After announcing its latest phablet, the Mi Max, and a smartwatch for kids, Xiaomi continues its announcements of new tech with the latest being the “Mi” drone, a quadcopter drone capable of recording at 4K.
Developed by China-based company Flymi in collaboration with Xiaomi, the Mi drone will be sold in two variants. A variant that shoots in 1080p will be priced at CNY 2,4999 ($380) while the 4K variant is priced at CNY 2,999 ($460).
The 4K variant houses a 12.4MP Sony imaging sensor which record videos at 3,840 x 2,160 resolution at 30fps and pictures taken in RAW format. The 1080p model ships with a 16MP sensor that shoots Full HD videos at 60fps. Both will have a 5100mAh battery that powers up the drone for 27 minutes of flying time and GPS plus GLONASS for accurate positioning.
While it comes with a controller, the Mi drone is capable of Autopilot which allows it to perform automatic take-off and landing, waypoint flight path planning, tap to fly on the map, and circle an object on the ground.
The Mi drone was also made with portability in mind as CEO and founder Lei Jun showed how easy it is to carry the Mi drone, due to its modular design, during a live stream.
Currently, the Mi drone will be open for crowdfunding on May 26 and for beta testing by the end of July. No word on whether Xiaomi intends to release it outside of China.
Source: Xiaomi
