Last year Sony mentioned that they will be announcing a new line of drones under the Airpeak brand, and today the company revealed a few more details, in conjunction with the virtual launch of the annual Consumer Electronics (CES) show.
When until now the drone market has been massively dominated by DJI, it seems that the Japanese camera giant Sony wants to enter this market and secure market share for itself.

Airpeak is expected to be released to the public in Spring 2021, and aimed at professional photographers and video creators. Sony focuses on showing what we can expect when it comes to the design and construction of Airpeak (though no specifics of its size or weight were provided). The drone features a rectangular central body with a gimbal that hangs below it where the Sony Alpha camera sits. The legs fold upwards after the drone takes off to give the camera the ability to rotate 360 degrees in flight unobstructed. The drone is a quadcopter design and each of the arms that holds a motor and rotor appear to be made of carbon fiber.

“In order to fully support the creativity of video creators, the payload of the drone can be equipped with an Alpha mirrorless camera to capture high quality, full-frame aerial photography, and video,” Sony writes. “Airpeak, the industry’s smallest class of drone that can be equipped with the Alpha system, is capable of dynamic filming and precise, stable flight, and aims to contribute to the world of entertainment while also pursuing new possibilities for creative expression.”

“Sony launched the Airpeak brand with the goal to further develop today’s drone technology while achieving the utmost in value creation,” the company says on its official website. “As the first phase of this project, Sony will launch a new business targeted for professional photography and video production in the spring of 2021.”

Sony announced that they are looking for professional drone users (who currently use drones professionally to create content or provide additional services to customers) in the United States and Japan to become collaborators and participate in the Airpeak project. If interested, you can sign-up here.

It’s unclear if Sony has further plans to explain more about Airpeak at CES or if it will wait to reveal more as the launch date gets closer.

More info on Sony Airpeak’s website.