At the start of CES 2021, Sony unveiled their upcoming Airpeak drone for the a7sIII and similar Sony cameras. Airpeak is expected to “take off” in the Spring.
The company announced their foray into consumer drones in the Fall, and ever since then speculation about what exactly this drone (or drones) may looks like an be capable of, as been growing steadily.
No Price or Launch Date, Yet
And while, no official specs, price, launch date, or other details have been released yet, the new Sony drone platform shows a lot of promise.
Sony launched the Airpeak brand with the goal to further develop today’s drone technology while achieving the utmost in value creation. As the first phase of this project, Sony will launch a new business targeted for professional photography and video production in the spring of 2021.
Sony is the world’s largest sensor maker with most cameras and smart phones in circulation today utilizing some form of Sony imaging tech, many were wondering if Sony would be developing a new drone-specific camera for the Airpeak platform. Similar to what DJI does with their Inspire system and the X7 and X5S.
Sony Airpeak Drone for Sony a7s III
However, it appears that Sony has taken a bit of a different route and will release the Airpeak drone with support for their existing Sony alpha lineup (specific models will be released in the future). Furthermore, the drone test below is shown with an a7sIII, so it’s guaranteed you’ll be able to use the Sony a7s III and possibly newer, yet to be released models such as the Sony a7IV and possibly the rumored Sony a9III.
Some may look at this move as Sony going the route of the DJI Matrice 300 and 600 Pro, which can accomodate mirrorless and even bigger cameras.
In order to fully support the creativity of video creators, the payload of the drone can be equipped with an Alpha™ mirrorless camera to capture high quality, full frame aerial photography and video. Airpeak, the industry’s smallest class of drone that can be equipped with the Alpha system, is capable of dynamic filming and precise, stable flight, and aims to contribute to the world of entertainment while also pursuing new possibilities for creative expression.
Airpeak Drone Footage with alpha 7S III
Check out this behind the scenes video below showing Airpeak tested with an A7s III to capture some stunning images.
Sony’s press release also goes on to say that the company will “continue to post project-related information” in the near future, while working together with pro’s in the aerial cinematography works space “leading up to the launch of Airpeak in order to gain feedback from professional drone users.”
Airpeak to Challenge DJI Inspire 2 and Upcoming DJI drones
And while Sony does have quite a bit of advantages in the mirrorless/hybrid camera arena, they are newbies when it comes to drones. Needless to say, the company has deep pockets, and an excellent track record of innovation and R&D, so expect their Airpeak drone to be a serious contender to the DJI Inspire line-up.
I am personally super excited about the opportunities the new Airpeak platform will give Sony alpha users, as the latest gen a7sIII has proven Sony is serious about pro video in a compact form factor. And with the Airpeak drone, they are now enabling creators to fly these cameras, while keeping consistency across the image pipeline with multi-cam projects utilizing Sony cameras.
via Sony Alpha
