DJI Inspire 1 vs S900 Debate

The release of the DJI Inspire 1 has caused many questions about the difference between that and its bigger brother, the S900. Here we give you a small run down of the DJI Inspire 1 vs S900 to help UAV pilots decide on thier next purchase.

What are the main differences between the UAV's and what they are capable of?

The DJI inspire 1 is an out of the box solution to record decent quality 4K video, its camera sensor is similar to that of the Gopro Hero 4 Black Edition but what sets it apart is the lense construction of the inspire 1’s camera. Whilst the Gopro has a distorted super wide lense popular with thrill seekers around the world, the Inspire 1’s camera retains a more real, less distorted view of the world that aerial photographers have been crying out for.

The S900 however comes in the form of a frame and the choice of flight controllers and gimbals. The tried and tested Wookong M system is the flight controller on the majority of our rigs, but the newer A2 flight controller is getting to be more reliable thanks to some hardware changes and software tweaks.

If you love your cameras you’ll go for an S900 as it has the ability to lift cameras much more capable than the Inspire 1’s. From Panasonic’s fantastic GH4 which records 4K video at up to 200Mbps to Sony’s A7R with its 36 megapixel full frame sensor and superior Carl Zeiss optics. The ability to have these cameras on your rig gives the S900 a far bigger advantage in terms of picture and footage quality.

However at only £2747 for a dual controller setup the Inspire 1 is phenomenal value for money and takes advantage of the huge price gap between the Phantom 2 and the S900. For a consumer product the Inspire 1 is excellent and there are even companies out there using Inspire 1’s for everything from industry inspections to promotional videos for television. However, if you want the best quality aerial footage that won’t look out of place when compared to broadcast quality ground based camera; you’ll best better off looking into the S900.

What do you think?

s900_20140730_0114_4.jpg DJI Inspire 1 vs S900 inspire_1_20141105_0762_2.jpg DJI Inspire 1 vs S900