21 Things You Didn't Know About DJI Drones
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DJI Drones Rule The Market
The drone global market is expected to skyrocket to $11.2 billion by 2020. Research firm Gartner reports that in 2016, the industry raked in $4.5 billion.
According to Consumer Technology Association, sales of hobbyist drones in the United States hit 2.4 million or about 1.1 million more than in 2015.
The big chunk of drone sales in North America belongs to DJI. The company has a 50 percent share of the market across all prices. The drone manufacturer has 66 percent share of drones priced from $1,000 to $2,000. It controls 36 percent of the market when it comes to drones consumers can buy for $500 through $1,000.
DJI Drones Rule The Market
The drone global market is expected to skyrocket to $11.2 billion by 2020. Research firm Gartner reports that in 2016, the industry raked in $4.5 billion.
According to Consumer Technology Association, sales of hobbyist drones in the United States hit 2.4 million or about 1.1 million more than in 2015.
The big chunk of drone sales in North America belongs to DJI. The company has a 50 percent share of the market across all prices. The drone manufacturer has 66 percent share of drones priced from $1,000 to $2,000. It controls 36 percent of the market when it comes to drones consumers can buy for $500 through $1,000.
DJI Founder Frank Wang Is Asia's Youngest Billionaire
Chinese businessman Wang Tao (Frank Wang) is the founder and CEO of DJI. As the popularity of drones soar, Wang's net worth goes boom. At 36, he was named Asia's youngest billionaire in 2017. As of April 2018, Wang's networth is $3.2 Billion. Forbes estimates that he owns roughly 45 percent of DJI.
The young DJI has a bachelor's degree in Electronics and Computer Engineering from the Hong Kong University Of Science and Technology. He also received his master's degree from the same institution.
Will he be the next Jack Ma of Alibaba or the next Pony Ma Huateng of Tencent? DJI will shape his future.
Where else but in a dorm room
The secret to success in the tech industry must be founding one's company in a garage or a dorm room. Just like Google and Facebook, Frank Wang launched his company from his Hong Kong dorm room back in 2006.
As DJI evolved into a tech giant in its own right, Wang has made a ton of changes and even got rid of friends, employees, and business partners. On the door of his office, there's sign that reads "Do not bring in emotions" and "Those with brains only." He firmly believes that one needs to be smarter than the others and put a good distance from the masses if one wants to succeed.
What does DJI stand for?
DJI stands for Da-Jiang Innovations. The company was established in 2006 in Shenzhen China by Frank Wang. Since then, DJI has produced products such as drones, cameras, flight controllers, and more. Wang's curiousity about flight has turned his passion to a big business. DJI has a valuation of $10 billion as of 2017. As of April 2018, the company is looking to raise $1 billion at a valuation of roughly $15 billion.
On a side note, Wang was rejected by his top university choices and ended up at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. His academic performance was far from excellent and had no chance of getting into Stanford or MIT. This sounds familiar, right?
DJI Drone Arenas
DJI opened its very first drone arena just outside Seoul, South Korea in 2016. The manufacturer wanted to put up a place where drone enthusiasts can gather and practice their flying skills. The 15,000-square-foot arena in Korea features an LED-lit circuit, workstations where hobbyists can do some repairs, and charging docks.
DJI has also opened an arena in Tokyo, Japan. The drone manufacturer operates the facility in partnership wtih Japan Circuit. The arena features the full line of products of DJI, technical support, and an adjustable circuit where aerial enthusiasts can practice in a controlled environment. Just like you, we're wondering when DJI will have an arena in the United States.
DJI Spark vs. DJI Phantom 4 Pro
The DJI Spark is a mini drone but one should not underestimate its potential. Aside from pushing the user's creative boundaries, the Spark can be a considered a pony that can keep up with the thoroughbreds. The little kid on the block has a maximum speed of 31 miles per hour without wind. Based on this number it can go side by side with its bigger sibling the Phantom 4 Pro in GPS mode. The DJI Spark was engineered with beginner drone fliers in mind. Users can fly and land it by just using gesture controls. It can also avoid obstacles as far as 16 ft in front of it.
DJI Drone's Highest Altitude Record
No, drones are not rockets that can bring a bottle of beer to astronauts manning the ISS. In fact, drones are considered hazards in the air space and that's why they have altitude limiter. Some users, though, have opted to bypass or remove those limits and were able to set some altitude records.
