New drone unveiled
DJI’s latest flagship product is designed to take professionals’ creativity to new heights
DJI, the world’s largest commercial drone manufacturer by market share, unveiled its Mavic 2 series of drones on Friday, amid sluggish growth in China’s consumer drone market.
Built for professionals, aerial photographers and content creators, the series features new intelligent flight modes and improved image quality.
“Today, we enter a new era of aerial photography with the introduction of DJI’s new flagship product,” said Luo Zhenhua, president of DJI at a launch ceremony in Beijing.
He said the newly launched drones will enable photographers and videographers to take their inspirations to the air quickly and elevate their creative ideas to new heights.
Priced at $1,449, the Mavic 2 Pro has an integrated Hasselblad camera. The Mavic 2 Zoom, at $1,249, is a foldable consumer drone with optical zoom capability. It is the first time that these two functions have been applied in the consumer drone sector.
Equipped with numerous sensors, the Mavic 2 series offers autonomous flight capabilities, can automatically detect obstacles in its path, and ensures a safer, smarter and stable flight with a maximum flight time of up to 31 minutes.
In 2016, DJI launched its foldable and compact drone, the Mavic Pro — its first personal drone designed to be taken just about anywhere.
A report from consulting firm iResearch forecast the value of the domestic civilian drone market will reach more than 75 billion yuan ($10.9 billion) by 2025. Drones for aerial photography and entertainment are expected to create a 30 billion yuan market, according to the report.
According to an International Data Corp report, shipments of aerial photography drones will surge to 3 million units by 2019, with the compound annual growth rate reaching 68 percent.
Pan Xuefei, a senior analyst at IDC, said the overall drone market is growing, with broad prospects in industrial application market.
“The Mavic 2 is obviously aimed at professional aerial photographers, and the upgrades in technology and e-components will stimulate new consumption demand,” she said.
According to Pan, the price is affordable for its users, as the high-end version of DJI’s Phantom series has reached a similar level.
Last year, the Civil Aviation Administration of China announced that commercial drones weighing more than 250 grams had to be registered under the owner’s real name.
The tightened regulations were part of moves to improve civil aviation safety after a series of incidents involving low-flying drones in restricted areas around major Chinese airports.
Although China’s consumer drone market grew at a slower pace in 2017, Shenzhen, Guangdong province-based DJI claims close to 70 percent of the global market share, with Europe and North America its biggest customers.
The company reported 18 billion yuan in revenue last year, up 80 percent from a year earlier.