DJI Osmo Pocket 4 Pro: Your Handheld Air 3S Is Almost Here

DJI has officially confirmed the Osmo Pocket 4 Pro is coming, and based on everything that has leaked so far, this is not an incremental update. The Pocket 4P, as DJI is calling it on Chinese social media, is a dual-camera pocket gimbal that borrows directly from the DNA of DJI’s best drone optics and stuffs them into a device you can hold in one hand. The expected launch is June 2026, and the more I look at the specs, the more I think this thing is going to make a lot of creators rethink their kit.

Let me put it in terms that actually make sense: the Pocket 4 Pro is essentially a handheld Air 3S. More on that in a moment.

What DJI Has Confirmed (and What Leaked From China)

DJI teased the Pocket 4P on Weibo with the phrase “exceptional vision” and confirmed a dedicated 3x optical zoom lens as a key differentiator from the standard Pocket 4. That confirmation alone separates this camera from everything else in its class.

Then a group of creators who attended a confidential DJI meetup in mainland China did what creators do, and the photos hit the internet. The hardware is exactly what earlier leaks described: a vertical dual-camera system with a 1-inch main sensor paired with a dedicated telephoto lens. The flip-out touchscreen, textured grip, and physical control layout are all visible. The ergonomics look significantly improved over the Pocket 3 layout.

From verified sources and the X.com leaks: the main sensor is an OmniVision 50MP chip with 17 stops of dynamic range and a D-Log2 curve. The telephoto is a Sony IMX09A sensor. The processor is a custom Qualcomm chip. Total zoom reach goes up to 12x. That is a lot of lens in something that fits in a jacket pocket.

The Specs That Matter

The Pocket 4 Pro ships with a dual-camera system: a 1-inch main sensor for the wide lens and a dedicated 3x optical telephoto. Exact video specs are unconfirmed but it appears that they can go up to 6K at 60fps and 4K at 240fps for slow motion. Color profile should be 10-bit D-Log2 for grading flexibility. ActiveTrack 7.0 handles subject tracking. Built-in storage is 107GB at 800 MB/s transfer speed, same as the standard Pocket 4.

The 3-axis mechanical gimbal carries over from the Pocket line. The battery is expected to be larger than the standard Pocket 4’s 1,545 mAh cell, though final capacity has not been confirmed. The Creator Combo is expected to include a fill light, mini tripod, and wide-angle lens attachment, consistent with leaks pointing to an accessory ecosystem that mirrors what DJI launched with the standard Pocket 4.

DJI Osmo Pocket 4 Pro (Expected but unconfirmed)

• Main Sensor: OmniVision 50MP, 1-inch
• Dynamic Range: 17 stops
• Color Profile: D-Log2
• Telephoto Sensor: Sony IMX09A
• Zoom: 3x optical, up to 12x total
• Video: 6K/60fps, 4K/240fps
• Stabilization: 3-axis mechanical gimbal
• Storage: 107GB internal, 800 MB/s
• Processor: Custom Qualcomm
• Expected Price: ~$700–$730 (4,999 RMB)
• Expected Launch: June 2026

This Thing Is a Handheld Air 3S

Here is the comparison nobody is making and should be. The DJI Air 3S has a 24mm equivalent main camera and a 70mm equivalent telephoto. That 24–70mm dual-camera combination is one of the most versatile setups in aerial photography, covering wide establishing shots and compressed mid-range detail in two physical lenses.

The Pocket 4 Pro runs 14mm on the main and 70mm on the telephoto. That is a wider starting point than the Air 3S, and the same reach on the long end. In practical terms, you get more sky in your wide shot and the same compression when you punch in.

The dual-focal-length logic, the sensor pairing, the 50MP resolution on the primary, the D-Log color science — it is the same optical philosophy as the Air 3S, just pointed at the ground instead of aimed from above.

But the Pocket 4 Pro has one advantage the Air 3S simply cannot match: vertical shooting. When you rotate the Pocket 4 Pro to portrait orientation, the gimbal compensates and you record full 9:16 without cropping. You are not cutting into your field of view to reframe for Reels or Shorts.

The Air 3S cannot do that — vertical drone footage is always a crop of horizontal capture. For anyone producing content across multiple formats simultaneously, this is not a minor point. It changes the math on how much you can do in a single shoot.

The US Situation

This is where it gets complicated. The standard Pocket 4 cleared FCC certification before DJI was added to the agency’s Covered List in December 2025. The Pocket 4 Pro did not file before that cutoff.

That means the Pro has no FCC registration on record and is unlikely to reach official US retail channels. B&H, Adorama, and Amazon US will almost certainly not carry it at launch. Grey-market imports are technically possible, but they carry warranty and customs risk.

DJI is targeting European and Asian markets as the primary launch regions, with China going first. If you are in the US and want one, you need to plan for that reality now.

DroneXL’s Take

The real story: DJI built an Air 3S you can fit in your pocket. The 14mm and 70mm lens combination mirrors one of the most proven dual-camera setups in DJI’s entire lineup, and the addition of true vertical shooting without field-of-view loss is a genuine functional advantage for anyone who produces social content.

The 17 stops of dynamic range and D-Log2 color profile push this into territory that was, until recently, only possible with dedicated cinema cameras or larger mirrorless systems.

The FCC situation is a real problem for the US market, and it is worth being direct about that. DJI’s regulatory challenges are not going away in the short term, and the Pocket 4 Pro is caught in the same net that was originally designed to target defense-adjacent drone hardware. It is a camera. A pocket camera. And US creators who want one will have to jump through hoops to get it.

The June 2026 timeline has slipped before — this product was originally expected in late 2025, then early 2026, then got separated from the standard Pocket 4 entirely to avoid cannibalizing sales. Whether it holds this time is anyone’s guess. DJI’s calendar is more of a mood board than a schedule.

But when it does ship: this is the most compelling small camera DJI has ever made.

Photo credit: X.com