Firefighting drones equipped with thermal imaging cameras will help West Midlands Fire Service to improve situational awareness and support effective decision-making on the ground.
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Howdy, pardner. Sit on back and relax a bit, while we take you for a tour of our ranch. A ranch where we round up them critters with drones.
Normally, it takes dogs or people on horseback to herd animals. That’s the way it’s been done, well, for a very long time. But a couple of herders in Israel started playing around with drones. And then the play became more serious, as they realized the cows responded to the drones (camels, too). And so they began working on a business project. Could drones be used to do the herding?
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British drone provider COPTRZ has handed out a free DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual to the Holme Valley Mountain Rescue Team to advance its operations. The company is also giving out free online drone training for emergency services teams across the country.
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Yeah, we know you’ve seen arrest videos before. Maybe a suspect, running away while police close in. But, trust us on this, you have never seen a video like this one. Until now.
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After weeks of resisting, Florida governor Ron DeSantis issued a COVID-19 stay-at-home order last week. Now police in Daytona Beach are using loudspeaker-equipped drones to warn residents about park closures. Expand
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A drone helped a hurt hiker rappel 400 feet during a daring rescue at Snow Canyon State Park in Utah on Sunday. It was the first time an unmanned aircraft was used this way by the Washington County Search and Rescue team.
Update: we just got confirmation from the Washington County Sheriff Search and Rescue that the drone in question was a DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual with an aftermarket drop system. Impressive!
The DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise receives a new firmware update that includes ATTI mode. This is a first in the DJI’s Mavic line up and will surely make many commercial drone operators happy. ATTI mode or Attitude mode is often used to make the drone fly smoother through turns when recording cinematic shots, or when flying in urban areas with a lot of interference and poor GPS reception, and as a failsafe to stop fly-aways. The DJI Phantom Series (DJI, Amazon) even has a dedicated switch for ATTI mode.
In Ohio, the Miami County Sheriff’s Office buys a DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual with drugs money that was seized after arrest and conviction. The law enforcement agency adds the “Swiss-army knife” to its fleet after having discussed the $4,500 purchase for over one year and acknowledging that the drone is a “very impressive piece of equipment.” Its ability to cover a lot of ground quickly could be “the minutes that count between life and death.”
DJI announced today that the Chinese drone maker has been working on a new drone-to-phone Remote ID solution that uses WiFi. The new app was demonstrated with a DJI Mavic Air (DJI, Amazon) and a DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise drone at the International Civil Aviation Organization’s third annual Drone Enable conference in Montreal. In their statement, DJI says that with this simple app “anyone within radio range of the drone can receive that signal and learn the location, altitude, speed and direction of the drone, as well as an identification number for the drone and the location of the pilot.” the new drone-to-phone Remote ID app and firmware updates from DJI are not yet available for public use as this was merely a demonstration. The company is waiting for further direction from aviation regulators and final publication of the ASTM International standard.
DJI Enterprise announced on twitter that a new DJI Pilot update will bring MSX support for the Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual to iOS users. The update will include other iOS 13+ performance improvements as well, although DJI Enterprise did not specify what those might be. In a second tweet, DJI said that the update has been submitted, and that they expect it to become available this Friday or Monday.
This part 4 and also the last piece in the special series of DJI Rumors that cover the company’s Phantom 4, Phantom 5 and Mavic 2 drone series for consumers, prosumers and professional users. Earlier we covered Part 1: Game over for DJI Phantom 4, Part 2: DJI Phantom 5 canceled and Part 3: DJI Mavic 2 is the future. In this last part, we will focus on the DJI Smart Controller and explain why it will play a crucial role in the future of the DJI Mavic 2 and other forthcoming DJI drones.
The discontinuation of the DJI Phantom 4 and the cancelation of the DJI Phantom 5 brings us to the question, what are DJI’s plans for the consumer, prosumer and professional drone market when there is no longer a DJI Phantom series of drones? Well, this is where the DJI Mavic 2 comes into play. With some improvements, the DJI Mavic 2 can be the perfect drone for the consumer, prosumer and even a good part of the professional and commercial drone market. Read on to find out why the DJI Mavic 2 is the future for the drone maker.
This is part 3 in a special series of articles that zoom in on the latest rumors around the DJI Phantom 4, the DJI Phantom 5 and the DJI Mavic 2 series. Click here for part 1 or here for part 2.
Btw, we will have an unexpected part 4 that focuses on the DJI Smart Controller and why it will play a crucial role in the success of the Mavic 2 series of drones later this weekend.
Last night, a massive fire destroyed the roof and spire of the Norte Dame in Paris. DJI drones helped firefighters put out the inferno. French firefighters used the drones, likely a DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual and an M210 borrowed from the culture and interior ministries, to aid them in tackling the blaze. The unmanned aircraft provided insight into how the fire was spreading and helped firefighters to determine the most effective positions of fire hoses.
As we fully support female drone pilots, we’d like to point out that in a short video from the French Ministry of the Interior a woman is seen at the controls of what seems to be a DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual drone.
