The DJI Mavic 4 Pro is shaping up to be the most anticipated drone of the year. While we don’t know the full specs yet, DJI dropped a teaser this week that has the drone community buzzing.

While the company hasn’t confirmed it outright, the imagery and tagline — “Spin Your World”— accompanied by a launch time (May 13 at 8 a.m. ET) strongly suggest a new flagship drone is imminent. The promo material, posted to networks including X and Instagram, suggest a drone with three cameras, including a Hasselblad camera. The word “Spin” suggests a camera that can spin (or at least rotate).

What will very likely be a new drone follows a strong and diverse lineup of new products to come out of DJI recently. The DJI Neo is a great, budget-conscious beginner drone. The DJI Flip takes it up a notch as a still-friendly beginner drone with more advanced specs. The DJI Air 3S is my favorite drone I’ve flown to-date, period. Perhaps unsurprising that I love its style, since it’s the best travel drone.

So what exactly should we expect—and what do we want—from DJI’s newest flagship? Based on past Mavic pitfalls, emerging tech in the DJI Air 3S and DJI’s own teaser, here’s what I’m hoping to see in the DJI Mavic 4 Pro:

1. A truly rotating Hasselblad camera

The tagline “Spin Your World” suggests one major design breakthrough: a rotating camera gimbal. For years, vertical shooting on Mavic drones meant cropping a horizontal image, sacrificing sharpness and resolution. A physically rotating sensor would finally allow full-resolution vertical capture, ideal for social media without compromise.

And yes, the social media post indicates that the Hasselblad branding is back, signaling pro-grade color science and lens quality. If DJI builds on its triple-camera system from the Mavic 3 Pro but lets one of those lenses rotate natively, it could be a game-changer for vertical content creators.

2. Better battery life

Surprisingly, the DJI Air 3S actually has longer battery life than the Mavic 3 Pro. The newer, cheaper drone offers up to 46 minutes compared to 43 on the Mavic 3 Pro. The Mavic 4 Pro needs to reclaim that crown with extended airtime, especially for those using high-res sensors that burn through power.

A larger, more power-efficient battery system (perhaps even hot-swappable?) would be a welcome upgrade for pros in the field.

Related read: DJI Air 3S vs. DJI Mavic 3 Pro: even with a lower price, is the Air 3S actually better?

3. LiDAR Obstacle Sensing

The Air 3S’s precision obstacle avoidance set a new bar. If the Mavic 4 Pro introduces LiDAR-based sensing, it could enable more precise autonomous flight, even in low light or complex environments. Think smarter tracking, better ActiveTrack reliability and safer indoor flight.

4. O4 video transmission

The OcuSync 4 (O4) transmission system debuted on the Air 3 and Mini 4 Pro, offering higher-resolution live feeds and rock-solid connectivity. The Mavic 4 Pro needs to adopt this tech — and possibly improve it further with 4K live feed to the DJI RC Pro.

5. More internal storage

Speaking of modern standards, more internal storage is a must. The 8GB offered on past Mavic drones is fine in a pinch, but in reality it’s not enough for high-res shooters. Even the Air 3 offers 46GB internally. We’re hoping the new DJI Mavic 4 Pro can at least match 46GB , and ideally SSD speeds for ProRes workflows.

6. New flight modes and smarter autonomy

The teaser’s smooth rotations hint at a new class of cinematic flight modes, potentially using the rotating gimbal for fluid pan-tilt-roll shots. Combined with AI-based subject tracking and smarter obstacle avoidance (à la Skydio), the Mavic 4 Pro could open creative doors for solo filmmakers.

How much will the DJI Mavic 4 Pro likely cost?

As of today, the DJI Mavic 3 Pro with DJI RC is sold out on DJI’s website—perhaps to make way for its successor. That package was priced at $2,199, while the Fly More Combo with DJI RC Pro clocked in at $3,889.

We expect the Mavic 4 Pro to land somewhere in that range — or higher if it includes the rumored rotating gimbal and ProRes recording. Given the Air 3S starts at just $1,099, DJI may position the Mavic 4 Pro as a true professional’s tool, with pricing to match.

Of course, U.S. customers do need to account for tariffs. Whereas other consumer products haven’t yet seen price markups because they’ve already been sitting in U.S. warehouses, that won’t be the case here. As of now — following weeks of tit-for-tat escalation between China and the U.S. — U.S. tariffs on Chinese products have exploded to a staggering 145%.

While some companies are eating the cost of the tariffs (or at least some of the cost), it’ll be interesting to see how that impacts prices on this all-new drones. In fact, DJI itself already hinted that tariff price hikes were coming.

It’ll also be interesting to see how the drone holds up at U.S. Customs. Many readers have reported having issues getting their hands on the DJI Air 3S because of holdups with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

“Spin Your World”: what to expect on May 13

If the DJI Mavic 4 Pro delivers a rotating Hasselblad camera, better battery life, LIDAR-level autonomy and more internal storage, it could mark a new era for drone creators. And if DJI gets it right, the Mavic 4 Pro might not just spin your world — it could reshape the whole drone industry.

