The Autel EVO packages 60 fps 4K video in a compact folding drone

By Hillary K. Grigonis January 16, 2018

Meet the EVO

The folding DJI Mavic Pro may have just lost a competitor, but another company is bringing a new portable drone to the market — the Autel EVO. The recently announced EVO drone sports a 4K 60 fps camera mounted on a compact drone with a 30-minute battery life rating.

While 4K may be increasingly common, the EVO captures that higher-resolution video at 60 fps, which is tougher to find. The camera is mounted on a three-axis gimbal for steadier shots. The camera also uses computer vision to help the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) avoid obstacles, while an infrared sensor at the back adds more crash-prevention technology.

The EVO can fly for up to 30 minutes on a charge, with a recharge taking a little over an hour. Speeds top out around 65 feet per second, while the drone can remain in range for about 4.2 miles. Intelligent flight mode options include object tracking, as well as following the drone’s flight path using a GPS. The ability to preset waypoint mission coordinates, along with flight patterns designed for 3D mapping tasks, is also slated to be included in the EVO.

The drone can be controlled with the Autel Explorer App on both iOS and Android — or with a controller that also has a 3.3 inch OLED screen that streams the drones viewpoint live in 720p resolution.

Based in Washington state, Autel is a relative newcomer to the drone scene — we included them in a list of new drone companies to watch in 2016. The EVO, once launched, will be the company’s new flagship, following the X-Star line launched in 2016.

The EVO appears to be a close competitor for DJI’s folding drone, the Mavic Pro, offering another compact option now that GoPro is withdrawing from the drone market and ceasing production of the Karma. The EVO has similar gimbal specs to the Mavic Pro, but a faster frame rate for 4K video and a slightly longer battery life, though DJI’s longer history, rugged design, and intelligent flight options at the same price point are still likely to sway many buyers.

Autel hasn’t released a launch date yet, but says the price point will sit right around $1,000.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Computing

Sony’s first gaming monitor is under $1,000 and all-in on HDR

sony launches inzone gaming monitors pxl 20220615 150759757

Sony is known for televisions, but it is now getting into the PC gaming market with a new InZone brand. Coming this summer and winter are both the InZone M9 and InZone M3, which are Sony's first gaming monitors designed with PC and PlayStation gamers in mind.

Priced at $900, the InZone M9 is the new 27-inch flagship monitor from Sony, meant to rival other gaming displays like the LG Ultragear 27, as well as the 28-inch Samsung Odyssey G7. The display features DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.1, USB-C connections, a 4K resolution IPS panel, and 144Hz refresh rate, as well as a 1ms response time.

Mobile

DJI’s latest Mavic 3 update made me love the drone all over again

The DJI Mavic 3 in flight in front of blurred green trees.

DJI recently launched a new update for its DJI Mavic 3 drone that adds some significant upgrades to the camera. This comes after months of progress that has seen the drone steadily improved since it was released last year. In many ways, the Mavic 3 in 2022 is almost a new drone entirely compared to what it was in 2021. Here's what I consider to be the most notable upgrades to the Mavic 3 in the latest firmware update, v01.00.0700.

Spring Journeys with the DJI Mavic 3
Greatly improved GPS
The constant problem that has dogged the Mavic 3 throughout its lifetime so far has been the abysmal speed at which it acquires a satellite connection. For many months, whenever I wanted to fly the Mavic 3, I'd have to stand there and wait patiently for far too long. When trying to capture a fleeting moment, this is incredibly frustrating. However, this latest update seems to have finally solved the long-standing flaw of this otherwise excellent device.

Mobile

The best 360-degree camera apps for iOS and Android

360-degree-camera-app

Today's smartphones have succeeded in making amateur photographers of most of us. But as smartphone photography became ubiquitous, a more intriguing version of instant photography came into vogue -- the 360-degree spherical panorama. A 360-degree photo lets you observe a scene in any direction from a single point of view and smartphone apps make it incredibly easy to accomplish, as you don't have to do anything except use a specialized app and move your smartphone around to capture and view a scene.

Before modern smartphones, the only way you could capture a genuine spherical panorama was to use a special camera designed for the task and employ stitching software to bind multiple shots together. You can still do that, but today's photo apps make it possible not only to shoot 360-degree images, videos, and panos, but to instantly share them privately or via social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube. Here are some of the best 360-degree camera apps currently available for iOS and Android.
Google Street View