Dji’s Neo 2 Selfie Drone Adds Obstacle Avoidance And Gesture Controls

The Neo 2 is still designed to protect its props during a collision, but those should hap little frequently. | Image: DJI

DJI has announced a follow-up to nan Neo selfie drone it launched past September for $199. Although nan original was priced for wide adoption, it lacked respective useful features that nan new DJI Neo 2 is adding, including motion controls and nan expertise to actively debar obstacles alternatively of conscionable relying connected a creation that tin past impacts and crashes.

The DJI Neo 2 is somewhat larger than its predecessor, and astatine 151 grams, it’s 16 grams heavier, but that other weight is simply a mini tradeoff fixed nan added functionality and a larger battery. The Neo 2’s caller obstacle avoidance strategy uses forward-looking LIDAR and downward-looking infrared sensors to observe and debar hazards while nan drone follows you successful guardant and sideways formation modes. It still features integrated guards that afloat protect its 4 propellers, but you won’t person to beryllium arsenic observant astir wherever you take to alert it.

The drone’s maximum pursuing velocity has been accrued to 12m/s, aliases astir 27mph, which is overmuch faster than nan original Neo’s apical travel speed, moreover aft a firmware update past November bumped it up to astir 18mph. The Neo 2 is besides amended astatine flying successful little than perfect conditions. In our testing, nan original Neo could beryllium difficult to control successful a breeze and had a inclination to drift, but DJI says nan Neo 2 tin support a unchangeable hover successful winds adjacent to 24mph.

The Neo 2 is chiefly designed to seizure compelling drone footage autonomously, but successful summation to carrying guardant support for DJI’s RC-N3 and mobility controllers, and its Goggles N3 headset, nan institution is adding motion controls. You tin set nan position and region of nan drone by moving your hands astir while it’s successful formation and hovering nearby, and DJI has added a mini surface to bespeak what mode it’s in. On nan original Neo, those were presented utilizing a bid of illustrations and LED lights atop nan drone.

A larger 1,606mAh rechargeable artillery increases nan Neo 2’s formation times to up to 19 minutes, and it comes pinch 49GB of retention connected committee – up from 22GB. The drone’s camera now uses a dual-axis gimbal for improved stability, and while it has nan aforesaid half-inch sensor arsenic nan original, it now offers a wider section of position and tin seizure 4K footage astatine up to 60fps, aliases up to 100fps while nan Neo 2 is being piloted manually.

The upgrades make nan Neo 2 an moreover much compelling and cheaper replacement to HoverAir’s offerings, including its entry-level X1, but arsenic pinch DJI’s precocious announced Osmo Mobile 8 smartphone gimbal, nan company’s latest drone is exclusively being launched successful China. Pricing starts astatine 1,499 Chinese Yuan, aliases astir $211, which is an summation of astir $28. DJI is besides offering nan Neo 2 successful a bundle that adds other batteries and a multi-charger for 1,499 Chinese Yuan ($282) and is bundling nan drone pinch its mobility power joystick and Goggles N3 for 3,699 Chinese Yuan ($521).