You’ve seen specs online and are probably wondering,  “what makes the new DJI Spark so noteworthy?”

It is a perfect example of why you shouldn’t judge anything by its size. What may seem like a children’s toy is, in actuality, a beast in disguise. The DJI Spark is filling the void of the amateur or beginner’s tool in the proliferating drone consumer market. DJI has officially made it possible for inexperienced drone users to fly with ease and not worry about maneuverability or technical settings.

[REWIND: THE DJI SPARK | THIS TINY DRONE IS A BIG DEAL]

The Camera

The Spark’s camera has a significant amount of dynamic range to offer compared to your average smart phone. If you’re wondering how the quality of stills and video fare compared to the Mavic Pro, it is comparable but obviously not in the same tier produced by the Mavic’s camera. The camera may only have 2 axis optical stabilization, but makes up for it with built-in electronic image stabilization which allows the footage to remain stable even with such a small gimbal. The gimbal on the Spark may be more robust than that of the Mavic Pro but DJI didn’t include any protection for the camera when in-transit

size, weight, & portability

The Spark fits in the palm of your hand and can even take off from your hand. With a rugged build even for its size, its compact portable nature makes it the perfect toy to take with you for travel & leisure. While higher end drones offer higher video quality and fancy specs, the Spark is just your everyday companion, perfect for documenting trips and moments with simple take-off and flight maneuverability.

Maneuverability

The DJI Spark is more nimble than the Mavic, and feels like it has a power to weight ratio comparable to a Phantom. While the guesture control features are heavily advertised for the Spark, in actuality you can’t do much controlling with your hands if you want to use it to it’s full potential, but it could be the start for more exciting technological developments in DJI’s future. With forward & downward facing image sensors and GPS lock, the Spark finds your face and locks onto it allowing it to track and control its position, but only within a 10 foot range. There is also a lack of rear/lateral object avoidance which limits what you can do with it.

Accessories

The remote controller for the Spark is practically identical to the one for the Mavic minus the inclusion of the LCD screen which is useful for showing available flight-time, battery life, and more. The prop guards you see in the left image are an additional cost even though they seem like they should be a safety necessity for all those virgin drone fliers hoping to break into the hobby with this product. Just like with the Mavic, the Fly More Combo is definitely worth an extra $200. It comes with an extra battery (highly recommended since the Spark has a 16 minute flight time), remote controller, prop guards, extra propellers, and a carrying case.

Another notable accessory that has yet to be announced is the Battery Case which allows you to charge the Spark without removing the battery and also charge the additional batteries. Like the Mavic’s charging hub, the Spark Battery Case successively charges each battery (meaning it will charge the battery with the least power first) and contains the power to  charge all three batteries twice on a single charge.

 

We got to see a live demo of the DJI Spark at the DJI New Product Experience at the Microcenter in Tustin, where you can purchase and pick-up DJI Drones.

We sat down with Senior Communication Manager Michael Oldenburg to discuss how the Mavic Pro fares against the new DJI Spark.

They say the best camera is the one you have with you and by that logic, the best drone is the one you have with you, which for many people, will likely be the DJI Spark.