Coin Announces Official Shutdown of All Product Services Coming February 28

Smart payments company Coin this week announced the shutdown of its various product services, officially closing product support, social media channels, and the connected Coin app on iOS and Android devices on February 28, 2017. The news follows the discontinuation of all Coin products last May, when Coin was acquired by Fitbit and the company subsequently ceased selling its line of smart payment cards.

With no new Coins available to purchase and its services shutting down, users will no longer be able to add new cards to the device without the mobile app being supported. Coins themselves will continue to work until their batteries die (two years from initial activation), so the company is encouraging users to add any cards they want before February 28.

With the acquisition of Coin by Fitbit, all business operations ceased on June 13, 2016. The company is no longer manufacturing, promoting, or selling any new devices or products.

Effective from February 28, 2017, the Coin product services will officially be shut down. As a result, support through the Coin website or through social media channels will no longer be available.

The original Coin, as well as Coin 2.0, was a single credit card-sized device that stored a collection of credit and debit cards that users could toggle through with a small button on the front of the Coin. Once the desired card was selected, users swiped Coin like any normal payment card, and the charge went through to whatever card was chosen.

Coin was first announced and began receiving orders in 2013, one year before Apple would launch Apple Pay in 2014, but Coins didn’t begin arriving to customers until 2015. Although Coin’s shutdown has been clear since the Fitbit acquisition last year, the growing popularity of smartphone mobile wallets like Apple Pay and Samsung Pay undoubtedly became large competitors to Coin’s business in 2015 and 2016.

In Fitbit’s own press release last year, the company described a deal that focused on the specific acquisition of “Coin’s wearables payment platform,” although at the time there were “no plans to integrate Coin’s wearable payments technology” into its 2016 roadmap. That still leaves future Fitbit devices in 2017 and beyond wide open for an “active NFC payment solution.”

Amid acquisitions of Pebble and luxury watch maker Vector Watch, Fitbit has faced lower-than-expected revenue results for the fourth quarter of 2016, leading to cuts of between 5 to 10 percent to its workforce. With Apple Watch gaining ground in the smartwatch space, Fitbit appears to be gearing up to launch a more feature-rich wearable with its own app store, mobile wallet, and more, instead of the activity-focused wearables it currently sells.

Tags: Fitbit, Coin
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Kia Rio (2017) review: All about connectivity

The new Kia Rio features support for both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with a range of safety features from autonomous emergency breaking to lane departure warning systems, making it the most technologically advanced Rio yet.

The Korean company has not only given the new Rio a redesign, but it’s given it some extra brain power too. The question is, how does it perform and can this new little Rio win over the B-segment?

Kia Rio (2017) review: Design

The Kia Rio is now in its fourth generation and it has seen some significant changes over its lifetime. The new model has a wider and more serious stance than its predecessor, offering sharper angles, straighter lines and, overall, a sportier appeal.

At 4065mm, the Kia Rio (2017) is 15mm longer than the model it replaces and 66mm longer than the new Nissan Micra. The extra length allows for a sleeker bonnet than the Rio’s predecessor, housing Kia’s signature tiger nose front grille, which is a design feature rather than an air intake.

Pocket-lint

The grille is surrounded in either silver paint or chrome depending on the grade and it blends seamlessly into the U-shaped LED lights with defined lines that stretch into the shoulders and doors, through to the rear of the car. Beneath the grille is a dynamically-surfaced bumper that incorporates the air intake, while newly-shaped front fog lights have been positioned higher and closer to the edge of either side for a sturdier, wider finish.

The shorter, more upright rear features narrower C-pillars than the previous model, and the straight lines follow through to the more sculpted lights and almost vertical tailgate glass. A subtle rear spoiler is also present on the new Rio, emphasising its sportier look, while the 5mm drop in height and 10mm increase in wheelbase help deliver a more mature and sophisticated finish.

The new Kia Rio is only available with five doors, with the rear doors featuring the same handles as the front, unlike the 2017 Nissan Micra which has its rear handles integrated. This again adds to the maturity of the new Rio.

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The 2017 Rio comes in four trims in the UK, which fall under 1, 2, 3 and the limited-run First Edition model. Rio 1 models have 15-inch steel wheels, Rio 2 models have 15-inch alloys, Rio 3 have 16-inch alloys and the Rio First Edition has 17-inch alloys.

