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By Mike Prospero published 20 May 22

DJI's first indoor drone could be coming soon

The DJI Avata could be the company's first indoor drone. To date, all of DJI's drones have been meant to be flown outdoors, but that could all be changing soon. Rumors suggest the the company is developing a new drone that's designed for indoor spaces and capture tight shots in enclosed areas.

Here's everything we've heard about the rumored DJI Avata so far. 

The DJI Avata could be released as early as this summer — July or August — according to Gizmodo, who originally spotted the reports on two reliable Twitter accounts, DealsDrone and OsitaLV. 

Pricing has not been revealed, or even speculated. 

OsitaLV, a reliable leaker, posted two images on May 18 of what look like the top and bottom of the DJI Avata. From the first image of the bottom of the drone, you can see two downward-facing sensors and one rear-facing sensor that's angled downward.

The second photo, which shows the top of the drone, reveals the battery and gives us a glimpse at the camera assembly, which looks like it could swivel up and down.

The most noticeable difference between the leaked pictures of the Avata and DJI's other drones — many of which are on our list of the best drones — is that this model has rotors that are protected by built-in shrouds. On DJI's outdoor drones, you can purchase protective cages for the rotors, but those are removable, whereas here, they're integral to the design. That makes sense, considering this drone is meant to be flown indoors. 

In the same tweet, DealsDrone also says that the Avata will weigh around 500 grams (about 1.1 pounds); that's twice as heavy as the DJI Mini 3 Pro and the DJI Mini 2 — and also means that the Avata will have to be registered with the FAA.

Avata is compact and weighs about 500gCan fly indoorsThe photo quality is much better (guess that the Mini 3 Pro is the same)Greatly improved battery lifeManual mode is not supportedHead chase modeVibration function Touchpad for glasses menuGlasses can connect to phone pic.twitter.com/WUqpjXXEnKMay 15, 2022

DealsDrone also suggests that the Avata's camera will be comparable to that of the Mini 3 Pro, which has a 1/1.3-inch CMOS, f/1.7 aperture sensor, and can take photos as large as 48MP and videos up to 4K/60 fps.

However, in another departure from DJI's other drones, the Avata's camera appears to be fixed and not gimbal-mounted, which means that pilots will have to point the drone in the direction they want to shoot.

The design of the Avata, along with speculation that it can be used with FPV goggles, suggests that it could be DJI's entry into the so-called cinewhoop category — small, fast, and maneuverable drones that can capture acrobatic indoor videos. They're best exemplified by the "Right Up Our Alley" video that was filmed in 2021 by Jay Christensen, who has gone on to shoot a number of other similar videos, such as for the NHL All-Star game and for the PGA's Players Championship. 

As such, the DJI Avata will be a lot different — and probably a lot more expensive — than the Snap Pixy, another recently announced $230 handheld drone that's meant to take selfie photos and video.

It's very early to speculate on the success or failure of a rumored drone. However, if it were to launch, the DJI Avata looks to cater to a very specific drone pilot — even more niche than the DJI FPV drone, which the company released last year. The Avata could also be released alongside a new set of FPV goggles, which will be needed to fly this drone indoors and around tight spaces. 

Like the FPV drone, the Avata could be DJI's way of introducing a drone to those who want to try their hand at indoor drone videography, but don't yet want to build their own drone. Whether that's a successful model remains to be seen.

Michael A. Prospero is the deputy editor at Tom’s Guide. He oversees the Homes, Smart Home, and Fitness/Wearables categories, but also tests out the latest standing desks, webcams, drones, and electric scooters. He has worked at Tom's Guide for many a year; before that, he was the Reviews Editor for Laptop Magazine, a reporter at Fast Company, and, many eons back, an intern at George magazine. When he’s not testing out the latest running watch, electric scooter, or skiing or training for a marathon, he’s probably using the latest sous vide machine, smoker, or pizza oven, to the delight or chagrin of his family.

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