DJI has released the Neo 2, a hand-launched travel drone that builds on its predecessor with new gesture control, improved wind resistance, and a longer flight time of up to 19 minutes per battery. Weighing 151 grams, the drone can be launched from the palm of the hand and features a return-to-palm function for easy landing.
The Neo 2 introduces gesture control, allowing users to operate the drone with hand movements. Facing the drone, holding one palm up and moving it left, right, up, or down directs the drone accordingly. Holding both palms toward the drone and moving them apart makes it fly away, while bringing them together brings it closer. This eliminates the need for a remote controller or phone for camera angle adjustment.
A new small onboard display to the left of the camera shows the shooting mode. The drone includes a SelfieShot program for waist-up, full-body, and long shots. It also has improved ActiveTrack for low-altitude follow-shooting at speeds up to 12 metres per second with eight-direction tracking, including forward, backward, left, right, and four diagonals.
The Neo 2 features an omnidirectional monocular vision system with forward-facing LiDAR and downward infrared sensing for obstacle avoidance. It has integrated propeller guards and better hovering and positioning capabilities than the previous model. The drone can be voice-controlled through the phone app or Bluetooth headphones.
It shoots up to 4K video at 100fps or 2.7K vertical video, with a two-axis gimbal for stabilisation. The drone has 49GB internal storage, capable of saving up to 105 minutes of 4K/60fps video. Footage can be transferred to a phone via cable or Wi-Fi through the DJI Fly App at up to 80 MB/s. The DJI Neo 2 (drone only) retails for $409.