Kia doesn’t offer personalisation options for the new Rio so unlike the new Nissan Micra and the Fiat 500, there are seven exterior colours in the UK and no means to make any of them more exciting with coloured accents or patterned roofs. Sienna Brown is the exterior colour offered as standard, with Clear White available as a no-cost option. The other colours comprise Satin Silver, Graphite (pictured), Midnight Black, Smokey Blue and Blaze Red, all of which are pay-for options.

Kia Rio (2017) review: Interior and infotainment

Inside the new Kia Rio things are kept simple and sophisticated, even if a little plasticky. The straight lines from the exterior follow through into the spacious, quiet cabin. There is a more ergonomic layout than the previous Rio with a sculptured dashboard and horizontal vents for an overall wider appearance.

The Rio 3 models and First Edition model feature a 7-inch “floating” touchscreen with TomTom navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, while Rio 1 models have a 3.8-inch display with Bluetooth and Rio 2 models have a 5-inch colour display with DAB radio.

Pocket-lint

Kia doesn’t offer “options” so you can’t add the 7-inch touchscreen to the Rio 1 for example, meaning the Rio 3 models (starting at £16,295) or the First Edition (priced at £17,445) are the ones to choose for the best connectivity experience.

The 7-inch display is fantastically responsive and easy to use, much more so than some competitors, making it one of the Rio’s best attributes. It is very simple and intuitive to navigate in terms of both touchscreen options and the minimal function buttons, and CarPlay and Android Auto are both a breeze to setup and use.

The Custom button, which is marked with a star on the right of the display, is excellent as CarPlay and Android Auto can then be accessed from the driver’s side of the touchscreen rather than the just Media button on the left, but it can be set to other options too. The navigation system is also great, with good lane information including indicating to the driver when a lane is for left or right-hand turning only.

Beneath the touchscreen are the temperature and air conditioning controls, while a dedicated smartphone shelf is positioned above the Aux-In and USB ports, the latter of which is needed for setting up CarPlay and Android Auto. There is also a large storage tray above the gear box on Rio 2 models and above, cup holders between the passenger and driver seats at the front and USB ports are present in the rear too, which is great.

Pocket-lint

More controls are found on the steering wheel, including the voice activation button for CarPlay and Android Auto in Rio 3 models, cruise control for Rio 2 models and above trims and audio controls for Rio 1 models. A secondary screen is also positioned on the driver’s display between the dials. This screen is a settings menu rather than a useful second display, however, so don’t expect navigation instructions or mirrored information from the central touchscreen.

In terms of audio, the new Rio comes with a four-speaker system on the Rio 1 models, but this increases to six speakers with Rio 2 models and above trims. It’s not likely to blow you away as Kia hasn’t opted to place as much focus on audio as other brands have, and you can forget speakers in the driver’s headrest, but the six-speaker system was adequate with Siri and Google Assistant both clear.

Kia has allowed for a 325-litre boot capacity in the new Rio but despite this, there is enough room for four adults to sit more than comfortably with 1120mm of leg room in the front and 770mm in the back. There is also 1021mm of headroom in the front and 966mm in the back, along with 1375mm shoulder room in the front and 1355mm in the rear, which we found to be more than enough for us on our five-hour drive.

Pocket-lint

Seat materials are grade dependant but all except the First Edition model are one-tone black. Both Rio 1 and 2 models opt for Tricot cloth, while Rio 3 models have black faux leather upholstery and the First Edition has black and red faux leather. As with the exterior, there are no interior personalisation options meaning the new Rio achieves a more mature finish inside – but in the same breath it fails to deliver the same excitement as some of its B-segment competitors, like the 2017 Micra.

We don’t necessarily want orange leather on the dash and door arm rests, or patterned seats, but we like to have the option in case we are feeling daring.

Kia Rio (2017) review: Experience

The new Kia Rio is available in a seven-strong powertrain portfolio in the UK with options including petrol and diesel engines, as well as five-speed manual models, six-speed manual models and a four-speed automatic model.

Long story short, there is confusing range of engine and gearbox options coming to the UK – but the 1.0-litre turbo petrol available with 99bhp on the Rio 2 and Rio 3 trims and 118bhp on the Rio First Edition model feel like the ones to go for.

The former accelerates from 0-60mph in 10.3 seconds and offers emissions of 102 CO2/km, while the latter hits 60mph in 9.8 seconds and delivers emissions of 107 CO2/km.

