DroneDJ

Insta360 has released two new cameras ahead of the holiday season: Insta360 Ace and Insta360 Ace Pro. Both wide-angle action cameras promise incredible image quality while utilizing the latest in AI developments. Here’s everything you need to know…

Innovative UK drone startup Inteliports says it successfully completed a trial run of its GO UAV delivery concept, which is designed to group all functions of the takeoff, landing, flight navigation, and payload handling process into compact, automated modules that fit neatly into urban landscapes.

Drone companies with working ties to the US Department of Defense should find out by mid-December if their craft are among those selected for the first developmental tranche of the Pentagon’s Replicator program, which looks to match the enormous weapons systems of countries like China and Russia with the power-in-numbers might of swarms of smaller UAVs.

When New York Mayor Eric Adams announced the liberalization of permitting rules for drone operation in the city last July, he predicted it would lead to a growth of aerial services improving residents’ daily lives. One application he didn’t mention is one many New Yorkers are least enamored with: UAV surveillance by the police, which has increased exponentially over the past year.

Insta360, the imaging company that has revolutionized 360-degree video and stills for the masses, is preparing to unveil its latest camera later today. But photos and specs of the rumored Insta360 Ace and Ace Pro cameras have already leaked online, and there’s plenty to be excited about.

Phase One, a Denmark-based company specializing in digital imaging tech, has unveiled a fantastic new survey-grade camera that boasts an advanced 128MP image sensor. Developed in collaboration with Quantum Systems and Trimble, the Phase One P5 integrates seamlessly with Trinity Pro fixed-wing mapping drone and Trimble Business Center construction and modeling software.

European urban air mobility (UAM) company Volocopter is experiencing unexpected turbulence in its efforts to roll out initial air taxi services around the world, with its launch project in Singapore reportedly having been put on hold just as its plans to debut aerial activity in Paris have met sharp political opposition.

Cargo drone startup Elroy Air has announced a double milestone with the initial test flight of its C1 Chaparral freight UAV, which in turn represents what is thought to have been the sector’s first trial of a turbogenerator-hybrid electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) plane.

Ukraine has demonstrated what appears to be the first fruits of its stated determination to increase domestic drone production, with the announcement it has sent over 2,000 nationally manufactured UAVs to its defense forces, along with 3,000 first-person view craft (FPV).

Disneyland Paris is once again leading the move to expand the role of drone shows in daily performances at Disney Company theme parks around the world, with the introduction of its “Disney Electrical Sky Parade” – an innovative spectacle for which pyrotechnic devices have actually been added to the UAVs themselves.

Leading global instant logistics and drone delivery specialist Zipline revealed it has set another precedent by conducting its the first beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flight in the US without any ground observers.

Autel has shared its deals for next week’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and they aren’t just coming to the consumer drones but also its brand new enterprise options.

Leading global advanced air mobility (AAM) company Joby may have decided to set up its future production line in Ohio as the most financially alluring locale vying for its presence, but California is looking to get as much job creation and economic activity from the Santa Cruz-based air taxi startup before its focus shifts east – and has just handed over a nearly $10 million grant to prove it.

Toronto-based aerial services company Drone Delivery Canada announced that it completed a medical transport trial in Michigan, where its UAVs were tested for use as reinforcements to habitual ground options rather than as immediate replacements.

The planned global introduction of air taxi services next year during the Paris Summer Olympics already risks being grounded after city authorities from across party lines joined up this week to lavishly dump on what elsewhere in France and the world has been the tech’s much-ballyhooed debut.

Another DJI Black Friday drone deal has gone live with the Air 2S and Air 2S Fly More Combo seeing discounts of 20% (up to $260 in savings) until November 27. Adorama, meanwhile, has decided to sweeten the deal by throwing in a set of Aries ND filters worth $39.95 for free with the drone.

The latest DJI Black Friday deal to go live offers savings of 12% on the Mini 3 Fly More Combo, which ships with the DJI RC remote controller. DJI RC comes with a built-in screen and pre-installed flight apps.

Verifying that intended flights will unfold in authorized airspaces should top the checklist of both leisure and professional drone pilots before they take to the skies – a normally routine precaution that an alarmingly high number of operators near the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth in Texas are clearly ignoring.

Emirates, one of the two flag carrier airlines of the United Arab Emirates, has signed an agreement with Boeing that will integrate drones into its plane inspections – an aerial technique designed to both speed the process and enhance its effectiveness compared to manual checks.

The Mini 2 SE drone, which was first announced by DJI in February 2023, is down to an all-time-low price of $299 in an early Black Friday discount deal. Meanwhile, you can also grab a free propeller holder worth $7.48 with the drone by heading over to B&H Photo to make the purchase.