Sony Electronics announced Airpeak S1 drone upgrades

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Sony Releases new Enhanced Battery, Real Time Kinematic Kit, and a new Advanced Lightweight Gimbal for Airpeak S1

Sony Electronics Inc. announced new upgrades for Airpeak S1 drones, including an Real Time Kinematic (RTK) Kit, a new advanced and lightweight gimbal, and an enhanced battery.

The RTK Kit for Sony’s Airpeak S1 i further enhances the capabilities of drones for industrial applications, the company said. With the RTK system, the Airpeak S1 can achieve highly precise positioning and navigation without lag, enabling it to maintain a stable flight path and gather precise data to geotag images for inspections and other applications.

The RTK system uses a base station that receives satellite signals from the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and an Airpeak-mounted receiver that uses these signals to determine its position, making for stable flight even in environments with strong magnetic field interference. By comparing the signals from multiple GNSS satellites, the system can calculate Airpeak’s precise location, velocity, and orientation, providing centimeter-level accuracy in positioning and reproducible flight. This provides centimeter-level accuracy in positioning, allowing the S1 to maintain a stable flight path and gather precise data for inspections and other applications. The RTK GNSS system for Airpeak S1 with high-precision positioning capability will be available June 9 for $3,999.99.

The Gremsy Gimbal, PX1 for Airpeak, is a lightweight gimbal that has been designed specifically to be used with Sony’s Airpeak drone and provides an extensive range of advanced features to capture high-quality aerial footage and data. The PX1 is more than 40% lighter than the Gremsy Gimbal T3 for Airpeak.

The PX1 operates smoothly with compatible with full-size mirrorless interchangeable lens α cameras such as Sony’s A7R V, A7R IV, or the A7R IVA cameras, and it supports various lenses such as the Zeiss 35mm F2.8, the 24mm F2.8G, 40mm F2.5 G, or the 50 F2.5 G. When combined with the RTK Kit, via Hot Shoe Cable, it can even more precisely record positioning and log orientation to capture vital data.

The Gremsy Gimbal PX1 for Airpeak (GBL-PX1) will be available May 19, for $3.999.99

Sony’s new LBP-HM1 Battery has a higher capacity than the previous generation, which allows for longer flight times and less need for battery changes, minimizing the risk of accidents and need for battery swaps. The Airpeak S1 can now fly for up to 30 minutes without a payload and when combined with the new RTK Kit, PX1 gimbal, an A7RIV, and the Zeiss 35mm F2.8, users can expect flight times of up to 20 minutes.

The battery will be available for $399.99 on June 23.

New System Firmware Updates

As part of the new product releases, Sony is also updating the Airpeak system software to version 2.0.0 for the aircraft and controller.  This new software provides support for the newly released products, gimbal camera shake correction in combination with the FX3 camera (for video only), and the addition of display and notification functions to improve usability during shooting among other enhancements. The ongoing system software updates made to Airpeak since its introduction are part of Sony’s commitment to enhance the Airpeak system.