Pocket-lint

We test drove an Australian-specced 1.4-litre petrol, four-speed automatic Rio, which had the equivalent of a UK Rio 3 trim (though the automatic model will only be available on a Rio 2 trim in the UK). This 1.4-litre petrol engine is also available as a six-speed manual (again only on a Rio 2 trim) but none of the manual options were available for us to test.

Both offer 98bhp and emissions of 114 CO2/km and 140 CO2/km, respectively. The automatic model accelerated from 0 to 60mph in 13.4 seconds, while the manual is a little faster at 11.8 seconds, but both are very far from a hot hatch. 

While the auto Rio was perfectly capable and pleasurable during city driving, it lacked power considerably when it came to steep hills and getting up to faster speeds quickly. The four-speed autobox was slow to change and unresponsive, often resulting in our foot to the floor and a loud whining noise filling the otherwise quiet cabin before we finally got up a hill or built up enough speed for overtaking.

The Kia Rio handled and cornered well, though, inspiring confidence on windy roads, delivering a driving experience that felt sturdy and stable. Steering was well-weighted and responsive, while the suspension was firm, helping us feel reassuringly connected with the road, even if we’d rather not have felt some of the larger bumps as much.

Pocket-lint

There’s plenty of extra safety technology on board too, including Electronic Stability Control, Vehicle Stability Management and Hill-Start Assist Control on Rio 1 models, which start at £11,995. The Rio 2 and above trims add a reversing camera, rear parking sensors, Autonomous Emergency Braking and Lane Departure Warning systems.

The Autonomous Emergency Braking feature will activate the Rio’s brakes and bring it to a complete stop if it detects sudden or dangerous braking from the vehicle in front or a pedestrian in the road, when travelling at speeds between 5mph and 50mph. The Lane Departure Warning system warns the driver to act if it senses the car is beginning to veer outside of a lane.

All Rio models also include a Straight Line Stability feature and Cornering Brake Control. The former keeps the car straight if there is a difference in applied brake pressure between the left and right of the car, while the latter delivers asymmetrical brake pressure to counter any loss of traction when cornering.

Verdict

The new Kia Rio delivers a mature and elegant design that is a significant improvement on the previous model. Yes, some exterior and interior customisation options would have been nice and the automatic model could definitely see some performance improvements, but overall, the 2017 Rio is a nice little car for an affordable price.

The infotainment system and connectivity functionality on the Rio 3 trim models and above are excellent, as is the integration of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, both of which work brilliantly. And it’s these tech features that help elevate the cars of 2017 above and beyond the basics of yesteryear.

Kia has employed some great safety features into the new Rio too, even at the lower trim grades which is good to see, especially in the case of the autonomous breaking, which is available on the Rio 2 and above trims. The Kia Rio 3 or First Edition models are the ones to go for if your budget allows because it’s the entertainment system on these models that makes the Rio stand out from the crowd.

The Morning After: Wednesday February 1st, 2017

Welcome to February, we’re glad you made it…

…even if Beme and Asheron’s Call didn’t. In yesterday’s news, we have Apple’s latest earnings report (expect to hear from Facebook this afternoon) and that sketchy app Adoptly is as fake as it was outrageous.

Be careful where you use itThat Apple/LG 5K monitor has a weird problem with routers

The USB-C connected 27-inch LG Ultrafine 5K display is supposed to be a perfect match for Apple’s new MacBook Pros, but it has an unusual weakness. LG confirmed reports that it shouldn’t be placed within two meters or so of a wireless router, as that can make the display unstable or even unusable. There’s no word yet on a possible fix, so keep that in mind before shelling out $974 for one.

Is that a home button or a USB-C port?Samsung’s Galaxy S8 isn’t ready yet, but it has something to show at MWC 2017

All we really know so far is that thanks to the Galaxy Note 7 meltdown, we won’t see a new Galaxy S phone at Mobile World Congress next month. Samsung is still inviting us to a press conference, with an image that appears to hint at a new Galaxy Tab. Whatever it is, we’ll be there to check it out on February 26th.

Bring a bot to the tableLibratus AI successfully out gambled world-class Texas Hold’em players

Carnegie Mellon’s “Libratus” AI took on Jason Les, Dong Kyu Kim, Daniel McAulay and Jimmy Chou in poker for 20 days and some 120,000 hands, and ultimately came out collectively ahead $1,766,250 in chips. Its creator, professor Tuomas Sandholm, said “This is the first time that AI has been able to beat the best humans at Heads-Up No-Limit Texas Hold’em. More generally, this shows that the best AI’s ability to do strategic reasoning under imperfect information has surpassed that of the best humans.”

