Unlike many DJI drones, the new Avata 2 is designed with the pure pleasure of flying over the landscape and observing in mind.
This isn’t to say that the new, compact drone doesn’t have its fair share of excellent photo and video chops, but what it really delivers for user pleasure is the joy of first-person flight and viewing.
The Avata 2 does this by coming with a pair of accompanying goggles that are designed to make the most of the drone’s onboard cameras. Also, the Avata 2 is more sleep, more stylish, longer-lasting and faster than its predecessor, the Avata 1.
Best of all, it offers all of the above and more at a lower price than that of the original Avata when it was released.
With the Avata 2, you can get your hands on a drone that not only offers excellent in-flight control and viewing specs but also beefs up its shooting capabilities. To do this, the new drone from DJI comes with a larger image sensor with a Type 1/1.3-inch CMOS 12-megapixel design.
According to DJI, this new variant offers better dynamic range and superior low-light performance, both of which are handy features in a drone camera sensor.
The Avata 2 also includes an improved lens in the form of an ultra-wide optic with a 155-degree FOV that’s similar to what a 12mm lens on a mirrorless full-frame camera would offer.
For video recording, the compact new drone can output both HDR and SDR video at a maximum resolution of 4K at 60fps and is also capable of recording slow motion video at 2.7K resolution and 100fps.
Other video features include 10-bit log video for more flexible color grading and post-production
When it comes to shooting still photos, the Avata 2 isn’t at the same level as many other DJI drones, but it does well enough. Its camera can shoot its 12MP photos at shutter speeds of anywhere from 1/50 to 1/8000s and has a native ISO of 100 to 25,600.
The Avata 2’s camera is also built onto a gimbal with 5 more degrees of tilt than what its predecessor offered.
One downside of the drone’s camera for photos is that it only outputs JPEG images. Realistically though, for most casual uses and even many professional needs, this shouldn’t be a major problem. It also means space savings in the drone’s internal storage.
Many photo enthusiasts don’t like to admit it, but handling RAW images can easily become a pointless chore unless you specifically, truly need to use them for major editing.
We mentioned the Avata 2’s endurance. It’s not incredible, but better than its predecessor’s with a maximum flight time of 23 minutes per charge. This is 4 minutes more than what the Avata 1 could handle.
The Avata 2 can also cover more area in that same flight time thanks to a beefed-up and genuinely impressive speed of up to 60mph or 96km per hour. This impressive velocity lets them cover 3 kilometers or just under 2 miles more distance than the Avata 1.
Other cool features of the Avata 2 UAV include an extremely aerodynamic design, a 46GB built-in storage. This isn’t much storage but it can go a long way if you’re shooting the drone’s 12MP JPEG still shots. The Avata 2 also supports live video streaming at up to 30MB/s.
One other major thing that DJI has improved for the Avata 2 are its DJI Goggles 3.
These offer this drone’s first-person flight capabilities and they’re good enough to be nicely immersive. These new goggles come with their own built-in battery, video stabilization and GPS unit and feature dual 1080p OLED screens for excellent video reproduction.
The Goggles 3 also include an internal defogging mechanism, improved streaming video playback and even comes with outward-facing cameras for pass-through video.
DJI also offers an RC Motion 3 controller for the Avata 2. With this, you can navigate the drone via buttons, joystick and motion control. The controller also includes a two-stage throttle control trigger and a recording button.
Worth noting too is that both the controller and goggles of the Avata 2 are compatible with other DJI UAVs like the Air 3 and the Mini 4 Pro.
Finally, there’s the price of the Avata 2. It may not be the best-performing photo and video drone on the market by a long shot, but this incredibly fast little UAV can deliver plenty for just $489 for the drone by itself.
If you want the drone with its goggles and controller, You should get the Fly More combo for $999 and DJI is also offering a combo deal that includes 3 batteries for a total price of $1,200.
