DJI Innovations, Chinese Creative Technologies Company and global leader in UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems), specializes in using drones for aerial photography and videography. The company’s brand new model, called DJI Inspire 1, meets the needs of both hobbyists and professionals, sports an incredible 4K camera for shooting 1080p video, a wireless HD transmitter, and retractable landing gear. But at $2,900, this drone better pack a ridiculous amount of bang for its buck.

Unlike any other drone out there, the Inspire 1 has a transforming design that makes using it easy and incredibly smooth. Its “optic flow” camera stabilizes the drone without the need for GPS. Instead, it uses a stereoscopic image to see the ground below and keep the body level. According to Tech Crunch, its 12MP, 4K camera “is mounted on an auto-leveling gimbal, which will allow for silky smooth videos”. It also has the ability to swivel 360 degrees for a consistent and unobstructed view, and can shoot video at 30, 25, and 24fps. Using DJI’s Lightbridge system, it lets you stream and store video at a distance of up to one mile using a wireless HD transmitter. A co-pilot is needed to assist in filming, however. Therefore, two controllers are connected to the drone- one for flying it and another for operating the movable camera (TechCrunch).

Out of the box, the Inspire 1 is easy to assemble, and just one touch will start the drone off the ground. With a maximum range of 700m, the device can fly up to 300 meters in the air, at a max speed of 50 mph. When it’s time to land, the downward-facing camera alerts the drone it is close to the ground, then “its landing gear automatically retracts to get out of the way of the camera”, and lands propped up (Gizmodo). It can also land wherever you set its home position via iPad app; the most convenient home position being the remote control, so it can return to the user wherever their location may be. The Inspire 1 will run on its 6-cell battery for 18 minutes.

With an upcoming SDK for Android and iOS, developers will be free to build apps that can control the Inspire 1’s camera movements and waypoints. The sophistication of DJI’s Inspire 1 might not meet the needs of some people’s budgets. The device is priced at $2,900, and comes with one controller. An additional controller, which will allow the camera and flight controls to be operated separately, can be purchased for $500. If you desire to become an UAS “prosumer”, the Inspire 1 will definitely give you the camera and video quality all the cool kids have. You just might have to sell a kidney to get it.