Alternative feedsFacebook tweaks the feed to bury fake news and clickbait

After last year’s fake news freakout, Facebook is getting serious about the issue. It’s finally implementing changes that should lower the visibility of clickbait content and pages that beg for engagement. It’s also tweaking the algorithm to respond faster in real-time, so a post about your favorite team’s game-winning goal is more likely to appear right away.

Apple, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook and Ford were already on the listMore tech CEOs speak out against Trump’s immigration order

Amazon. Evernote. Reddit. Y Combinator. The list of tech companies coming out vocally against Donald Trump’s executive order temporarily cutting off US immigration and travel from seven majority-Muslim countries, and from refugees worldwide, keeps growing every time we look.

They like itApple’s iPhone sales increased for the first time in a year

As the iPhone goes, so goes Apple’s overall financial health. The good news, then, is that sales of its iPhone 7 family grew five percent compared to last year. Mac sales were also slightly up from last year with the introduction of new models. On the other hand, iPad sales continued a three-year slide, while revenue in its “other products” category that contains the Watch, TV, headphones and other items dropped from last year.

If you can’t beat ’em… change strategies? Walmart kills its Amazon Prime-style shipping service

Now that former Jet.com CEO Marc Lore is running Walmart’s e-commerce, it’s cutting off the Amazon Prime-like ShippingPass beta. Instead, Walmart will promise free two-day shipping on all orders over $35, down from the previous threshold of $50. According to Lore, “In this day and age, two-day shipping is really just table stakes — people shouldn’t have to pay for it and certainly not a membership.”

Those battery cells aren’t just for carsTesla Powerpacks are lighting up California’s electrical grid

Southern California Edison (SCE) teamed up with Tesla to bring one of the world’s largest electron-storing solutions to life in less than six months. The 20-megawatt Mira Loma energy storage station in Ontario, California, is capable of powering up to 15,000 homes for four hours during peak times, or roughly 2,500 homes for an entire day.

But wait, there’s more…

• ACLU signs on with Y Combinator after $24 million donation
• Raybaby is a baby monitor that tracks your child’s breathing
• The duo behind Pooper came back for more ‘satire’ with Adoptly
• We heard you like ‘Elder Scrolls,’ so we put some ‘Elder Scrolls’ (Morrowind) in your ‘Elder Scrolls’ (Online)

The Morning After is a new daily newsletter from Engadget designed to help you fight off FOMO. Who knows what you’ll miss if you don’t subscribe.

Discovery’s channels stay on Sky thanks to last-minute deal

Discovery’s 12 channels are staying put on Sky, with the pair having agreed a new multi-year carriage deal at the eleventh hour. Negotiations had all but imploded last week, and Discovery threatened to pull its factual and sports programming from both Sky and its Now TV service. The channels would’ve gone dark today, but thanks to a last-minute handshake the stand-off has ended rather anticlimactically, given how candidly both companies spoke out about their strained relationship.

Discovery accused Sky of abusing its position as the UK’s largest pay-TV provider to strong-arm an unfair deal. On the other side of the fence, Sky argued that Discovery’s nigh £1 billion price tag was “completely unrealistic,” adding that the company’s channel portfolio doesn’t perform nearly as well as claimed. But the catty dialogue is over, with Sky and Discovery both remembering professionalism in their announcements of the new deal.

Neither party has described the financial details of the agreement, but Discovery’s Susanna Dinnage implies that the public had something to do with the reconciliation: “We have reached a new agreement that guarantees Sky’s customers access to Discovery’s wide range of channels and programmes for years to come. Our fans’ voices were heard loud and clear. They want choice and great TV and I cannot stress how much we love them for their support.”

Source: Discovery, Sky

‘Star Wars: Battlefront 2’ will have a proper story mode

When last year’s Star Wars Battlefront launched, it was hard not to be disappointed. The promise of a shiny next-gen Star Wars game made by Battlefront developer DICE was a tantalizing proposition, but unfortunately the reality was a multiplayer-only game that felt frustratingly half-baked. It seems as though EA has learned its lesson, announcing during a recent earnings report that Battlefront 2 will launch this holiday with a full single-player campaign.

Interestingly, DICE is no longer solely in charge of the series, with Battlefront 2’s grander scale seeing Burnout creator Criterion and EA’s recently founded Motive Studios assisting on the game’s development. While Criterion assisted with some of the vehicles and December’s Battlefront PSVR mission, EA’s early announcement of three-way development suggests even greater involvement from the studio.

