I remember last year’s lead up to NAB 2016 in Las Vegas and there really weren’t a lot of rumors floating around. People we talked with actually had comments where attendees “weren’t really holding their breath” for any big announcements from DJI.
What actually happened?
Well, DJI blew everyone away with a full range of announcements. First was the Matrice 600 “developer targeted platform” designed to allow the content creators to take drone design in new directions. It was the first “open source” drone and it led to the M100 and M200 releases.
DJI also brought out the Ronin-MX camera stabilizer as a lightweight alternative to it’s cousins Ronin and Ronin-M. The timing was intentional as the Ronin-MX is specifically designed to attach to the M600.
DJI satisfied a corner of the consumer market bringing out Osmo accessories like the Z-Axis(which helps take the bounce out of the video-graphers cadence) as well as an external battery extender, an X5 Adapter. Toss in an Extension Rod, a sick RODE VideoMicro Hpercardioid microphone and a Manfrotto Lumie Art LED light and you have a vlogger’s dream setup.
Unlike 2016 there have been nothing but new product rumors and leaks coming out of DJI. By our count there are at least 3 potential new drones that could be officially announced at NAB2017. The recently leaked DJI Spark fixed arm mini drone first arrived on our door when images were leaked earlier this winter. Then video arrived showing it powering up with an external power supply. We don’t have any details on a remote control for it, so it looks like it may be wifi controlled from your smartphone or table.
We also saw photos specs and a user manual for the DJI Mavic S. We don’t know if that’s it’s real name, but we’ll go with it. A slight change in the camera depth of field and the FOV are just a couple of the seven differences we found between the Mavic Pro and the Mavic S. So is DJI ready to announce a brother for the Mavic Pro? Or are they actually in a position where they will be releasing it for sale?
And just last week we shared a photo of what is a potentially new Inspire-like drone that may feature a 100MP Hasselblad camera (You may recall that DJI acquired Hasselblad back in 2016). Very few details exist on this new model. Is it just a prototype, or is DJI full-on ready to release it?
Just going over this amount of potential new product would be enough for any mega-show like NAB. But wait, there’s more. Products that were teased to us in 2016 are very likely going to be released this April.
DJI Goggles, which we’ve heard will come bundled with the M200, should be ready to roll out the door any second. Ditto for the recently approved CrystalSky monitors.
The timing for any or all of these announcements couldn’t be more ideal. Drone pilots across the globe are stepping out of their winter hibernation and are keen to start droning. And that enthusiasm extends to opening the wallet to acquire DJI drones and accessories that should be ripe by now.
If you’re going to NAB2017, be sure to stop by the DJI booth. It’s booth C2807 just inside the north entrance of the Central Hall. You can’t miss it….it’s right next to GoPro. (How strategic is that???)
It’s going to be a great month to watch what comes out of DJI!