DJI announcement: Zenmuse X5 and X5R

[Outta Control]

Very nice and agree it is too $$$ for what you get. The other issue one will deal with is weight. Larger lenses are not light and could hinder the I1's flight time down to possibly 12-15 max?

 

[Nebelung]

This may be a dumb question by why is 1080p left out of both cameras? The specs look insane especially for you pros out there either way.

I am pretty sure that 1080 is an option. I know it's not listed on the specs page, but if you check the Zenmuse X Series Comparison page (DJI Official - DJI The World Leader in Camera Drones/Quadcopters for Aerial Photography) you'll see that 1080/60 and 1080/30 is listed for both the X5 and X5R.

What's disturbing me are the max bitrates on the X5: 60Mbits for 4k and 40Mbits for 1080. That's actually worse than the X3. Seems like X5R might be the only worthwhile upgrade...but the cost for that one looks a little steep.

 

[tdwragg]

Great to have a camera update but 60mbps from the X5 is a bit of a let down! it means really to get the real benefits it's got to be the X5R at 1.7gbps when all they needed to do was make the X5 200mbps

 

[tdwragg]

I am pretty sure that 1080 is an option. I know it's not listed on the specs page, but if you check the Zenmuse X Series Comparison page (DJI Official - DJI The World Leader in Camera Drones/Quadcopters for Aerial Photography) you'll see that 1080/60 and 1080/30 is listed for both the X5 and X5R.

What's disturbing me are the max bitrates on the X5: 60Mbits for 4k and 40Mbits for 1080. That's actually worse than the X3. Seems like X5R might be the only worthwhile upgrade...but the cost for that one looks a little steep.

posted that at the same time, completely agree, and i'm so shocked as then all your paying for is a little extra dynamic range for those grey low light days...

 

[Nebelung]

posted that at the same time, completely agree, and i'm so shocked as then all your paying for is a little extra dynamic range for those grey low light days...

It really makes no sense to me, and for all I know this could be something that will change by the time the X5 ships. Considering that the compression on the X3 is probably the biggest criticism about that camera, I can't believe that they totally ignored that.

We'll see what the first test pilots will report. As much as I'd like a better camera, I am not rushing to order this one.

 

[TAP]

Yes, Eric said they will update the marketing material. Both shoot 1080p 30/60fps

 

[Outta Control]

Someday DJI will get...

from all these super $$$ extra that will hardly sell.

Though the extra feature are nice. I just can't see the justification on getting an X5.

 

[PorridgeHouse]

I'm pretty excited about this announcement. I also fly a S1000 with a 5D Mark III underneath and it seems like a lot of extra weight and trouble to get the 5D in the air compared to the Inspire with it's current camera. It is really time to start sending up good quality cameras designed to be used under a drone. I'm guessing the X5R camera's quality will blow away the 5D MIII in video quality, and the fact that it can fly under the very simply to use Inspire is great.

Battery time - yes that is certainly going to suffer. I wouldn't be suprised if we see some larger capacity inspire batteries come out in the next year though. And even if it get's pushed down to 10-12 minutes, that is generally enough to grab the shot you need and come for a new battery.

What I miss most right now is a front facing camera. Inspire 2 - where are you!
Which also brings me back to say that I really love that they are making this modular. Presumably when the Inspire 2 comes out we will be able to use our current gimbals and cameras on it.

X5R for me please

 

[gruvpix]

Very very interesting. I will 100% be buying one of these... Which one I am not yet sure.
For those saying 60mbps is too low for a camera of that cost, yes but we must consider the write speed limitations of a micro SD card.
The value is the MFT sensor, not the bitrate. An MFT sensor is nearly 10x larger than the sensor in the X3, that is the factor that will be improving image quality.
Look at the Canon C100- nobody is out there complaining about the stock internal image quality, obviously it has its limitations but it records 1080p24 at 24 mbps, and looks beautiful. Why? Super 35 mm sensor. MFT is not the same i understand but it is a much bigger step up from the X3 than many of you think.
I'll wait to see comparos of the two before deciding if the X5 R is worth it.
Either way, I am STOKED

 

[SimonMW]

Very very interesting. I will 100% be buying one of these... Which one I am not yet sure.
For those saying 60mbps is too low for a camera of that cost, yes but we must consider the write speed limitations of a micro SD card.