As opposed to the original-trilogy focused original, Battlefront 2 will take place across multiple eras of Star Wars, with EA promising a wealth of new playable heroes and characters. The report also acknowledges that simplicity was one of the biggest complaints about the original. EA states that, for the sequel, players can expect far more depth and progression when it comes to the game’s multiplayer modes.

With the original Battlefront lacking a campaign and launching with a sparse collection of maps, EA is certainly hitting all the right notes with its PR. While the 2015 game undoubtedly looked and sounded like Star Wars, its lack of content rang disappointingly hollow. Let’s hope that EA finally delivers the fun — and fully featured — Star Wars title that fans have been clamoring for.

Source: EA

Amazon plans to build a $1.5 billion air cargo hub in Kentucky

We may be decades away from the flying warehouses Amazon wants to build, but the e-commerce giant is growing its shipping and distribution network in different ways. The company has just announced that it plans to build its first air cargo hub at Northern Kentucky Airport to house its current and future fleet of planes. It’s expected to cost Amazon over $1.5 billion in investment and might eventually have buildings and material-handling equipment. According to The Wall Street Journal, this move signifies that Amazon is “ramping up its expansion into transporting, sorting and delivering its own packages.”

When the 2-million-square-foot hub opens, it will certainly reduce the e-retailer’s dependence on UPS and FedEx in the area. It will initially employ 2,000 people, but it could end up having more personnel. WSJ says Amazon’s end goal is to deliver packages for itself and other retailers — to ultimately become a legit courier and direct competitor to bigger companies like UPS. It helps that the cargo hub’s location is apparently within a couple of days’ drive from a densely populated area.

While Amazon doesn’t have a timeline for the air cargo hub yet, it has already begun working on its shipping freight endeavor. A WSJ report from a few days ago revealed that the company has been coordinating shipments of containers from China since October as a freight forwarder.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Snapseed makes it easier to add drama to your photos

Snapseed doesn’t see quite the amount of updates that other Google-owned products do, but each one lately has been pretty significant. The name of the game for the latest is the addition of curves. Essentially, what this new feature does is allow manipulating things like contrast, brightness and color intensity in a given image. Oftentimes, it’s one of the easiest and most dramatic ways you can edit a photo.

There are presets available (similar to Adobe’s Lightroom Mobile’s, even though it doesn’t offer curves proper), and, if you want, you can fine tune individual color and tone channels as well. As the latest Snapseed entry on Google+ notes, the face detection has gotten a “try harder” option as well if the app doesn’t get it quite right the first time. The update is out now for both Android and iOS and you can grab it from the links below.

Via: 9to5 Google

Source: Snapseed (Google+)

‘Candleman’ is a 3D platformer that will make your heart melt

Proper 3D platformers are a rarity these days, especially on the Xbox One. That’s why we’re intrigued by Candleman, a charming adventure featuring a tiny wax-based hero. To succeed, you’ll need to decide when and how to melt your little candle. Illumination can trigger vital bridges, or spook dangerous ghosts. As your hero shrinks in size, you’re also able to jump higher and flutter across gaps that would otherwise be impossible to traverse. The caveat? Candleman can only burn for 10 seconds before he disappears entirely. To survive, you’ll need to get used to the dark.

Candleman is also unusual because it was developed by Spotlighter, an indie outfit based in Beijing, China. Few Xbox One games emerge from this region — unsurprisingly, most of the console’s software comes from Western developers, playing to the audience Microsoft has nurtured in the US and Europe. Candleman started as a game jam project in 2013, and quickly gained recognition for its resource-based puzzle-platforming. An early prototype was then released through Kongregate, which attracted Microsoft and its ID@Xbox team. It launches today for $14.99 — a nice palate cleanser, perhaps, before Halo Wars 2 arrives on February 21st.

Source: Major Nelson (Blog Post)

Nintendo plans to release two-to-three mobile games each year

After months of vague statements, Nintendo has finally confirmed its smartphone strategy, announcing that it will release two to three mobile titles every year. While all eyes are currently focused on the imminent launch of Nintendo’s new console, company president Tatsumi Kimishima revealed that this smartphone release schedule will be taking effect this year. With Fire Emblem Heroes launching on both iOS and Android tomorrow and the as-yet untitled Animal Crossing delayed until 2018, it has yet to reveal which other treasured IP will get the mobile treatment in 2017.

