New DJI leak shows off a miniaturized FPV drone with CineWhoop-style design

It’s been less than a week since DJI announced its new Mini 3 Pro sub-250g drone and already the rumor mill is back in action with what is allegedly a new FPV drone the company is working on.

DealsDrone and OsitaLV, two reliable leakers in the drone community, have independently shared teasers for a miniature version of DJI’s FPV drone that will allegedly be called the Avata. DealsDrone has gotten its hands on what it alleges is renderings of the new drone and in the images, we see a CineWhoop style FPV drone with protected propellors and a top-positioned, low-profile body that houses the battery and camera.

As DroneDJ reports, this style of drone has proven popular in the FPV drone scene, as it offers the safer solution (compared to your standard compact FPV drone) to get unique shots larger FPV and traditional drones simply can’t get into and through tighter spaces . This is mainly due to the use of protectors that fully encase the propellors and prevent any injuries and (hopefully) major repairs when the drone inevitably takes a tumble.

If you remember, this incredible scene, captured by Jay Byrd Christensen, was done using a CineWhoop-style drone to squeeze through tight areas and around people at the Bryant Lake Bowl & Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for those interested in what kind of footage these drones are capable of capturing. :

According to leaker OsitaLV, the DJI Avata’s model number is WM169, a single digit below the WM170 model number for the DJI FPV. While detailed specifications are scarce, DealsDrone suggests the Avata will wight ‘about 500g (1.1lbs),’ will offer similar image quality to the Mini 3 Pro, have a ‘head chase’ mode and will, of course, come with a pair of FPV goggles that connect to a mobile device.

DealsDrone says the drone might make an appearance in July or August 2022, but no pricing information has been shared.