A microSD card is more than capable of recording higher bitrates. A BMPCC uses SD and happily copes with recording ProresHQ and even Raw on the high end cards! I would have expected at least 120Mb/s. The trouble is that we have seen from the X3 how bad the current compression algorithms are. Now, if DJI have drastically improved them for the X5 then great, but I still find it mystifying that the choice is either 60Mb/s MPEG or Raw, rather than having something more useful like Prores in between.

 

[UAV Man]

As a newbie to 4k videography and in the process of turning a past time into a commercial venture I see the huge benefits to the new X5 Solutions BUT will wait before making the jump this time. The benefits over the current system do not make it commercially viable for a small enterprise.

Personally I'd rather invest in extra Inspires to give more shots/angles. I guess the real problem is I for one do not see the real scope here and maybe need greater education in this area.

My wish list was to see high frame rates for action (120+) and optical zoom options....

 

[Aviator]

It's all about using the right tool for the job. I see the new X5R as a phenomenal tool but if your clients don't want to pay for the higher quality simply use the standard camera that we've all been using anyway. Your higher end clients who know the difference should be willing to pay the extra rental rate for the better quality camera.

Not as simple as that because the gimbal absorbing boards must be swapped over as well.

 

[Aviator]

Not as simple as that because the gimbal absorbing boards must be swapped over as well.

My mistake, I just found this info on DJI site..
If you have an Inspire 1 with a ZENMUSE X3 installed, the mounting mechanism should be changed to the new one that's included with the ZENMUSE X5 series. The new mounting mechanism that's provided with ZENMUSE X5 Series are also backwards compatible with the Zenmuse X3 camera.

 

[steadfast4life]

Hey DJI, if you need product testers, I would gladly test one our for ya if you let me keep it!

 

[Ezookiel]

My mistake, I just found this info on DJI site..
If you have an Inspire 1 with a ZENMUSE X3 installed, the mounting mechanism should be changed to the new one that's included with the ZENMUSE X5 series. The new mounting mechanism that's provided with ZENMUSE X5 Series are also backwards compatible with the Zenmuse X3 camera.

That means you're still correct and can change cams at will, because it says the new one is backwards compatible with the X3


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[lucadeceres]

I wonder how much this system will affect flight time, as it will be so much heavier than the previous camera/gimbal/lens system. The Olympus 12mm lens is pretty the same weight itself as the I1 gimbal+camera

 

[Plingboot]

I have to say i'm somewhat relieved today. Our Inspire arrived on Wednesday and I've not had a chance to update firmware let alone fly it yet, so seeing the teaser banner on the DJI site yesterday night had me worried that I'd spent too early.

DJI seem to be following up on the concept of an easily updatable platform and despite our Inspire being factory fresh, we'll probably be ordering one of these cameras before the end of the year. Swapping camera modules rather than needing a whole new rig will make life less complicated when writing/updating an Operations Manual

I'm hoping that when 'Guidance' matures, there'll be an option to swap in an updated module with avoidance functions.

Maybe the delay on the X3 grip/handle has been the launch of these new cameras?

 

[InterMurph]

I hadn't noticed 1080 wasn't even an option until you said something. It's definitely not listed as a video resolution on the product spec page...

I'm assuming that's an omission from the spec sheet, and not from the specs. There is no way this camera can't shoot 1920x1080p footage.

 

[sturgisphoto]

I'll admit I'm new to video but I know photographers spend 10s of thousands of dollars to get an extra stop of dynamic range. Even though I just got my Inspire 1 a couple of weeks ago I'll definitely be getting the Inspire Pro X5R. I like the idea of having a backup bird. Would I fly the pro over water? Hmmm, probably not, lol.

 

[Kirk Voclain]

The X5 is a mini GH4 on the front of the Inspire one. A GH4 is $1400. An X5 WITH gimbal is $1700. Thats a pretty awesome deal! 4k raw with a 1.7gps data rate isn't cheap! The BMD Ursa has a data rate of 256mps and is $5000. It weighs as much as a cinderblock. The X5r has 444 color space! People that aren't in the business have no idea how good this camera is.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!

Here is the difference between people who think like you and people who are whining about the price....the magic word is "PRO"......if you are a "PRO" you are making a living using these products...and as a "PRO" you could care less how much it cost....you are just passing that cost onto the client.....

PRO means you are charing for what you do.....

In the PRO STILL Photography world, there is a term "MWACs".....it stands for "Moms With A Camera"....and they whine and complain and cry all the time about how a canon 1DX cost over $5000, and L series glass is so expensive.......

Either you are a PRO or you are a WAC

Now...I guess we have on this forum several "MWADs"......"Moms With A Drone"......



Kirk