This announcement comes a day after Nintendo announced it was cutting its full-year operating profit forecast by a third. With Super Mario Run amassing over 79 million downloads and the Android version still yet to launch, the news should help encourage investors after the undoubtedly disappointing new financial forecast.

While Super Mario Run was a ‘free-to-start’ game, Fire Emblem Heroes marks the company’s first true move to the more profitable free-to-play business model. With the company still clearly testing the waters when it comes to mobile, Nintendo is sure to be watching Heroes’ performance carefully when deciding how to monetize future mobile titles.

Even though regular mobile releases are now confirmed, Nintendo is still yet to reveal which other franchises it will bring to mobile. Personally, we’d love to see a Warioware-style mini-game collection hit smartphones. Can you imagine how perfect a Donkey Konga pocket tap-a-thon would be? Make our dreams come true, Nintendo.

Source: Reuters

DJI Phantom 4 Pro review

Research Center:
DJI Phantom 4 Pro

DJI’s phantom is often called “the iPhone of drones” — and that’s a fair description. It makes sense. It’s one of the most popular drones on the planet, it’s packed with high-end features and functionality, and the latest models are always at the top of their class. On top of that, DJI also releases new models at a steady rate, packing even better features into a nearly identical form factor.

Features & Specs

As an evolution of the original Phantom 4, the Pro boasts a number of small but significant improvements. Many of the original Phantom 4’s design attributes, electronic components, and features have been ported over to the pro model, while others have been upgraded, and a few new features have been added.

The first and most obvious addition is the Pro’s new 5-direction obstacle avoidance system. Whereas the P4 only featured forward facing sense and avoid, the new and improved version has sensors on its front back, left, right, and underside. These sensors actively scan the environment around the drone and allow it to autonomously avoid things like trees, buildings, and anything else you might encounter during flight.

The Pro looks nearly identical to the original Phantom 4.

The other standout improvement is the Pro’s camera. The Pro uses all-new hardware with a 1-inch image sensor — which is four times the size as what’s used in the original Phantom 4. On top of that, the camera can shoot 4K video at up to 60 frames per second, and still images at up to 20 megapixels. DJI also tossed in aperture control and a mechanical shutter. No matter how you look at it, the P4’s new camera is bigger, better, and more customizable than ever.

DJI has also added an even more deluxe, optional version, called the Phantom 4 Pro Plus. It’s the exact same drone, but with a controller that has a built-in touchscreen display. It’ll cost you an extra 300 bucks, but you won’t have to connect your phone to the controller with a cable, worry about your smartphone’s battery life, or have your flights rudely interrupted by incoming text messages and calls.

Build Quality & Design

The P4 Pro is nearly identical to the original P4 in terms of both design and build quality. It retains the same hull shape as its predecessor, save for a few minor differences where the new sensors are placed. As such, it’s every bit as strong and sturdy as the P4, which remains among the most attractive and drones available.

It’s impressive that DJI has managed to outfit the drone with so many new features, while still maintaining an identical form factor. The additional sensors have been tucked into the drone’s legs, while infrared and optical sensors are fitted into the drone’s left and right sides. Even the camera, which is drastically better than the one found on the original P4, is just a bit larger than it was before. Unless you familiar with DJI’s drones, the P4 and P4 Pro are as good as identical, despite Phantom’s numerous enhancement.

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

The only downside to the P4 Pro is that, unfortunately, the Phantom line still isn’t nearly as portable as DJI’s Mavic Pro. The arms and props aren’t designed to fold down, and the landing gear can neither retract, nor be collapsed. It’s not designed with portability in mind — though it’s still small enough to be stuffed inside a backpack if the need arises.

Battery life and recharge time

Under optimal conditions, DJI says the Phantom 4 Pro can stay airborne for up to 30 minutes — but of course, real-world conditions aren’t always optimal.

To put these claims to the test, we ran the P4 Pro through our usual series of endurance tests. First up was a hover test, where we let the drone hover in place until the battery life became “critically low,” and the drone automatically landed. Our hover test lasted for 28 minutes and 8 seconds — which isn’t very far off from DJI’s claimed 30-minute flight time.

Next, to get a sense of how long P4 Pro will last under more demanding conditions, we recorded the flight times from every other flight test we conducted and averaged everything out. Over the course of 10 different flights that spanned from 100 percent battery charge to the emergency low-battery automatic landing, the Phantom 4 Pro averaged a flight time of 26 minutes and 50 seconds.

