Sony has opened pre-orders for its first drone for professional photographers and videographers, called the Airpeak S1. The Japanese tech giant says that it is the smallest drone that supports a full-size, mirrorless camera and costs $9,000.
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The first model in what is expected to be an expanding range of drones supports several Sony cameras, including the Alpha 1, Alpha 7S series, Alpha 7R series and Alpha 9 series. According to Sony, the S1 has proprietary technology that supports smooth movement at high speed and provides stable wind resistance in service of helping cinematographers and photographers to capture high-quality footage and photos from the sky.
The Airpeak S1 can fly for 22 minutes with a payload, and 12 minutes with a large camera strapped on. It has a top speed of 90kph, and comes with two sets of propellers, two rechargeable batteries and a controller.
The Airpeak Flight app for iOS provides real-time status info and updates on the hardware. With the Airpeak Base web app, users can create advanced, repeatable flight plans, manage the drone and camera and troubleshoot issues. It also has a feature squarely aimed at professionals that allows one person to control the drone and another to operate the camera and gimbal. Both users can see what the camera is capturing.
There’s an optional cloud service called Airpeak Plus that offers extra storage, enhanced geofencing tools and flight log importing and exporting. It costs around $300 for 12 months. While the price tag is eye-watering, it is actually $1,000 less than when the drone was originally announced. Compared to other professional-grade drone and camera setups, it is actually relatively inexpensive. It remains to be seen if the movie and TV show industry takes up this technology, or if it will be mostly used by content creators looking for a more professional look.
