During CES, chip maker Ambarella announced its new CV5 processor capable of 8k 60 fps and 4k 240 fps video. Looking back, previous DJI drones, like the Mavic Mini, used Ambarella processors – so let’s take a look to see if the next DJI Mavic 3 will use it, too.
Meet the CV5
Looking at Ambarella’s marketing information about the new chip, some pretty impressive features will allow future drones to take it to the next level.
Most notable on the list are the supported resolutions. The CV5 can support video at up to 8k 60 fps and 4k 240 fps. This means that the Mavic 3 or a future drone may have the ability to shoot at 8k, putting it in line with the EVO 2.
The 240 fps at 4k are also very impressive, allowing slow motion video to be captured in a resolution high enough that it can be cropped and enlarged afterwards. 8K video can also do this to make this CV5 chip perfect for use by drone companies, including DJI.
The new chip also supports the H.265 HEVC, HDR and WDR video codec, and the rest of the standard features we expect from drones equipped with the latest cameras. The CV5 chip is produced using a 5 nm process, which allows for impressive levels of energy consumption. When recording at 8k 30 fps, it uses less than 2 W. In 8k 60 fps video, it uses just under 5 W, leaving more than enough battery for the rest of the drone’s components.
The chip also comes with the company’s CVflow vision engine. This allows a drone, for example, to be integrated into a neural network, which would likely be used in image recognition scenarios. This would likely improve DJI’s ActiveTrack and automatically detect faces and other objects and improve the prevention of dynamic obstacles.
The target application of the chip is described as being for drones, sports cameras, robotic cameras, VR cameras and automatic steering systems. So it’s very likely that we’ll see this chip in everything from the latest action camera to a luxury autonomous car.
Will DJI Mavic 3 have it?
We all know that Mavic 3 is scheduled to come out sooner or later. There have been possible leaks and comments about the next drone. Since the Mavic 3 has probably been in development for some time, DJI probably completed something as important as the chip that powers the camera.
In addition, Ambarella’s vice president of marketing and business development, Christopher Day, told CNN that it takes about a year for the products to use the new chips. Together, these two things make it highly unlikely that we see this CV5 chip on the Mavic 3.
Since Autel Robotics’ EVO 2 line features 8k and 6k options, there is no doubt that the DJI will want to match or even that. DJI doesn’t just use Ambarella chips – it has already used the Allwinner H6 on the Mavic Air 2, which could mean working with any of the companies to gain access to a newer chip before it is released publicly.
DJI creating its own chip?
Another thought I had is that DJI may be working on its own image processing chip. If you’ve seen recent news, the company is reportedly working on its own autonomous driving technology. While there is not much information about the news, DJI will likely be working on its own processor to keep up with the technology. This means that it does not have to rely on other companies to support the features it wants in its latest products.
Photo: Fatah Muse and Ambarella
FTC: We use affiliate links for cars that generate revenue. More.
Subscribe to DroneDJ on YouTube for exclusive videos