While you shouldn’t expect a full 30 minutes of airtime, the endurance is excellent – the best we’ve seen so far. A DJI Mavic Pro lasted 23 minutes and 19 seconds in our hover test, and the Yuneec Typhoon H lasted 23 minutes, 20 seconds. A smaller, more affordable, simpler drone will last far less than any of these. The Hover Camera Passport, for instance, lasted less than 10 minutes.

As for battery recharge times, we found that a nearly-empty battery (around 10 percent remaining) takes about 1.5 hours to juice up to 100 percent. That said, most of the time you’ll be compelled to land before you reach critically low battery levels, so most of our recharges took about an hour and 15 minutes or less. That’s not bad for a cell that offers nearly 27 minutes of airtime. The Yuneec Typhoon H needed over two hours to fill up its tank.

Flight Performance

The flight performance of the Phantom 4 hasn’t changed in this new version. The P4 Pro boasts nearly identical flight specs to the original P4, when it comes to things like speed and agility. Luckily, this isn’t much of a letdown, since the P4 is still among the most nimble quad-blade drones sold.

DJI Phantom 4 Pro Compared To

Hover Camera Passport

DJI Mavic Pro

Yuneec Breeze

Parrot DISCO FPV

eHang Ghostdrone 2.0

HEXO+

Horizon Hobby Chroma

Yuneec Typhoon H drone

3DR Solo Drone

Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4K

Parrot BeBop Drone

dji Phantom 2 Vision+

Speed and agility are basically unchanged in the P4 Pro. Both the P4 and P4 Pro top out at 45 miles per hour (72 kph) — though you can easily reach higher speeds with a good tailwind behind you. It’s not the fastest drone on the market (some can go 55 or even 60 mph), but it’s quick enough for most uses.

However, unlike its predecessor, the P4 can fly up to 31 mph with full multi-directional obstacle avoidance. That’s important. High-speed maneuvers are when you need obstacle avoidance the most. This new model can fly at respectable speeds while also dodging and weaving on its own.

Autonomy

Some of the biggest improvements in the P4 Pro are related to DJI’s new autopilot features. In addition to porting over most of the “standard” autonomous flight modes from the original P4, DJI also borrowed a few of the Pro’s features from the recently-released Mavic, and even added a few extras that we haven’t seen before.

You can set the P4 Pro to orbit a point in space with Point of Interest Mode, repeat flights along a preset path with Waypoints, follow your movements via Follow Me mode, or even adjust the way it responds to joystick control with Course Lock and Home Lock. These modes are included in the Phantom 4, but the Pro version has a couple new tricks up its sleeve: Terrain Follow, Tripod Mode, and a range of new Active Track abilities.

It’s not crash-proof, but it’s close.

In Terrain Follow (which was previously only available in the Mavic Pro), the drone uses its Downward Vision System to maintain a certain distance from the ground, which is fantastic for filming over terrain that varies in elevation.

For static shots, the Pro’s new Tripod mode allows you choose a point in space, then keep the drone locked in that position while you shoot – sort of like a flying tripod. In this mode, joystick controls are dampened so that panning/yawing movements are less drastic, and the drone uses a combination of GPS and sensors to hold its position without drifting.

DJI has also added a few updates to its Active Track system. Portrait mode, for example, allows you to track a subject while the drone flies horizontally and matches pace. Spotlight, on the other hand, allows you to lock onto a subject, but allows you to fly the drone in any direction around it. There’s even a 360 mode that will actively orbit any subject you choose, regardless of where that subject might move.

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

And of course, there’s the new omnidirectional sense-and-avoid system. Using its new sensors, the P4 Pro continually scans the environment around it, and either alerts you when you fly too close to an obstacle, or avoids it autonomously. The best part is that this function can be turned on or off, so it’s there when you need it, but doesn’t get in the way when you want to walk on the wild side and fly close to something.

Our favorite feature, however, is DJI’s new dynamic return to home function. In past generations of the Phantom, when you hit the “return to home’” button, the drone would fly to a predetermined height, then make a beeline straight back to where it took off from. God forbid there were any obstacles in the way — if there were, the drone would smack into them like a blind bird.

When you use the return to home button on the new P4 Pro, the drone will basically retrace its steps and attempt to “reverse” along the same path it used to get where it is — dynamically avoiding any obstacles that might appear along the way, of course. It’s not crash-proof, but it’s close.

