Autel Robotics Evo Lite+ hands-on

We’re excited to place our grubby paws on a brand new drone, the Autel Robotics Evo Lite sequence is now transport to customers, and we’ve got the Evo Lite+ mannequin in-hand for a overview.

Climate has not cooperated with us to date, subsequently, this hands-on protection is just not our full overview. We’re liking what we’re seeing up to now, we predict you will get hyped for this drone.

Evo Lite overview

Autel Robotics introduced the brand new Evo Nano and Evo Lite drones close to the tip of 2021, with the primary shipments delivering proper on the flip of the yr. On paper, it could be best to say that these drones compete with the DJI Mini and DJI Mavic drones. That’s, the Nano sequence weighs in at just below 250 grams, and the Lite sequence focuses on the steadiness between an outstanding digicam and a compact, folding design.

The Evo Lite is available in two variations, the usual mannequin comes with a 1/1.28-inch sensor and a brand new 4-axis gimbal, whereas the Evo Lite+ packs a bigger 1-inch digicam.

On the floor, the Evo Lite is a folding drone, the rear propeller arms fold straight ahead, sitting just under the entrance arms that fold straight again. The digicam hangs on a gimbal under the nostril, identical to on earlier Evo drones. The battery makes up nearly all of the highest of the drone, sliding into spot on the again of the drone.

There are impediment avoidance sensors on the entrance, rear and backside of the drone. On the underside can also be a helpful highlight, which isn’t simply so that you can use, it helps in low-light conditions for hover accuracy.

When folded down, the Evo Lite is concerning the measurement of a water bottle, and weighs about the identical as properly, not less than you probably have a glass bottle.

You’re taking a look at an enormous 6,175mAh battery, which Autel says will present as much as 40 minutes of flight. The propellers are fast launch and fold in two. They appear so much like the DJI Mavic 2 sequence propellers, that I attempted swapping between the 2 manufacturers. You may pressure the Mavic props onto the Evo Lite, however it could be an unsafe match, and the motor shaft diameter prevents you from placing the Evo prop on the Mavic, however they’re very, very related.

There’s a USB Sort-C port on the appropriate aspect of the plane, and a microSD card slot on the left.

The Evo Lite is accessible in orange, crimson, and gray.

Evo Lite Construct and specs

The Evo Lite is properly constructed, with seen heavy composite plastics, lightweight metals, and carbon fiber. The physique is wrapped in plastic, the digicam gimbal is metallic, and the propeller arms look like hole carbon fiber with plastic touchdown gear. General, it feels very sturdy, and has a clear match and end.

Underneath the hood, Autel offers the next specs:

Evo Lite digicam

Two variations of the drone provide two cameras. The dearer Evo Lite+ has the bigger digicam, and is promoted as being glorious for low-light seize.

Evo Lite

The Evo Lite commonplace drone packs a 1/1.28-inch sensor, set at 50MP and capable of seize as much as 4K video at 60FPS. As with earlier digicam sensors of this measurement, you’ll be able to seize on the full decision, however will see higher photographs from the pixel-binned 12.5MP photographs. The digicam provides as much as 16x zoom, with as much as 2x lossless zoom on a 4K recording, and as much as 4x lossless zoom when recording 1080p.

The 4-axis gimbal is a brand new function. A regular 3-axis gimbal provides management for pitch, roll, and yaw. The Evo Lite provides rotation to that blend.

Evo Lite+

The Evo Lite+ provides a pleasant 1-inch sensor, set at 20MP and capable of seize as much as 6K video at 30fps. The Evo Lite+ additionally provides as much as 16x zoom, with as much as 1.3x lossless for 4K and 3x lossless for 1080p seize. When taking pictures 6K video, you’re seeing full lossy zoom.

6K video is proscribed to 30fps, however you’ll be able to shoot 4K at 60fps and all the way down to 1080p at as much as 120fps.

We had been happy to see HDR video seize on each drones. HDR reduces the utmost seize charges, however seems fairly good in our indoor checks. Although, each are restricted to 8-bit seize at 120Mbps. That is nonetheless nice, however 10-bit seize and better bit-rates could also be required by some skilled pilots.

Ought to I purchase the Evo Lite?

There are few causes to not contemplate the Autel Robotics Evo Lite. We urge you to consider your wants and your finances, as there are execs and cons to all drones, together with the ecosystems wherein they belong, their costs, and extra. For us, the Evo Lite is a succesful various to older DJI merchandise, and sits properly alongside the most recent DJI Mavic sequence drones.

The Evo Lite price ticket is comfortably in between the DJI Air 2S and the DJI Mavic 3, which would be the deciding issue for a lot of pilots. Whereas the 2 DJI drones and the Evo Lite+ all rock a 1-inch digicam sensor, the general picture capabilities additionally seem to coincide with their costs — that being the bottom value on the Air 2S, medium value on the Evo Lite, and the Mavic 3 coming in with the best value. We wish to get the Evo Lite into the sky earlier than we stand by this declare, so please examine again for our full overview.

The Evo Lite+ has yet one more trick up its sleeve. When you have the suitable license and clearance to fly after the solar has gone down, the Evo Lite+ has an evening mode that captures among the greatest night time photographs from the sky we’ve ever seen. A implausible function, however gained’t be price spending additional on in case you are a interest pilot in the US. At the least not this yr.

Our closing verdict is coming quickly. We’ve been toying with the Evo Lite+ for just a few days now, and the forecast requires a break within the wind and rain within the subsequent few days (simply as quickly as we get by the flood look ahead to at present, ick!)

(9.5)

• 40 – Minutes
• 6K – 60 FPS
• 42.5 – MPH

December 2021

Launch Date