DroneDJ

DJI has released a new firmware update for its latest audio recording solution, Mic 2. This is the first firmware update for the product that came out last month.

DJI has released a new firmware update for its handheld gimbal camera, Osmo Pocket 3. The new firmware is v01.03.05.02, up from v01.02.06.04 which came out in November.

It’s poor form to speak badly of the dead, but we’re not Mary Poppins, so hard cheese: Pixy, arguably the dumbest product idea ever – and definitely the most egregious bastardization of drone tech – may well be quite logically no more, bereft of life, resting in peace, pushing up the daisies, off the twig, kicked the bucket, shuffled off this mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleeding choir invisible; but it’s now being yanked from its well deserved early grave by a recall for posing a potential threat to the people who made the shameful error of buying one in the first place.

Swiss specialized local weather forecasting company Meteomatics is set to get a boost from aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, which is reportedly moving to provide funding to scale the startup’s drone-based meteorological activities, which in turn may help fill a gap in the US group’s own climatic monitoring profile.

It may not be ready to rival Amazon as a teaming marketplace where virtually any legal product can be bought and transported rapidly, but Germany’s LieferMichel drone delivery project spiriting goods to remote communities is starting to attract an impressive array of participating retailers.

Amazon’s Prime Air service hasn’t had a surfeit of good news to report about its aerial activities, but the drone delivery unit did get a notable shout-out in this week’s company round-up of the online marketplace’s 2023 work to get orders to clients faster.

Photographer and video maestro Tucker Wooding has carved out a place for himself in surfing history by using drones to get close to waves and capture images of riders deep inside them, yet somehow making it out. Now he offers footage of a UAV that didn’t.

DJI’s Mini drones are easily one the most popular consumer drones in the market because they are affordable, portable, easy to fly, and can capture unique aerial perspectives. But while DJI has several budget-friendly options for beginners exploring aerial photography and videography, the top three products where you wouldn’t have to compromise on flight time, camera quality, and stability are the Mini 4 Pro, Mini 3 Pro, and Mini 3. Let’s find out how they compare to each other…

Sphere Drones, one of Australia’s largest drone service providers, has developed a mobile drone platform that can collect aerial data with a click of a button. The solution, called HubX, comes with its own internet connection and solar battery system so it can work across any terrain, even in very remote areas.

The prototype of a new drone capable of long-distance surveillance operations over oceans has been revealed by the MITRE corporation, which says the 3D printed craft can recharge itself during extended flights using solar panels on its wings.

A barrage of aerial and ground infrastructure trials have been held this month by the UK’s Open Skies Cornwall consortium, which is seeking to organize airspace into which regular UAV activities – including ship-to-shore operations – can be integrated above and around Falmouth Harbour, and enable future ship-to-shore and other operations. 

This week Yifei and Seth discussion the appearance of a possible DJI competitor out of Japan, and DJI provides a rare response to data security issues.

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The continued and extremely effective innovation in deploying what at their origin are consumer and enterprise drone technologies – notably first-person view craft (FPV) – have been essential to Ukraine’s defense against the larger and better equipped invading Russian Army. Now it appears technicians in Kyiv have again attained an aerial advantage by flying swarms of UAVs overseen by a craft acting as a kind of “queen” bee in those operations.

Tech giant DJI has released a new firmware package for its most affordable travel-friendly drone, the Mini 2 SE. This is the first update for the $299 drone since March last year.

DJI has released a new firmware update for the sub-250-gram Mini 3 drone. This update is especially important for pilots who use their Mini 3 with an Intelligent Flight Battery Plus.

Specialized cargo drone developer MightyFly has unveiled the third generation of its Centro hybrid electric vertical takeoff and landing craft (eVTOL), equipped with additional features and performance enhancements the startup will demonstrate during events later this year.

The world’s leading drone maker DJI has clearly had enough of the recurring accusations about the data security of its craft, and the attendant blacklists drawn up by US political leaders offering no substantiation of their claims. In response, the company has issued a rare clarification about the steps it takes to secure user information on its craft.

DJI has released a huge update for its drone flying app, DJI Fly. Version 1.12.8 of the app comes with a host of new features including a home screen that has been revamped to be more informative and intuitive, as well as a new shortcut for transferring drone footage to another device.

The effects of drone technology have been sufficiently disruptive – or perhaps “threatening” is a better term – to legacy land surveying officials that a North Carolina aerial imaging and mapping service provider is now having to defend attacks on his activity with arguments it’s a form of free speech protected by the First Amendment.

London-based electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft company Vertical Aerospace is getting a critical extension of its cash runway to develop its air taxi, with a $50 million infusion from company founder and CEO Stephen Fitzpatrick.

Japanese drone maker ACSL says its SOTEN drone with a swappable camera system and robust encryption process is now ready to ship in the US. The standard package of the NDAA-compliant drone has been priced under $10,000 to compete with global rival DJI’s commercial offerings.

Two additional U.S. police departments have been equipped with new drones for use in their law enforcement duties. And once again – despite proliferating government attempts at dissuasion – those forces adopted DJI craft as offering the best solutions available to their budgets, opting for pragmatism over politics.