Range

Range is also quite a bit better than the original P4. Just like the Mavic Pro, the P4 Pro is equipped with DJI’s new OcuSync video transmission technology, which stretches the drone’s maximum range and provides a live HD video feed from the camera from up to 4.3 miles away. That, however, is only possible in the most optimal conditions.

This is arguably the best way to spend $1,500.

We took it out to the one mile mark on a handful of different occasions without so much as a jitter in the video feed — but transmission distance varies widely depending on the environment you’re flying in. If there’s a lot of interference, the feed can cut out at or before the half-mile mark. It all depends on where you’re flying, but even with the occasional feed cutout, the Phantom 4 Pro still boasts some of the best range we’ve ever seen in a drone.

Most competitors we’ve tried can barely make it three quarters of a mile with their stock configurations, and many require aftermarket range extenders to reach the ranges that the P4 Pro can.

Camera and Accessories

If there’s any single reason to buy the P4 Pro instead of the standard P4, it’s the camera. DJI put some serious work into the Pro’s image capture system, and the result is one of the best cameras we’ve ever seen on a quad.

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

The biggest improvement is the size of the camera’s sensor. The Pro boasts a 1-inch CMOS sensor — which is roughly four times the size of the more typical 1/2.3-inch class used by most drones (including the Phantom 3 series and the Phantom 4), flagship smartphones, and point-and-shoot cameras. This extra surface area allows it to capture far more detail, and maintain image/video quality at higher ISOs.

In addition to a larger sensor, DJI also equipped the Pro with a mechanical shutter and aperture control. In other words, you’re not stuck shooting in f/2.8 all the time (you can go all the way to f/11), and no longer need to worry about the dreaded “rolling shutter effect’ screwing up your images.

When it comes to shooting video, the P4 Pro offers a litany of options. You can shoot in cinematic 4K DCI at 24, 25, or 30 frames per second, or 4K UHD at 24, 25, 30, or 60 frames per second. If that’s too much for your eyeballs (or SD card) to handle, you can also scale down to 2.7K, 1080p, and 720p — the latter of which can be captured at 120 frames per second and used to create slow-mo footage.

If you spring for the Phantom 4 Pro Plus (an extra $300), DJI will throw in a controller that comes with its own built-in touchscreen display. It’s a bit on the spendy side for sure, but that extra scratch means you won’t have to connect your phone to the controller with a cable, which is something that’s required for nearly every other drone that DJI makes.

Bill Roberson/Digital Trends

We’re not sure if it’s worth $300, but it’s pretty nice to fly without worrying about your smartphone’s battery life, or having your flights rudely interrupted by incoming text messages or calls.

However, we think DJI should’ve included this option years ago, or at least thrown this into the $1500 bundle. Yuneec offers a touchscreen Typhoon H controller for no extra charge, and that makes paying extra for it from DJI a bitter pill to swallow.

Our Take

Without a doubt, DJI’s Phantom 4 Pro is one of the best drones in existence today — if not the best. It’s the only drone with omnidirectional obstacle avoidance, and the camera outdoes every other drone in this class. Eventually it’ll be overshadowed, but it’s the best high-end consumer drone we’ve tested so far.

Are there better options available?

In this price range, no. If you’re in the market for a drone and $1,500 is within your budget, there’s no better way to spend your money.

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Propeller Guards

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The closest competitor to the P4 Pro is probably DJI’s Mavic Pro. It’s smaller, far more portable, and boasts many of the same flight modes and features — except, of course, omnidirectional obstacle avoidance, and a camera with a one-inch image sensor. It’s also $500 cheaper, so if you’re looking for something a bit more affordable but still highly capable, you’d be wise to go for the Mavic.

If you don’t care so much about portability, Yuneec’s Typhoon H is also a worthy contender, and is more affordable at $1,300. It boasts many of the same features, and has a 4K camera that swivels in 360 degrees. This, along with dual-pilot capabilities, make it a decent contender. However, the Typhoon H’s camera is not as advanced, the battery doesn’t last quite as long, and it needs more time to charge.

How long will it last?

Probably a few years or more. DJI constantly rolls out updates to most of its products, and we have no reason to think the P4 Pro will be any different. Firmware updates come through on a regular basis, and DJI already has a suite of upgrades, attachments, and accessories in the works. So, assuming you don’t fly it into a lake, the P4 Pro should last you for quite some time.

Should you buy it?

Yes. This is arguably one of the best ways to spend $1,500.