P4 why no zoom?
- Thread starter Plungerboy
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Meta4
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Because it's not necessary and it would add a lot of weight and cost besides big technical issues.
DJI are trying to compete and the $$ is a big factor.
If zoom is critical for you there's always the Inspire with X5 camera that has one zoom lens that will work with it.
I agree if I were a real video guy but I want to make videos on my phone and doing all that is way more complicated then adding a Zoom button
I can buy a digital camera for $50 that's has some zoom why can this tech device have digital or optical.
Not interested in reinvesting in inspire or p4. At the rate of disappointment from DJI I most likely upgrade at the p8 ,haha.
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The $50 cell phone camera has exactly the same 'zoom' as Meta4 is describing - a digital zoom. The $200 point and shoot camera might have an optical zoom, but it doesn't have to sit on a nicely balanced gimbal 400 feet in the air.
If DJI were to take the 4K sensor and put an on board digital zoom on the drone, then you'd see all of the newbies slammng into (even more) various objects because their field of view is so narrow that they can't see much at all. The P4 might get away with that given the collision avoidance tech, but I doubt it would work well enough.
Sorry, no zoom.
A zoom lens is completely unnecessarily. If you want a closer shot, fly closer to the subject. The LAST thing we need to worry is privacy invasion claims, image jitter, more weight, more cost and yet another variable to control. If there is an upgrade to the lens that would be useful is aperture control.
Only issue with flying closer is scaring off wild life. Was in florida last week filming a some pelicans and when I got a little closer, they freaked out and flew away (and almost into the P3). A modest 3x optical zoom would be nice, but I do see how this could raise privacy issues.
ianwood
Taco Wrangler
DJI could add digital zoom via software with no change to the current camera. They could add it to every model from the Phantom Vision up to the Phantom 4.
The common argument is that they don't because inexperienced pilots would fly with the zoom turned on, and crash into everything (objects in mirror are not as close as they appear). I don't fully agree with that argument because DJI could make the zoom only available when a Phantom is in hover mode. If they added the much better and more expensive optical zoom, then again DJI could make it only available when hovering. If you move in any direction, it would drop out of zoom.
My guess is they don't add zoom because:
- minor vibrations are exaggerated when in zoom and pictures look terrible.
- They don't want idiots taking close up photos of unsuspecting people and causing a media panic.
The common argument is that they don't because inexperienced pilots would fly with the zoom turned on, and crash into everything (objects in mirror are not as close as they appear). I don't fully agree with that argument because DJI could make the zoom only available when a Phantom is in hover mode. If they added the much better and more expensive optical zoom, then again DJI could make it only available when hovering. If you move in any direction, it would drop out of zoom.
My guess is they don't add zoom because:
- minor vibrations are exaggerated when in zoom and pictures look terrible.
- They don't want idiots taking close up photos of unsuspecting people and causing a media panic.
ianwood
Taco Wrangler
Just to clarify, digital zoom is not "zooming" at all, it is merely a crop into the existing resolution. A zoom motor would of course eat up more power when used. What would be nice is changeable lenses, like we have with our SLRs.