Update: Gabriel Plus, spokesperson for the French firefighters was reported to have said:
“It is thanks to these drones, to this new technique absolutely unavoidable today, that we could make tactical choices to stop this fire at a time when it was potentially occupying the two belfries.”
In a second story about drones for good, an injured hiker was rescued with the help of a drone. The woman had fallen nearly 30-feet, down a rocky slope in Clear Creek Canyon in Denver, Colorado. A drone was used to locate the woman, but it took three dozen rescue workers nearly six hours, an inflatable raft and two rope systems to bring the hiker back to safety from the inaccessible backcountry. Based on the photos in a tweet from West Metro Fire Rescue, it seems that another DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise has been used in this rescue.
Farmers in New Zealand have found a new way to herd their sheep. They are now herding sheep with a drone, the DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise, outfitted with a speaker that barks like a dog. The farmers say that a single drone can do the work of multiple dogs. Check out the video below for the drone in action and some of the other sounds effects the farmers use.
Finally, DJI just added a new version of waypoints for the Mavic 2 drones in a DJI Go 4 app update. So far the update is only available for iOS, but I would expect an update for Android users to follow soon. The vastly improved waypoints feature is the main improvement in this update but not the only one. Other improvements are optimizations of the software and the stability of the editor. Here is a detailed video of the new waypoints feature.
DJI is serious about growing their enterprise business. Just watch the DJI Airworks keynote, if you were in any doubt. This is made clear again today as they announce an upgraded support program for business customers who buy a new Mavic 2 Enterprise Zoom, Mavic 2 Enterprise Dual or Phantom 4 RTK drone. The plan adds basic repair and replacement coverage for one year after the initial purchase, including up to two product replacements for any single drone at a small, standard fee. The new plan is similar to DJI’s for-consumers-only, Care Refresh plan, but now free of charge for business customers. As such a customer, you only pay a small fee when you actually need a replacement for your drone.
DJI’s Enterprise Shield will remain available and can also be used by customers who had already bought an enterprise-type drone from DJI and are looking for extra peace of mind. The difference between Enterprise Shield and the new, upgraded support program is that under the first you are entitled to unlimited free replacements, which is not the case with this new support program. And Enterprise Shield also covers other commercial grade drones such as the DJI Matrice series. See below for all the details.
The DJI Smart Controller is sold out. Yes, almost exactly 24 hours ago, I wrote that the DJI Smart Controller was available to US customers and now it is out of stock again on the DJI online store. It seems that the new controller with the 5.5″ built-in display has sold out within the first 24 hours of hitting the market in the US. Clearly, many drone pilots appreciate the brighter, built-in display, better range and other features that the DJI Smart Controller offers.
Last Friday, I wrote about the DJI Smart Controller and when it might be shipping to customers in the US. Sometime that same day, the FCC re-activated the equipment authorization system and the filing for the DJI Smart Controller appeared. Since then the product listing on DJI’s online store has been updated as well and the product is now available for purchase.
DJI Smart Controller looks great, especially in a case like this with a DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise, but when will this new device ship to customers in the US? DJI introduced the well-received, but slightly expensive, DJI Smart Controller during CES 2019. However, ever since the introduction this new device has been listed as out of stock on the US version of the DJI online store. One of our readers in Germany was able to buy the new controller online and received it yesterday. The photos in this article were taken in Asia (Taiwan) where the Smart Controller apparently has been shipping as well. The US customers though seem to have been left in the cold. What is going on here? When will DJI be able to ship their new Smart Controller to their US customers?
Update 1/21/19: it is in stock now!
The newly introduced but out of stock DJI Smart Controller gets its first firmware update. Earlier this week, during CES 2019, DJI released the new DJI Smart Controller for the DJI Mavic 2 Pro, Zoom, and Enterprise drones. Interestingly enough the controller is still listed as out of stock on DJI’s website. And as of yet, we have not even seen this new product filed with the FCC, although the partial government shutdown might have something to do with that. On top of that, there are persistent rumors that the Chinese drone maker is working around the clock to assemble all the necessary components for this new controller. Leaving us wondering when we may be able to actually buy this exciting new device. However, none of this stopped DJI from releasing the first firmware upgrade for the DJI Smart Controller.
This morning DJI released their new DJI Smart Controller during CES 2019. Right after the official announcement at 9 am EST, the first reviews showed up on YouTube. At $649 the new DJI Smart Controller is not cheap by any means but the brighter screen will be very useful for many drone pilots. The price goes down to $400 when bought in combination with the DJI Mavic 2 Zoom or Pro drone.
Right after we posted this article here, we received the official announcement from DJI about the new DJI Smart Controller. Here’s the entire official DJI announcement about the DJI Smart Controller. Attendees can find DJI in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, booth #25602.
Contrary to earlier reports, it seems that DJI is planning to launch the DJI ‘Pro’ Remote Controller at CES 2019. However, instead of calling it Pro, DJI has changed the name to DJI Smart Controller. Early this morning the promotional video of the DJI Smart Controller was released on YouTube. The video provides us with all the most important information about the new device.