DJI’s Mavic Air will take your holiday snaps to new 4K heights

The tourist has evolved. Once, we bored relatives with endless albums of holiday photos. Now, thanks to DJI’s backpack-friendly DJI Mavic Air (£769, due January 28), we’ll make soaring souvenir films that make us look like a Planet Earth director (we’re not, we just pressed the Quickshot button). In DJI’s formidable drone squadron, the Mavic Air flies between the more pro-level Phantom and beginner-friendly Spark, folding down into a smartphone-sized unit that is ludicrously small when you consider its ability to shoot 4K video and 12MP stills. Those videos promise to match its pro cousins for smoothness too, thanks to the Mavic Air’s 3-axis gimbal, while new FlightAutonomy 2.0 software will keep it flying steadier than a peregrine falcon. With a decent 21-minute flight time from a single charge and 8GB onboard storage, it’s shaping up to be our new favourite drone.

Mark Wilson Features editor

About

Mark's first review for Stuff was the Nokia N-Gage in 2004. Luckily, his career lasted a little longer than the taco phone, and he's been trying to figure out how gadgets fit back into their boxes ever since. While his 'Extreme Mark Wilson' persona was retired following a Microsoft skydiving incident, this means he can often be spotted in the wilds of South West London testing action cams, drones and smartwatches, and occasionally cursing at them.

Areas of expertise

Smart home tech, cameras, wearables and obscure gadgets from the early 2000s.