DJI Avata 360 Price Leak Undercuts Insta360 by Nearly Half, Plus World Speed Record Shattered

Welcome to your weekly UAS news update. I have three stories for you this week, and this is the first of the year. We have leaked pricing for the upcoming DJI Avata 360, the world record for the fastest drone has been shattered yet again, and we have a lot of public safety agencies doing good things with drones.

DJI Avata 360 Pricing Leaked From Chinese Retail Store

Thanks to a pricing table from a Chinese retail store, we now have some ideas of what the final pricing of the DJI Avata 360 might be. The Avata 360 is already FCC approved, so you will be able to buy it in the United States and fly it.

Here are the Chinese prices:

Of course, these are not the prices we are going to get here in the United States. Based on DJI’s history, we can expect a 15 to 40 percent premium after tariffs and other costs. That puts it right around $489 for the base drone. The Fly More Combo is more likely to land right where DJI typically prices things at $999. That is about the same price as the DJI Avata 2 when it launched.

How It Stacks Up Against the Competition

The big question here is whether it is worth it for this drone. The Avata 360 is rumored to bring true spherical 360-degree capture from an FPV platform. There are also rumors it could be under 250 grams, but like all rumors, we should take that with a grain of salt. I actually do not think it is going to be under 250 grams because it does not actually make a whole lot of sense for it to be.

This drone seems to be a direct challenger to the Insta360 Antigravity A1. DJI is betting that their immersive 360 FPV experience will be compelling enough for people to swallow the price tag.

For context, the current pricing for the Antigravity A1 is $1,599 to $1,999 depending on the combo you get. DJI seems to be coming in at nearly half that price. It is going to be interesting to compare these two drones if we can get our hands on one of them or both of them.

World’s Fastest Drone Record Demolished at 408.6 MPH

For all of you speed demons out there and also for FPV builders, the record for the world’s fastest drone has been absolutely demolished. Luke Maximo Bell and his team have reclaimed the Guinness World Record with their Peregrine V4 drone, clocking an official speed of 408.6 miles per hour. That is 657 kilometers per hour.

They took the record back from Benjamin Biggs, who held the record at 389 mph. That is really impressive, not only from the engineering perspective.

Engineering, Not Just Power

This is more than just adding power. You would think it is just about adding power, but they actually did a full redesign focused on reliability and drag reduction. They tested three different motors, redesigned the 3D printed frame, changed some materials, and even changed the motor KV.

This is an incredible engineering feat. Think about how fast this thing is going. It shows what is possible when you focus on the tiny details. It is awesome to see that the record continues to be broken over and over again.

Drones for Good: Public Safety Deployments Across the Country

We have a bunch of drones for good stories from several places across the country. When I say a bunch, it is actually quite a few. I am not going to give you all the details, but I want to make a point here about how far drones for public safety have come.

Here is what happened this week:

• A hiker was rescued using a drone in Chillicothe, Ohio
• A hiker in Oregon was rescued using a drone
• A man with dementia in Campbellsville, Kentucky was located using a Matrice 30T
• A Skydio X2E was used to capture a man in Wichita after an armed robbery
• A DJI Matrice 4T was instrumental in a rescue in Michigan after a snowmobile broke through lake ice, sending two riders into the water
• A thermal drone with a spotlight was used to locate a man near Westchester, Pennsylvania
• A Matrice 4T in Fishers, Indiana located a firearm after it was dumped by a suspect during a chase

All of these stories are proof again and again that drones have become another tool for public safety departments. They save lives and protect first responders.

Make sure that you join us in the premium community for Postflights. This is the uncensored show where we share our opinions on all of the stories we talked about here, and it is not always suitable for YouTube. We will see you on Monday for the live, and have a great week.

What do you think about the DJI Avata 360 pricing compared to the Antigravity A1? Let us know in the comments below.