DJI Mavic Air

Incredibly compact and convenient to carry around ; Easy to fly with intelligent flight modes ; Great video quality ; HDR and panoramic still images ; Includes built-in storage

Need to opt for the Fly More Combo to get the most out of it ; Switching between control methods can be fiddly

The DJI Mavic Air is the new consumer drone to beat, packing in incredible portability and fantastic image quality.

Dedicated joystick controller ; Gimbal stabilized 4K camera ; Robust obstacle avoidance ; Plentiful intelligent flight modes

Touchy camera controls, unless you’re in Cinematic mode

The Mavic Air might be DJI’s best drone to date. It’s certainly not perfect, but it checks all the right boxes. It’s super compact and portable, has a dedicated controller, shoots video in 4K, has an advanced obstacle avoidance system, and boasts a...

Very small. High bit-rate 4K UHD video. HDR and Panorama still capture. Raw and JPG support. Asteroid video shot. Good obstacle avoidance. Automated flight modes.

Doesn't support USB charging. No 4K DCI video. Panorama stitching needs some work. Real-world flight limited to about 18 minutes.

The Mavic Pro showed us that small drones can be just as capable as larger ones. The Mavic Air aims to take things one step further, putting a powerful aircraft and 4K camera into a form factor you can slide into a large pocket. It doesn't have the...

Impeccably compact and portable ; Smooth 4K video ; Gesture controls

Battery life could be better ; No side sensors

Incredible portability ; 4K video at up to 100Mbps; 12MP HDR stills ; Near-perfect obstacle avoidance ; 8GB internal storage

Slightly jerky gimbal controls ; Could have better range ; Need multiple batteries for a great flying experience

A small drone with huge ambitions, the DJI Mavic Air packs 4K video recording, a three-axis gimbal, an upgraded obstacle avoidance system and onboard storage into a compact and foldable form factor that easily slips into a jacket pocket. You’d be hard...

Great compact design ; Clever obstacle avoidance system ; Fun autonomous features

Average image quality ; Short battery life is limiting ; Wi-Fi connection can be flaky

And for me, I’m pretty excited to now have a capable enough drone in my backpack at all times.

Portable design means it's easy to carry around ; Full of features ; Quick Shot modes are a highlight ; Battery life is decent for a drone this size

ActiveTrack tracking didn't work reliably ; Video was often oversaturated ; Auto exposure slow to play catch-up ; App menu system is still quite complex

While not perfect, the Mavic Air is easily one of the most impressive drones to date. It's portable, powerful and packed with features. What's more, its batteries last far longer than the smaller Spark.

Incredibly portable ; Very good video and stills quality ; A cinch to fly

Battery life still quite restrictive ; Quite noisy when nearby

The best non-professional drone you can buy, the Mavic Air takes flying cameras to new gadget heights