A few days ago DJI posted a video showing an upcoming new project, the DJI Inspire 1, and there has also been some leaked photos and plenty of speculation. The good thing is we only need to wait a few days to see what it is. However here are a few leaked photos and also some comments.
Transformable Quadcopter
Some people think that this inspire 1 will be aimed at prosumer users who are looking for something more professional than the Phantom, but not as complex as one of DJI’s larger platforms like the S100 or S900. Many also believe that this DJI Inspire 1 drone will be transformable because earlier in the year DJI filed for a Transformable aerial vehicle patent. And there are also leaked photos to confirm this. It is also supported by the teaser videos which have a similar triangle/ mechanism in the middle of the video. Overall I think that this platform will be something similar to the upcoming parrot bebop drone.
DJI Inspire 1 Quadcopter Specifications
- Max speed of 65 km/h
- It will use 12″ props
- 6S 5200mA battery
- It will have an all up weight (AUW) of 2.4 kg
- Flight time about 25 min
- Lenght about 500mm
- Camera is similar to Sony ILCE-QX1 Lens-Style-kamera med 20.1 megapixels sensor, that will be able to record in 4K
- DJI Lightbridge built-in for HD transfer.
- DJI A2 flight controller, but “modified” for Inspire 1 use.
- Price will be about $2700 USD for HD version.
A flying wing
Other suggestions by the triangular shape in the video could suggest that DJI are going to release their first fixed wing platform, possibly a flying wing? However I dont seem to think this will be the case since DJI are mainly focused on filming related applications and fixed wing platforms are not relay the ideal platform for this. But who knows maybe they are moving to a new range of applications like surveillance or mapping.
Dual Redundancy Flight Controllers?
In another leaked photo below you can see what might be the inspire 1 quadcopter, but in the background you can see a hexacopter that looks like it is using dual flight controllers (or at least 2 GPS modules).
This is also some great news for professional users as I am sure it will be much easier to get FAA approval in th USA due to the backup flight controller.
Are DJI following the apple path?
Lastly it seems like with the new Inspire 1 that DJI might be further following the ‘apple’ 
approach by making everything proprietary as it seems that everything including the camera will be integrated so there are no options to use your own camera, or gimbal or possibly even RC control with this new drone. Don’t get me wrong that DJI do make nice gear and the all in one approach is not necessarily bad. I for one prefer to have a more open system that I can hack and mod, to keep up with new gear such as a new camera from gopro.
Otherwise I am looking forward to seeing more of this quadcopter on 12 November!
but priced at $3399 (but that does include 2 controllers). Othersie the DJI Inspire 1 quadcopter with one remote is $2899 so i guess its aimed more at the prosumer level. And due its ease of operation and size one could argue its better than some of the professional level stuff out there (unless comparing to red epic camera drones). I also like the fact that its got optic flow sensors so you can use it to film indoors, but weirdly does not come with prop gaurds! So I guess you need to be extra careful when flying indoors.