The DJI Air 2S launched in April 2021, and has been our top recommendation for a hobby camera drone ever since. The 20MP camera that shoots 5.4K video is a leading factor in our recommendation, while the huge flight range, and updated flight and safety features seal the deal. If we could only own one drone today, it would be the Air 2S.

DJI Air 2S
DJI Air 2S
  • Great camera
  • 5.4K video
  • 8X zoom
  • Compact and easy to use
  • Fantastic range
MSRP:  
$999.00
The DJI Air 2S is easily the best camera drone for most uses. Its 1-inch sensor produces 5.4K video.

The DJI Air 2S is easily the best camera drone for most uses. The 1-inch sensor produces fantastic images from the sky, and the compact, folding design of the quadcopter is familiar and reliable – it may not be in the name, but this is still a Mavic drone.

Jonathan Feist, Drone PilotJonathan Feist

Why trust Drone Rush?

I’ve been a fan of flight since a young age; while I’ve had few opportunities at the helm of manned aircraft, the hours on my fleet of drones continue to grow. I enjoy putting cameras into the sky, silky smooth aerial imagery makes me happy. My goal is to help all pilots enjoy flight legally and safely.

 

Note: We flew the DJI Air 2S for a couple weeks before publishing this review in April 2021. We put it through its paces, being sure to test all of the camera modes, and most all of the flight features. We continue to update this review based on new experiences in the air, and new features provided though software updates.

DJI Air 2S overview

DJI Air 2S

The DJI Air 2S is the latest quadcopter in the Mavic Air series. Don’t let the shorter names fool you, the Mavic series is not dead, and the latest Air is another example of the smaller series packing a better camera than the larger and more expensive Mavic drones out there. The primary feature of the Air 2S is a 1-inch camera sensor, which was previously only found on the Mavic 2 Pro and Phantom series of drones.

The Air 2S has the familiar design of the Mavic series, with the same build materials and colors, plus the front hanging camera, and folding propeller arms with quick release two-blade propellers.

DJI Air 2S

With a focus on photography, the Air 2S shares some camera features with the Osmo Pocket cameras, including the Smart Photo capabilities. Things like HDR, Hyperlight, and Scene Recognition may be familiar to some of you already.

Quantifying the image improvements over the Mavic Air 2, the camera in the older drone rocked 0.8um sized pixels, the Air 2S has a whopping 2.4um pixels. The newer drone also shoots 5.4K video.

As is expected from a DJI drone, image stabilization is top notch. We were able to introduce some camera wobble when we flew erratically on a windy day, but we really did have to put in an effort to get there. In between the 3-axis mechanical gimbal, and some digital stabilization, your normal flights on fair weather days should prove silky smooth.

DJI Air 2S

The Air 2S introduces new distance records as well, with O3 (Ocusync 3.0) offering up to 12KM of range. That’s almost 7.5 miles. Respecting line-of-sight laws in the U.S., we can at least say that there were zero connectivity hiccups as we flew the drone out to about 1,400 feet.

The remote control for the Air 2S is nearly identical to the remote for the older Mavic Air 2. The only visible differences we can see are that “Tripod” is now spelled “Cine,” and the RTH button specifies that it acts as your emergency halt and hover control as well. In this case, we’re happy that DJI did not reinvent anything, but we are still sad we do not get the small LCD display that was available in the early days of Mavic drones.

DJI Air 2S features & performance

DJI Air 2S

How fast do you need your camera to fly? The DJI Air 2S smoothly cruises along at about 33MPH in Normal mode, all while offering full image stabilization and obstacle avoidance. Slide into Sport mode to get up over 40MPH, just do so in an open space, Sport mode turns off obstacle avoidance.

Out of the box, the rates on the Air 2S are pretty comfortable, the drone does not feel like it’s too fast or twitchy to control safely, and acceleration is smooth. For our tastes, we think the default tilt rate on the camera gimbal is a little slow. Perhaps that’s because the last drone we flew was the DJI FPV, which has high rates for everything, that’s a thrilling drone to fly.

The DJI Air 2S offers forward, downward, backward and upward facing obstacle avoidance. The top sensors are angled such that they assist in forward detection when you are in full-tilt forward flight. For our testing, the default obstacle detection range is too high. Safety is great, but there is a bush about 6 feet from our stationary helipad, the Air 2S felt that was too close and resisted my attempts to fly close enough to the bush in order to be back over top of our landing pad. This is adjustable, but out of the gate, expect to need a slightly larger operating area to fly the Air 2S.

DJI Air 2S remote

Flight features include familiar Quickshot tools, plus some updated AI tools. Point of Interest has been updated to version 3.0, Active track is also at version 3.0, and Spotlight is now at v2.0. DJI borrowed some camera modes from the Osmo line, MasterShots has Proximity, Portrait, and Landscape modes for you to play with.

All in all, the Air 2S feels smoother and safer than the Mavic Air 2, smaller and more agile than the Mavic 2 series drones, and shoots far better images than the Mini series.

The Air 2S proudly announces that it is equipped with Air Sense, which is an ADS-B receiver. We did not encounter any other air traffic in our time testing the Air 2S, but, from previous experience, we know that a warning would have popped up on the DJI Fly app on our connected mobile device, showing us the location of incoming manned aircraft. Remember, it is your responsibility to yield right-of-way to manned aircraft. We recommend having a planned diversion path every time you fly.

