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The best drones for photos and video
By Signe Brewster This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, Wirecutter and Engadget may earn affiliate commission. Read the full drones guide here. After 45 hours of research and test flying 14 models, we think the DJI Mavic 2 Pro is the best drone for aspiring aerial photographers and videographers thanks to its high-end camera, autonomous obstacle avoidance, long battery life, and portability. Pilots of all skill levels will find it to be exceptionally reliable and easy to fly. The Mavic 2 Pro features a Hasselblad-branded camera (DJI bought a majority stake in the camera brand in 2017), which captures 20-megapixel photographs and 4K videos that look more colorful than those captured by the competition. Its ability to sense and avoid obstacles in all directions and steadily hold its position even in moderate winds lets you focus on your cinematography instead of worrying about keeping the drone steady. It also features DJI's smart-flight modes like ActiveTrack, which directs the drone to autonomously follow and film a subject while still avoiding obstacles. Its 31-minute battery life means you don't have to land for a battery swap as often as other drones, and at 8.4 by 3.6 by 3.3 inches folded and 2 pounds, you can take the Mavic 2 Pro almost anywhere—it fits exceptionally well in our top pick for drone backpacks. It's also compatible with the DJI Goggles FPV headset we recommend. The Mavic 2 Zoom looks and flies identical to the Mavic 2 Pro, but it trades out the Hasselblad camera in favor of a different camera that can zoom 2 times optically and 2 times digitally (with software that avoids losing detail), for up to 4x usable "lossless" zoom. However, filming with more than 2x zoom will require you to shoot at 1080p instead of 4K. It's a great choice for aerial photographers and videographers who need to work from a distance, whether they're shooting a child's soccer match or wildlife. Like our top pick, it features DJI's obstacle avoidance and smart-flight mode tech, plus a 31-minute battery life and foldable body. If you're just getting into drone photography for personal use and social-media sharing, the DJI Spark is a less expensive model that still includes collision avoidance. Compared to our top pick, the Spark has shorter battery life and range, and it can't capture 4K video (just 1080p), but it weighs half as much and folds up to about the size of your hand. It still includes the important features you need from a video drone, including image and flight stabilization and an included controller, and it has gesture controls and smart-flight modes like ActiveTrack.
UK police release two people arrested over Gatwick airport drones
So much for law enforcement coming any closer to pinpointing the culprits behind the drone flights around Gatwick Airport. Sussex Police have released the man and woman arrested on December 21st after determining that they're "no longer suspects" behind the multiple incidents. Don't anticipate new suspects in the future, either. Detective Chief Superintendent Jason Tingley said his force continued to "actively follow lines of investigation," but didn't hint at where those might lead.
UK police arrest two over Gatwick airport drones
Drones flying around London's busy Gatwick airport have disrupted air travel since Wednesday evening, but now the Sussex Police Department has announced two arrests connected to the incidents. The airport reopened for service Friday morning, but the Guardian reports that another drone sighting shut down flights for about an hour around 5 PM. Police Superintendent James Collis said the arrests occurred around 10 PM (local time) Friday. There are no further details on who the police nabbed or what's behind their "criminal use of drones" but the police are remaining on site and asking the public to call in if they have any information.
Drones cause holiday chaos at one of London's busiest airports (updated)
Drones spotted over the UK's second-busiest airport have halted flights since Wednesday evening (December 19th), heavily disrupting the holiday travel of tens of thousands of passengers. Flights at London's Gatwick airport couldn't take off or land, and airport authorities said that 110,000 passengers on 760 flights were affected yesterday. Operations briefly resumed at around 3 AM, then were halted about an hour later when the drone was spotted again. The airport finally reopened this morning, though the Gawick airport authority has advised travelers to check their flight's status before traveling.
The first global drone standards have been revealed
As drone use grows, rules and regulations remain in flux and vary among jurisdictions. Last month, for instance, the Federal Aviation Administration granted operators of certain drones approval to fly them in controlled airspace in the US, but the UK has an outright ban on using them within a kilometer of airports. To help establish best practices, the International Organization for Standardization has released the first draft set of global standards for drone use.
Ask Engadget: Which drone should I buy for my kid?
The support shared among readers in the comments section is one of the things we love most about the Engadget community. Over the years, we've known you to offer sage advice on everything from Chromecasts and cameras to drones and smartphones. In fact, our community's knowledge and insights are a reason why many of you participate in the comments. We truly value the time and detail you all spend in responding to questions from your fellow tech-obsessed commenters, which is why we've decided to bring back the much-missed "Ask Engadget" column. This week's question comes to us from a parent looking to encourage their child's love of drones. Weigh in with your advice in the comments -- and feel free to send your own questions along to ask@engadget.com! My child is very excited about drones, and I'd like to encourage his enthusiasm but I'm not sure where to start. What's a good entry-level drone choice for a kid?
Island nation Vanuatu will use drones to transport vaccines
For island nations and countries without the infrastructure for reliable transportation, drones can do more than take photos or collect data: they can transport supplies to save lives. The Pacific island country of Vanuatu, for instance, has teamed up with UNICEF and two drone companies to deliver vaccines to rural areas. Vanuatu is composed of 83 islands spread over an area that covers 1,600 kilometers (~1,000 miles). To deliver vaccines to its more rural communities, health workers often have to walk for hours -- sometimes, it can even take them days by cars and/or boats. Drones could ensure that local health facilities have quick access to lifesaving supplies when needed.
