: 30min) | 16min |
| Image sensor | 12MP 1/2.3" CMOS | 12MP 1/2.3" CMOS | 12MP 1/2.3" CMOS |
| max photo resolution | 4056 x 3040 | 4000 x 3000 | 3968 x 2976 |
| max video resolution | UHD 4K, 3840 x 2160: 30/25/24p | DCI 4K, 4096 x 2160: 24p | FHD, 1920 x 1080: 30p |
| max video bitrate | 100 Mb/s | 60 Mb/s | 24 Mb/s |
| Lens (full frame equivalent) | 24mm f/2.8 | 28mm f/2.2 | 25mm f/2.6 |
| Gimbal | 3-axis | 3-axis | 2-axis |
| Internal storage | 8GB | no | no |
| max flying altitude | 5000m | 5000m | 4000m |
| max speed | 68km/h | 65 km/h | 50 km/h |
| Obstacle detection | front, rear, bottom | front, bottom | down |
| Dimensions (transport state) | 168 x 83 x 49mm | 198 x 83 x 83mm | 143 x 143 x 55mm |
