DJI’s new micro-drone is a flying smart camera

Chinese drone manufacturer DJI is leaning more and more into the low-cost, autonomous drone market with the launch of Neo 2, a new and upgraded version of its superlight smart minidrone. The new quadcopter keeps the tiny footprint of the original model while adding smarter tracking, better obstacle sensing, and new shooting modes that let anyone capture dynamic aerial clips without much preparation. At 151 grams, it’s slightly heavier than its predecessor but it still slips easily into any bag (and is still lighter than the average smartphone).

The design is centered on simplicity. You can launch the NEO2 from your palm, let it rise into a hover, and capture video all hands free. It reads hand gestures for basic movements, it can return to the user’s palm when it is time to land, and sports an integrated display that shows the current shooting mode. Just like with the first Neo, the product’s gist is to let people with zero piloting experience create their drone-style content, mostly for online sharing on social media.

For the price and the size, the video and photo quality is quite good: the camera uses a compact sensor and a two axis stabilizer, enough to keep footage steady during daily activities. Modes include SelfieShot, ActiveTrack, Dolly Zoom, QuickShot, and MasterShot, whose names are self-explanatory for anyone with very little video making experience. 

The drone composes scenes automatically and adjusts framing on its own, usually with quite satisfying results. Those users who want to use it in a traditional way and need more precise control can still pair the Neo2 with the RC N3 controller or even with DJI’s FPV goggles. While this is certainly a good use case for casual hobbyists, users who would use a drone primarily for its video-shooting capabilities might want to look into other light-weight models, such as the DJI Mini 4 models (or even the older, but still pretty solid and cheaper Dji Mini 3 series).    

We tried the Neo 2 briefly before the launch, and the first impressions confirmed that DJI has gotten extremely good at product positioning in the lower range of the market. The Neo 2 makes a lot of sense as a gateway product into the larger DJI ecosystem. Setup is very fast: the DJI app guides the user smoothly and without too many steps from unboxing to maiden flight. Flying and starting the smart tracking modes is easy. Learning the hand gestures takes just a few minutes and they work quite well. The small delay between the recognition and the operation is useful, as it leaves room for editing out the gesture itself from the footage. We tested the Neo 2 mostly indoors due to local rules here in Berlin: the drone reacted very well to walls, corners, and furniture, keeping the distance while tracking us around the room.

The drone is rated for up to 19 minutes of flight time, which fits the expectations for this size and works well for quick shoots or social-media-friendly tracking sequences. Its 49GB of internal storage can hold up to about 105 minutes of 4K at 60 fps, 175 minutes of 4K at 30 fps, or 241 minutes of 1080p at 60 fps. 
Clips transfer to a smartphone over Wi Fi at up to 80 MB per second, which is fast enough to avoid cables and makes it easy to go from flight to editing to publishing without having to pass through a computer at all.

DJI Neo 2 is available now with several bundle options. The standard drone starts at 239 euros, while various Fly More combos that include extra batteries or the RC N3 remote controller are priced at 329 euro, 399 euro, or 579 euro based on the accessories included.