CES wrapped up on January 10th, 2020, but our drone footage took as week longer to publish. There were a few new machines, and some interesting new technologies from the show floor. Bottom line, 2020 is off to a solid start, we can’t wait to see what drones come next.

Our highlights from the show include the 8K camera of the new Autel Robotics Evo II, the versatility of the PowerVision PowerEgg X and the DSLR-level camera of the XDynamics Evolve 2. The V-Copter was pretty cool as well.

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We started our adventures at DJI, they did not have anything new at the show, but this was the first public event for the Mavic Mini, and we gave them an award for their Robomaster S1 robot.

[drones-list id=”19111″ topper-text=”Mini” topper-icon=”star”]

With an 8K camera option, backed by a 6K camera with 1-inch sensor, the Autel Robotics Evo II is a step above most drones today. Rocking 40 minutes of flight time, and improved range, we’re excited to take control of the sticks, put this new camera beast to the test.

[drones-list id=”20027″ topper-text=”Evo II” topper-icon=”bolt”]

Next up is the XDynamics Evolve 2. It may be tough to justify this machine as a fun flyer, but serious aerial cinematographers should take a look. Powered by a micro four thirds camera sensor, you can swap out lenses to get the best shot from the sky. It would be fair to compare the Evolve 2 to the DJI Inspire 2, if that helps put things into perspective.

[drones-list id=”20048″ topper-text=”Evolve 2″ topper-icon=”video”]

The PowerVision PowerEgg X may appear as an average mid-range consumer drone on paper, but the well thought out features and accessories make this machine very functional. Use it as a drone, strip it down to use it as a camcorder, hand strap included, or enclose it in its shell and attach the floats to make this a waterproof drone that can land on water. Pretty cool!

[drones-list id=”20097″ topper-text=”Egg” topper-icon=”camera”]

Aside from that, we enjoyed a chat with Whitefox, talking about their Scorpion 2 and other counter-drone technologies. The teams at Robosea and Chasing had their fun submersible drones on hand again, including the big shark. Fluidity gave us a fun update to their systems, reminding us to process the firmware updates and stay tuned to what comes next — Flying cars!

Don’t forget Swellpro, the Spry+ has promise!

[drones-list id=”19990″ topper-text=”waterproof” topper-icon=”umbrella”]

The folks at Zero Zero Robotics were very popular, as the V-Copter drone captured the imagination of many. A fairly simple drone, if you ignore the 40 minute flight time and the fact that it only has two propellers.

We did not manage to connect with the team behind the Micro Drone 4.0. They were there and looked excited about their machine, but we’ll have to wait to get our hands on one to try it out.

Last, we had a solid chat with Brendan Schulman of DJI. We enjoy these regular chats about drone laws, and this year was packed with the topic of Remote ID and upcoming changes to hobby pilot certification.

We hope you enjoyed our coverage of CES 2020. This isn’t the premiere show for drones, so please stay tuned later in the year for AUVSI Xponential and Interdrone, if nothing else.

Thanks again, fly safe!

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