Over the past few years, the consumer drone market has grown at a rate of knots, but as you can tell from the shortlist for this category in the T3 Awards 2019, DJI has become a dominant force in the air. The brand has developed groundbreaking new technologies that have influenced scores of other brands and other types of tech – one look at the new RockSteady-infused DJI Osmo Action camera will tell you that.
So our pick for this year's top drone is, in many respects, a no-brainer: it's the hugely impressive DJI Mavic Air, a foldable 4K quadcopter that excels in flight performance and pro-level video capture.
The Mavic Air is all about freedom, enabling you to adventure far and wide and document the views and the action. Stuff the drone into your backpack as you scout a location, then unfurl it to capture 32MP Sphere Panoramas (which stitches together multiple images), HDR images and 4k30fps 100Mbps video and 1080p 120fps slow-mo.
The full suite of smart camera modes are truly class-leading, including fan favourite video modes Boomerang and Asteroid. Both enable you to take spectacular shots without spending hours sweating away trying to hone your piloting and aerial photography skills. If you create content to share online, Boomerang and Asteroid alone will elevate your aerial photography game exponentially, adding stunning new dimensions to your footage.
The Mavic Air is also one of the world’s most portable drones to house a three-axis gimbal, keeping shots smooth and judder-free. There’s loads of other smarts to celebrate here too, including the drone's ability to automatically determine the right exposure settings for the light you’re shooting in. Clever stuff.
We also love the fuss-free SmartCapture gesture control function, whereby you use specific hand gestures to launch and control the drone, and to take photos or videos. Ultimately, aerial photography and drone flight has never been more accessible or more fun than with the Mavic Air.
Full shortlist: DJI Mavic Air, DJI Mavic 2 Pro, DJI Mavic 2 Zoom, DJI Spark, Parrot ANAFI
Upgrade to smarter living
Get the latest news, reviews, deals and buying guides on gorgeous tech, home and active products straight to your inbox.
Check out more of this year's award winners on our main T3 Awards 2019 page.
Claire Davies is Senior Content Editor for T3 magazine, and also edits camping, walking, backpacking, hiking and outdoor sports/adventure tech for T3's Outdoors channel.
-
Your Google Pixel Watch might not get the upgrade you'd hoped – at least not for a while
All is not lost though
By Britta O'Boyle Published
-
Huawei launches world's first medically certified smartwatch, and it monitors your blood pressure 24 hours a day
The Watch D2 is Huawei’s most cutting-edge smartwatch to date
By T3.com Published
-
Fitbit Versa Lite wins gold in T3 Awards 2019
From the talented Fitbit family of cool fitness bands, this is the overall champion
By Duncan Bell Last updated
-
Apple Watch Series 4 seizes Gadget Of The Year at T3 Awards 2019
Clearly the best smartwatch, a great fitness wearable and who knows? It might actually save your life…
By Matthew Bolton Published
-
T3 Awards 2019: Samsung Q90R QLED TV grabs the glory and thrashes OLED
It's a TV dream come true
By Duncan Bell Published
-
Sony's WH-1000X.M3 are the greatest noise-cancelling headphones you can buy
And arguably the best headphones you can buy, period
By Duncan Bell Published
-
T3 Awards 2019: the finest TV you can buy for under £1000 is Philips 7334
A great blend of style, image quality and Philips Hue-style back-lighting
By Duncan Bell Published
-
T3 Awards 2019: Netgear Orbi wins our top Home Networking Tech Award
The excellent Netgear Orbi wins T3's Best Home Networking Tech Award – sponsored by ExpressVPN
By Robert Jones Published
-
T3 Awards 2019: the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus wins our top Phone Award
The stunning Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus is bestowed T3's hyper-prestigious Best Phone Award – sponsored by Fasthosts
By Robert Jones Published
-
T3 Awards 2019: the Samsung Galaxy S10e wins our top Mid-Range Phone Award
The Samsung Galaxy S10e delivers the complete smartphone package, and wins T3's Best Mid-Range Phone Award – sponsored by Fasthosts
By Robert Jones Published