In 2016, a Phantom 2 user in Europe set a record of 11,000 feet. It was an amazing feat but not a lot of people were pleased. The Phantom 2 took 3.5 minutes to reach the altitude but the operator had to rush the drone back before the battery runs out. It landed safely.
Another DJI drone operator flew his machine over the Llullailaco volcano at the border of Chile and Argentina in January 2017. Flight data shows max altitude of 34.8 feet but take note that the flight was at 22,150 feet above sea level.
Native Aspect Ratio Of Your DJI Drone
Can't make your mind up what image size setting to use in your DJIGo4 app? For the uniniated, it can get pretty confusing. When referring to image size, larger number does not necessarily mean a larger image. It is best to pick the largest native aspect ratio available. This means, you get the most number of pixels per photograph.
For the Phantom 4 Pro, it has a native aspect ratio of 3:2 that gives you 19.962MP. The Mavic Air comes with 4:3 or roughly 12.33MP. The Spark, meanwhile, comes with a sensor boasting of 4:3 aspect ratio, also around 12MP.
Drone Industry Numbers Indicate Bright Future For DJI
Looking at available numbers, DJI might be reaching new highs in the years to come.
* As of January 2017, about 47 percent of Americans are interested in drone deliveries. Amid the excitement, 72 percent of users are worried about theft and damaged packages.
* Today, only around 8 percent of Americans own a drone.
* The drone industry is estimated to be a $13 billion business come 2020. The number is expected to hit $90 billion by 2025.
With DJI drones ruling most of the price ranges and most of its competitors not able to keep up with its pace of developing new products, the company will be king for quite a while.
How DJI makes quieter drones
If drones will be occupying a good amount of air space in the future, humans might have to deal with annoying humming and buzzing in their surroundings. In a study conducted by NASA, experts found out that the subjects were more annoyed with the noise coming from drones than the usual noise of vehicles passing by. It could be the higher frequency of the drone that isn't pleasing to human ears.
DJI is trying to address this problem and has been making design changes to make newer generation of drones quieter. For example, the Mavic Pro Platinum is 60 percent quieter than its older sibling, the Mavic Pro. The former makes use of a redesigned rotor with raked wingtip. This small design tweak makes a big difference in terms of changing the sound pitch the drone makes.
Drones Save Lives
DJI released a report in March 2017 that puts a spotlight on how drones help save lives. Compiling news report the drone maker reported that at least 59 lives were saved by civilian drones. The company added that drones save almost one life per week on average.
The amazing stories range from missing people found by drones on land, mountains, swamps, among others. Some were spotted during floods where drones were used to survey the field or deliver rescue ropes or drop life jackets. In similar scenarios, drones enhance the safety of rescue workers and emergency responders. The count DJI reported does not include incidents where drones indirectly save lives.
DJI is one of World's Most Innovative Companies Of 2018
DJI's R&D efforts have paid off. The company has been recognized as one of 2018 World's Most Innovative Companies. Honored for "soaring beyond the rest of the drone industry," DJI indeed knows how to fly like an eagle. The drone manufacturer focuses on developing its technology, with 25 percent of its workforce dedicated to R&D. This results to innovative products that help the brand dominate 75 percent of the global drone market.
DJI aims to make drones easier to fly. With the release its tiny drone Spark, DJI has demonstrated that it's on the right track. Users can launch Spark from their palms, and it's so smart you don't have to worry about flying it. It is a camera that you can take anywhere and it will make you look good while you seize the moment.
What keeps the Mavic Air safe while flying?
Sandwiched between the tiny DJI Spark and it's upper tier sibling Mavic Pro, the $800 Mavic Air is of good value. It's a good combo of portability, power, speed, and excellent features that makes life easier for the user. The Mavic Air was engineered with a good blend of form and function that can only be seen with bigger drones before.
The Mavic Air has a max range of 4 kilometers. To ensure optimal signal reception, DJI placed its antennas inside the drone's landing gears. It also sees its surroundings well with its multiple environment sensing cameras. So, yes it can see what's in front of it, what's under it, and what's behind it.
