DJI Appears Poised to Announce the Inspire 3 Drone
DJI appears to be gearing up to announce the third iteration of the Inspire drone platform. One of the most popular professional drones on the market, DJI hasn’t refreshed the line in nearly seven years.
Typically, a story about the possible launch of a product isn’t particularly newsworthy, but the Inspire line is one of the most capable and well-loved professional drones that has ever come to market. For the last several years as DJI has chosen to focus its efforts on gimbals and compact drones, many professionals have wondered if they had seen the last new Inspire. Photographers and filmmakers would not have been called crazy for thinking this line had been abandoned.
The DJI Inspire 2 was announced on November 15, 2016, and boasted insane specifications for the time. It reaches a top speed of 67 miles per hour and can get to 50 miles per hour in about four seconds. Its dual battery design allows pilots to get up to 27 minutes of flight tie and it features a gimbal system that can accept an interchangeable camera that uses interchangeable lenses.
The thing is, the body of the Inspire isn’t “bad” or particularly outdated and the actual camera unit — the area most new all-in-one drones focus their updates — is interchangeable and upgradeable, which is probably why DJI hasn’t felt the need to upgrade the entire Inspire system in quite some time. That said, DJI’s Zenmuse X7 is still its top-of-the-line offering, and that was originally launched in the fall of 2017. Still, it’s quite capable and can capture 6K CinemaDNG RAW or 5.2K Apple ProRes footage at up to 30 frames per second with its Super35 sensor. That was a notable upgrade over the Zenmuse X4S that originally shipped with the Inspire 2, which capped out at 5.2K.
But if a new DJI web page is any indication of what is to come, that’s all changing. The company has announced that “Inspiration Arrives” on April 13 at 9 AM EDT and shows a silhouette of what is clearly an Inspire-esqe drone. Given the tagline, it’s hard to see this as anything other than confirmation that the DJI Inspire 3 is just around the corner.
“In 2014, the Inspire 1 was released, specially made for groundbreaking aerial cinematography. Its integrated and convertible airframe, 360-degree gimbal pan, 4K video capability, long-range dual-control video transmission, and other innovative technologies revitalized the concept of aerial shooting. Filmmakers were empowered to let their imaginations fly, and aerial footage became essential to the cinematic landscape. Two years later, the future-proof Inspire 2 was launched, bringing image quality and workflow efficiency to entirely new heights, and setting a new benchmark for the industry,” DJI says.
“Over the past seven years, the language of aerial shooting has become increasingly diverse, as creators push to realize bolder visions. To master the unseen boundaries of creativity, it’s time to redefine aerial cinematography and Inspire the world once again. The legacy continues on April 13.”
Those interested in learning more as soon as DJI is prepared to share can sign up to receive an email update. Everyone else can mark their calendars for April 13.
Image credits: DJI