Some DJI Matrice 200 drones are falling out of the sky
Some DJI drones are falling from the sky and no one is sure why. The United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) issued a safety notice Friday warning that some DJI Matrice 200 model drones have lost power mid-flight without warning and dropped straight down. The Chinese drone maker acknowledged the issue and said that it is working to address the matter.
Intel's stunt drones will join the Rockettes at Radio City
Fireworks? Pah. These days, it's all about armies of drones creating majestic aerial displays over national sporting events. Intel, which is making a name for itself in the space, is bringing an army of mini drones to New York for the holidays. Specifically, the UAVs will be the backing act for the Rockettes at this year's Radio City Christmas Spectacular.
FAA warns drone operators to steer clear of high-priority naval bases
The military is authorized to shoot down drones flying over bases, but at least two naval bases are still struggling to get operators to stop getting too close. Now, the FAA has issued a stricter warning against flying drones too near Naval Base Kitsap (Washington) and Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay (Georgia) in order "to address concerns about potentially malicious drone operations over certain, high-priority maritime operations." More specifically, the FAA is restricting drone flights near the US Navy and US Coast Guard vessels operating in those bases. Kitsap is one of Navy's strategic nuclear weapons facilities, while Kings Bay houses the country's nuclear missile submarines.
These tiny drones can lift 40 times their own weight
If you ask these tiny drones, "Do you even lift, bro?" you will get a resounding yes. Researchers at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland and Stanford University have developed a line of small flying bots that can move objects that are 40 times their weight.
Razer's mobile chief is leaving to join drone company Skydio
Razer's senior vice president and general manager Tom Moss is leaving the company for the role of COO at Skydio, a company that focuses on autonomous drones. The announcement, which Moss made via a Medium post, comes right after the mobile company launched the Razer Phone 2, the successor to its first large, gaming-optimized device which launched last year.
Uber's drone-based food delivery could begin in 2021
At this year's Uber Elevate Summit in May, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi discussed the possibility of a drone-based food delivery service. Now, it looks like a job posting has hinted that the company is looking to launch the service by 2021.
'Flying battery' drone can apparently hover non-stop for two hours
A startup called Impossible Aerospace claims its "flying battery" drone has a flight time of up to two hours. If that holds true, the US-1 will be able to stay in the air almost five times longer than many other drone makers' devices before you have to recharge the battery system.
UK proposal sets minimum age for drone use
The UK government could ban kids from owning drones weighing over 250g (0.55 lbs), under rules drawn up by the Department for Transport. The proposals suggest children could fly a heavier drone under adult supervision if someone older owns and has registered it. The age limit could be pegged at 18, partly because that's the minimum age for most insurance policies.
Dr. Julius Neubronner's fantastic flying cameras
The first aerial photograph was taken in 1858 by Frenchman Gaspard-Félix Tournachon, also known by his alias Nadar, from a tethered gas balloon suspended over Paris. While the images captured on this flight have since been lost to time, there are plenty of surviving examples of aerial photographs shot during the latter half of the 19th century. In addition to balloons, kites and rudimentary rockets were used to send cameras skyward. Even Alfred Nobel was drawn to the practice, with one of his last patent applications being for a method for rocket photography. It's hard to grasp how challenging this was at the time. We need only load up Google Earth to see our house from space, or buy a hobbyist drone to capture our own aerial panoramas. Long before satellites and quadcopters, though, Dr. Julius Neubronner started strapping cameras to pigeons.
After Math: Stage 4 capitalism
It's been another fun-filled week of plebes like us being crushed under the heel of big business. Want to take a trip into orbit? You're gonna need to mortgage your house and your children's futures. Want to own the last decent MacBook Pro? Tough, Apple now says that the garbage touch panel version is the only one for sale. Trying to watch the World Cup on YouTubeTV? NOPE. NO SOCCER FOR YOU. COME BACK FOUR YEARS!
Proposed law would give DHS power to seize and destroy drones
The Senate is currently considering a bill that would give the Department of Homeland Security more power to research, surveil, seize and destroy drones flying in the US, Gizmodo reports. Yesterday during a hearing, DHS officials expressed support for the bipartisan legislation, saying current laws prevent the agency from effectively mitigating the potential threats presented by drones.
Experimental drone uses AI to spot violence in crowds
Drone-based surveillance still makes many people uncomfortable, but that isn't stopping research into more effective airborne watchdogs. Scientists have developed an experimental drone system that uses AI to detect violent actions in crowds. The team trained their machine learning algorithm to recognize a handful of typical violent motions (punching, kicking, shooting and stabbing) and flag them when they appear in a drone's camera view. The technology could theoretically detect a brawl that on-the-ground officers might miss, or pinpoint the source of a gunshot.
Parrot's folding 4K drone is ready to take on DJI's Mavic Air
Parrot may have scaled back its drone division and shifted some of its focus toward workers, but that doesn't mean it's downplaying the consumer side of things. If anything, it's ramping things up. The company has unveiled the Anafi, a folding drone that takes some not-so-subtle potshots at DJI's Mavic Air. It's not just the portability -- the Anafi touts a 21-megapixel camera that promises 4K HDR video at 100Mbps, including 2.8X lossless zoom. The camera isn't good as the Mavic Air's in some respects, as it's only using two-axis mechanical stabilization (software and a wide lens handle the third axis). Still, it represents a big improvement over the 1080p video and no-gimbal design of Parrot's Bebop drones.