Buzzin' with controversy
DJI is not a brand exempted from controversies. In 2015, a DJI drone crashed into the lawn of the White House. The incident prompted the company to issue an update that will prevent its drones from flying into a restricted air space. DJI also created a Geo Zone Map that serves as guide for drone owners where it is safe or restricted to fly.
An uncovered U.S. government memo issued in August 2017 tags DJI for possibly providing critical information to the Chinese goverment. The goverment agents suggests, writing in high confidence, that such sensitive information ranging from GPS imagery, security measures information, facial recognition data, user data, among others might be used to launch an offensive against the United States.
Tracing the roots to a 1980s comic book
Frank Wang, DJI founder and CEO, who has propelled the brand to great success, was obsessed with the concept of flying. Wang's interest in flying robots was sparked by the 1980s comic book ""Dong Naojin Yeye"" that featured a helicopter. The comic book made Wang dream of one day creating a helicopter that will follow him wherever he goes.
In 2005, Wang comleted a helicopter flight control project. He made a video with it and unexpectedly impressed someone who offered to buy it for around $6,000. It wasn't a bad deal for someone in college, he thought. In 2006, he founded DJI.
Why didn't DJI develop a product with GoPro?
It's not a love-hate relationship between DJI and GoPro but they just can't seal a deal. While users can still use GoPro with most DJI drones, the two brands just did not have enough spark to sort of tie the knot. According to DJI founder and CEO Frank Wang, he does not want DJI to be an accessory to other brands.
He revealed there were intiial discussions but it never came to fruition. Why? Profits, of course! GoPro wanted to rake in more, treating DJI as an OEM company, but DJI only wants to make GoPro as its sales channel as the product will be DJI's from beginning to end.
DJI Mavic Air turns you to a jedi, sort of
DJI wants to create drones that anyone can fly. With the Mavic Air, DJI offers SmartCapture that allows users to control the drone using their hands.
Just like a jedi, users can do a gesture launch while in front of the drone (R2-D2 not included for spaceflight). Palm Control combined with a set of arm movements can make the drone fly away to a certain distance and fly back toward the user. The drone can also follow users using hand gesture. To take selfies, users just need to flash the V sign. For taking videos, the Mavic Air recognizes the frame gesture to start and stop recording.
Drone helps former marine fly above PTSD
A good percentage of veterans in the United States battle post traumatic stress disorder or PTSD, a mental health issue that may develop due to exposure to life-threatening events such as combat. Those who struggle with PTSD feel on the edge, deal with upsetting memories, and have sleeping problems.
DJI shared the story of a marine veteran, David Dally, who was haunted by his combat experience as he transitioned to civilian life. For years, Daly still kept his military backpack with his battle gear just by his closet. Daly, in recent months, has found a new purpose for his backpack. It now carries a drone that has helped transform his life. Drone flying became a distraction from PTSD but eventually became an essential part of his healing process for him and has given him a new perspective on life. From a hobby, he now flies a commercial drone to survey lands in Montana.
Deadly Drones?
A drone crashing on someone's head may still cause injury, but the extent of the injury is far less when compared to injuries caused by falling wood block or steel shrapnel, according to a study by the Federal Aviation Administration. No, the FAA didn't drop drones or bricks on human heads, they used a crash test dummy. They found out that the drone, a Phantom 3, absorbed more of the impact because it's made of more flexible materials. The impact energy of the drone weighing 2.7 pounds was just 100-103 ft-lbs compared to the wood's 116-120 ft-lbs and steel's 114-121 ft-lbs. The wood and steel shrapnel used weighed roughly the same as the drone.
Existing FAA rules do not allow businesses to fly drones directly over humans unless given government approval.
Can you shoot down a drone hovering over your property?
Property owners own the land but not the air space above it. Legally, one is prohibited to shoot down a drone. It is considered a federal crime to destroy any manned or unmanned aircraft. FAA rules state that drone owners can be fined for endangering human lives or other aircraft but there have been cases where people got in trouble for shooting down a drone on their property.
A Kentucky father got in trouble with the law when he shot a neighbor's drone hovering over his yard where her daughter was sunbathing.
In New York, firefighters received a complaint after they blasted a drone seemingly recording a house that caught on fire.
In Texas, a woman complained of invasion of privacy after she spotted a drone over her backyard while she was sunbathing. There was no legal option but to cover up.
The rules and guidelines are still evolving and for now, the law does not allow property owners to take matters into their own hands.
