Drones fly higher at CES 2016

If this year’s Consumer Electronics Show is any indication, drones in 2016 will focus on improved video quality, autopilot and delivery. These themes were touched on in 2015, but recent developments have helped give these features a boost. This is especially true for drone delivery, which major companies such as Amazon and Wal-Mart have been tinkering with. Flytrex Aviation, an Israel company, wants to bring drone delivery to the masses. The company’s CEO told CNBC that its drone can deliver small objects up to 25 kilometers. Delivering small objects might no longer be that impressive thanks to China company Ehang. The maker showed off the Ehang 182, a large drone that can transport people. Of course, by definition, this drone is not “unmanned” and does not currently pass regulatory muster in the US. It also has a flight time of 23 minutes, so until battery life improves, people won’t be going far in these kinds of drones.

Another company, Yuneec, has its sights set on DJI’s dominance in the drone market. At CES, it debuted the Typhoon H, which received high praise for being a “Hollywood-calibre camera drone” at two-thirds the cost of DJI’s premium Inspire 1. The Typhoon H is a six-rotor drone with a 4K camera and autonomous features that allow it to navigate around obstacles. Intel’s collision avoidance system comes at an extra cost, however. DJI took a more modest approach this year, not showing off any particularly impressive new drones. It did announce the new Phantom 3 4K, which uses the camera from the Phantom 3 Pro, but at a more affordable price point of $999.

Parrot made a different approach to camera drones with its new fixed-wing Disco drone. The device needs to be thrown into theair to get started. A camera in the nose cone can record 1080-pixel videos. That quality might not look impressive next to the 4K video from DJI and Yuneec’s latest drones, but the Disco does have one big advantage: It has a flying time of 45 minutes. Fixed-wing aerial vehicles are not power-intensive. However, they’re not ideal for many situations when a user is looking to get the perfect shot. Drones using propellers can hover and fly slower. Fixed-wing UAVs have not been particularly popular because they haven’t been as easy to use. Parrot might be seeking to change that, but in the meantime, China manufacturers have been focusing on the tried and true quadcopter model. There are, however, many manufacturers cashing in on the 4K video trend, with companies such as Apex Toy and Caroline Industrial making drones equipped with 4K cameras.