The Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi is branching out to the drone market, and its first model may just have what it takes to compete against the market leader DJI.
Xiaomi unveiled its Mi Drone in China on May 25, which is aimed at both beginners and those who have previous flying experience who might be on a budget.
The Mi Drone has a simplistic design, which features four propellers that spin in different directions to help balance out the drone when in flight. The drone is light and compact, with the battery the cause of most of its weight. And it's worth it because the 5,100 mAh battery allows it to be airborne for just under a half hour — 27 minutes to be exact.
The user can attach their iOS or Android smartphone to the controller for easy driving and take advantage of autopilot features like sending the drone to a specific point in the distance, planning a route, or circling around an object. These features make the Mi Drone comparable to its competitor's model, the DJI Phantom 4.
The company will offer the Mi Drone is two different camera options: one with a 1080p Full HD camera with a range of 1 kilometer, and the second with a 4K resolution camera with a range of 2 kilometers.
The most attractive thing about Xiaomi's Mi Drone is its appealing price. The model with the 1080p camera will retail for 2,499 yuan or $380 and the higher-resolution 4K option will go for 2,999 yuan or $457.
This makes the 4K Mi Drone cheaper than the least expensive DJI model, the Phantom 3 (that also shoots in 4K) which retails for $800 and has a flight time of 25 minutes.
But the Mi Drone is actually more comparable to the DJI Phantom 4, only it's a fraction of the cost.
Besides looking similar, the drones have some of the same features like both being a quadcopter, and both shooting in 4K. The Phantom 4 also has easy-to-fly auto pilot features, can stay airborne for 28 minutes, but it retails for $1,399.
DJI is the leading maker of consumer drones, with revenues reported to be more than $1 billion last year. The company's comparable drones may have some real competition with Xiaomi's Mi Drone. And adding drones to its product lineup may also help the smartphone maker bounce back after a recent report found that the company's revenue grew only 3 percent year-over-year in 2015.
However, it may need a significant amount of time to catch up in the drone market, especially since DJI was valued at $10 billion in 2015.
Xiaomi will open a beta program in July to start testing the Mi Drone, but no details are known about when it is expected to go on sale or if it will be sold outside China.
Check out the Mi Drone in the video below.
Source: Hugo Barra
