New Features Address Two Primary Customer Complaints

DJI recently launched a new update to its $199 Neo drone, addressing the two most common customer complaints. The lightweight device made its debut on September 5.

The DJI Neo is a compact UAS designed for personal photo and video applications. It weighs less than 5 ounces and can take off “from the palm of the hand,” the manufacturer reported. It has a max flight time of 18 minutes and shoots 4k, ultra-stabilized footage. The Neo also utilizes enclosed propellers to protect itself and its surroundings from damage.

"At DJI we are always studying everyday camera use so that we can help people capture their videos and photos in the most convenient way possible,” stated Ferdinand Wolf, DJI’s Creative Director. “The DJI Neo strives to give people the latest tech in the smallest form factor so that they can capture their daily lives, saved as treasured memories, safely and with ease.”

For a drone of its size and price, the DJI Neo is impressively capable. Though it is still relatively new, customers have applauded it for its fool-proof and versatile experience. However, the drone had a couple main flaws that users were quick to point out, and DJI was even quicker to solve.

The two primary complaints were the Neo’s lack of vertical video and slow tracking speeds. Since the device was targeted to influencers, not having vertical video capabilities was an especially significant oversight.

The latest DJI Neo firmware update allows vertical shooting and increases tracking speeds. Since the Neo doesn’t have a fully rotating gimbal like other DJI drones, though, it just takes the 4k horizontal footage and pre-crops the sides. The tracking mode speed has been boosted from around 8 mph to 20 mph, making it faster than even the sport mode top speed. The drone’s manual setting, which requires an FPV remote controller, can reach up to 36 mph.

The update included a few additional fixes, including support for DJI’s Goggles N3, natural style audio preservation, and liveview stabilization.

Users will need to update both their drone and their DJI Fly app to take full advantage of the vertical video mode.

FMI: www.dji.com