Stay tuned to The Drone Girl for more updates. The drone launch is on May 13 at 8 a.m. ET, and I’ll be watching.

The post DJI Mavic 4 Pro: 6 features I want to see in DJI’s new drone appeared first on The Drone Girl.

Once dominated by flashy camera drones flown by influencers and hobbyists, the skies are now increasingly filled with aircraft designed for a far different mission: war. That’s even more evident as Skydio this week announced that it had fulfilled the first order under the U.S. Army’s Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) Tranche 2 program. With it, the U.S. military will receive a batch of Skydio X10D drones.

Skydio’s X10D is built for the battlefield, offering a 48-megapixel telephoto camera, thermal imaging via a Teledyne FLIR Boson+ sensor and AI-based navigation that continues to function even when GPS fails. The Department of Defense added the Skydio X10D drone to its Blue UAS list in late May 2024, signaling it meets the U.S. government’s strict cybersecurity and performance standards. 

It’s a powerful signal of how drone priorities have changed. While early Skydio drones, like the R1 and 2+, were marketed to action-sports fans looking for a hands-free flying camera, the company’s flagship products are now more likely to be used to assess enemy movements than follow a mountain biker down a trail.

What Is the Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) program?

The U.S. Army’s SRR program is a multi-phase effort to equip its soldiers with small, lightweight, rapidly deployable drones that can provide real-time intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) in the field. These drones are meant to be rucksack-portable, launched within minutes, and rugged enough for battlefield conditions. Essentially, they’re the eyes in the sky for squads on the ground.

Of course, this is hardly the first time the U.S. military has used small drones. But, the Tranche 2 phase of the SRR program aims to build on earlier development by fielding more capable systems that integrate advanced sensors, improved autonomy, and better resistance to electronic warfare — all while keeping the aircraft compact and easy to use for non-specialist operators.

Skydio’s X10D is one of the systems fulfilling that need — and it’s the first to deliver their drones to the U.S. military under that program. But it’s not the only one. Red Cat Holdings, the Puerto Rico-based parent company of Teal Drones, also secured a position in the Tranche 2 Program of Record. Its Teal 2 drone was selected by the Army for its advanced ISR capabilities and modular, open-architecture design.

Like Skydio, Red Cat has increasingly positioned itself as a defense-first drone company, especially after shedding its consumer-focused businesses and focusing on military-grade platforms. And also similar to Skydio, Red Cat’s systems are built in the U.S. and listed on the Pentagon’s Blue UAS Cleared List — a critical requirement for many federal buyers.

The Army’s decision to diversify suppliers under SRR Tranche 2 reflects a targeted strategy in the defense industrial base. It’s not just about building capable drones — it’s about ensuring a secure and reliable supply of them, especially as tensions rise globally and concerns around Chinese-manufactured drones grow.

Skydio’s made-in-America edge

Even as competition heats up, Skydio remains uniquely positioned. Skydio assembles its drones in Hayward, California — a notable advantage as the U.S. government ramps up tariffs and restrictions on drones with ties to China.

The latest round of proposed tariffs under Section 301 of the Trade Act could hit Chinese-made drones with levies as high as 60%. That’s especially problematic for hobby drone giant DJI, which is already blacklisted from federal procurement and whose drones are no longer carried by major retailers like Best Buy. Meanwhile, Skydio and Red Cat can both market themselves not just as tech leaders, but as politically safe bets.

“We produce 1,000+ drones a month at our facility in California with the ability to rapidly scale,” Skydio CEO Adam Bry said in a prepared statement.

That kind of speed matters. In this latest deployment, the U.S. Army needed drones quickly — and Skydio says it answered the call in just five days.

Despite its head start and domestic advantage, Skydio hasn’t been immune to the challenges of scaling military-grade hardware. Supply chain issues have hit even its U.S.-based operations. particularly when it came to batteries. For example, China announced sanctions on Skydio for selling drones to Taiwan in late 2024. In light of that, Skydio had to ration batteries for customers because the batteries were sourced from China.

The future of the SRR program — and how drone companies like Skydio fit in

Still, Skydio appears to be navigating the turbulence better than most. Skydio has delivered drones to every branch of the Department of Defense, as well as the armed forces of 25 allied nations. For example, Skydio landed a major Spanish military contract just earlier this year.

The SRR Tranche 2 awards to both Skydio and Red Cat highlight a broader truth in the drone industry: the era of drones as consumer toys is fading, replaced by an age where they’re tools of national security, emergency response and infrastructure monitoring.

And with defense contracts driving innovation and revenue, it’s likely that Skydio, Red Cat and others like them will keep focusing on drones that are battle-ready, not backyard-ready.

Want to keep insights like this on the drone industry coming? Consider making a recurring donation to The Drone Girl! Use the button below or go through my PayPal to donate. Thank you!

The post Skydio’s latest customer — the U.S. Army’s SRR Program of Record — represents shift for industry appeared first on The Drone Girl.