New DJI Air 3S drone camera: "more breathtaking detail than the current DJI Mavic 3 Pro" for half the price!

The release of the Air 3S has been hotly tipped for a while, but today – with the formal announcement – the details have been fully revealed including DJI's surprise statement (since this is the 'prosumer' model) that it has a better image than the flagship Mavic 3 Pro.

The big change from the previous model is a new 1-inch image sensor for the main 24mm EFL camera; the drone has dual cameras so you can switch in flight to a 70mm EFL (in that regard like its predecessor, the Air 3).

The main camera has a 50MP sensor and is f/1.8 with a 0.5m close focus point while the 'medium tele' is still 48MP and offers f/2.8 and a 3m close focus point (both are autofocus). Video is captured in up to 10-bit at 60fps and 4K 120FPS is also possible, and both cameras have all the same modes on offer.

The Mavic Air 3S also boasts a smarter "Active Track 360" and subject-focussing tech designed to keep "any subject in frame" so pilots can fly automated or assisted routes around subjects for graceful shots bolstered by a new forward-facing LiDAR which means the systems can even work in low light. It has about 25m range to assist focussing.

Other notable features are a 45-minute battery life (one less than last time, but still a long time. It can operate in temperatures as low as -10˚C (14˚F) and deliver a live view of 1080P 60fps to the remote controller.

In DJI's announcement, as well as highlighting that the drone has 14-stops of range and a 1-inch-CMOS (just like the old Air 2S, DJI fans) they slipped in the phrase: "The Air 3S's dual cameras improve on the 10-bit and ISO image quality, capturing photos and videos with even more breathtaking details than the current DJI Mavic 3 Pro ." Given that the tri-camera copter Mavic 3 can set you back $2,199 and the Air 3S is a lot less (see the end of this), that's very interesting, albeit slightly cryptic.

More practically, the drone also offers "off-state" file transfer, with or without a cable, saving a lot of powering up, waiting, and listening to annoying fans in the editing room when all you're doing is downloading files – not too bad when you've also got 42GB of built-in memory so might not even need the drone's MicroSD card slot.

ISO has also increased to 12,800 maximum (or 3,200 in D-Log M and HLG), so this is more low-light friendly than its predecessor.

I've actually been testing a pre-launch version for my DJI Air 3S review , so you can get an informed opinion of the drone

The DJI Air 3S – an immediate contender for best camera drone – is available now from DJI.com and other sellers with the RC-N3 controller (offering a 20km range) and will sell for $1099 | £959 | AU$1699 with one battery, or $1399 | £1,239 | AU$2129 as a Fly More Combo with 3 batteries, a shoulder bag, battery charging hub, and a ND filter set.

You can also opt for the DJI RC N2 controller (with built-in 700 nit screen) for $1599 | £1439 | AU$2429.