DJI Air 2S battery

Great news, it appears that the battery and propellers from the DJI Mavic Air 2 will fit the new Air 2S. This is one of the first times that DJI has introduced a new drone without forcing us to purchase all new parts and accessories. Thank you DJI!

DJI Air 2S specifications

The best part about the DJI Air 2S is the top notch parts and features for a reasonable price tag. The specifications of the Air 2S promise a solid flight experience, and some superb aerial photos and video from the sky.

The 1-inch camera captures 5.4K video, and 20 MP stills. These are values previously reserved for drones at least twice the price.

[specs table loading…]

DJI Air 2S camera

DJI Air 2S camera

The DJI Air 2S is not the first drone to rock a 20MP camera with a 1-inch sensor. The DJI Mavic 2 Pro and several Phantom drones enjoy such specs as well, however, the Air 2S is now the smallest and least expensive drone that we know of with this size of camera. We are excited for future drones, and future Osmo Pocket devices, that might use this size of sensor as well, particularly as we look over the images and video captured from the Air 2S.

Backing up the 1-inch sensor is the ability to record up to 5.4K video at 30fps, 4K video at 60fps, and a fantastic data rate of 150Mbps. We have not yet put our Air 2S footage side-by-side with Mavic 2 Pro footage for a full scrutiny, but we’re comfortable in saying that we think the Air 2S is the better camera.

Recording can be done in mp4 or mov format, using H.264 or H.265 encoding, with 8-bit or 10-bit color profiles (Normal, D-Log, or HLG.) 8GB of internal storage is backed by a microSD card slot.

DJI is taking advantage of the big sensor to offer digital zoom. At maximum resolution, you can get a 3x zoom, at 4K it’s a 4x zoom, 6x at 2.7K and 1080P 60fps, and 8X zoom when shooting 1080P at 30fps.

Let’s check it out:

DJI Air 2S Pano sample
DJI Air 2S 180 degree Panorama – click for full size

The competition

What drones should I look at if the Air 2S isn’t quite right for me? Well, the DJI Mavic 2 Pro remains the best consumer drone around, it’s larger, safer, and has a bit better camera than the Air 2S. Obviously, there are much larger and more expensive units as well that perform better than the Air 2S in terms of being a flying camera. If your budget is smaller, the DJI Mini 2 is about half the price for a drone that feels just as good in the sky, the smaller drone sacrifices camera quality and a few other tidbits, but the savings may be worth it to you.

Autel Robotics Evo Lite
Autel Robotics Evo Lite
  • Great flight time
  • Great camera
  • 4K HDR video
DJI Mavic 2 Zoom
DJI Mavic 2 Zoom
  • Reliable drone
  • Solid build
  • Powerful zoom on the camera
DJI Mavic Air 2
DJI Mavic Air 2
  • Great battery life
  • Large camera
  • AirSense transponder
DJI Mini 3 Pro
DJI Mini 3 Pro
  • Ultra portable and lightweight
  • Good, stabalized 4K video
  • Generous flight time
DJI Mini 2
DJI Mini 2
  • 4K camera
  • Very portable
  • Easy to fly
  • 249 grams
DJI FPV
DJI FPV
  • 4K camera
  • Over 85mph!
  • Versatile flight modes
  • Very fun to fly
  • Motion Controller is unique and fun
See price at Amazon
Save $ 300.00

Should I buy the DJI Air 2S?

DJI Air 2S

If the DJI Air 2S is within your price range, and you are looking for a solid camera drone, this is our new top recommendation for consumer drones. There are still better cameras in the sky for higher price tags, and less expensive drones if the camera is not as important to you, but DJI’s latest is, once again, one of their best offerings in the consumer-class.

For the average pilot, the fun flight features of the Air 2S are better than other Mavic drones out there, but their iterative update pales in comparison to the jump in camera.

Bottom line, the DJI Air 2S should prove to be the very best camera drone under $1,400 on the market. Considering the Air 2S starts at $999, I hope we get the point across, worth it!

DJI Air 2S prices

DJI Air 2S for $999

  • Airframe
  • Remote control
  • One battery
  • Charger
  • One pair additional propellers
  • All cables to connect

DJI Air 2S Fly More combo for $1,299

  • Airframe
  • Remote control
  • Three batteries
  • Charger
  • Charging hub
  • Additional propellers
  • All cables to connect
  • ND filters
  • Shoulder bag
DJI Air 2S
MSRP:  
$999.00

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I upgrade from the Mavic Air 2 to the Air 2S?

Please consider your needs in the sky before you upgrade. There is no doubt that the Air 2S is the better drone, but it is more expensive, and the main improvement is in the camera quality.

If you want better photos and video from the sky than the Mavic Air 2 is providing, consider the Air 2S, (or Mavic 3,) otherwise, they fly very similarly, with a comparable fun-factor.

Is the Mavic Air smaller than the Mavic Mini?

For DJI’s Mavic drones, the Mini series is the smallest, with all models weighing less than 250 grams. The Air series is the next largest, weighing about 600 grams, and the original Mavic series being the largest, with the Mavic 3 weighing almost 900 grams.

All of the Mavic drones easily pack into a typical camera bag, and the camera quality generally gets better the larger (and newer) the model.

Do I need a license to fly the DJI Air 2S

Yes. All hobby pilots must acquire the FAA’s TRUST certificate before they fly. All commercial pilots must acquire their Part 107 certificate before they fly.


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