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- DJI's Pocket 4P has been revealed in full on the China page of DJI's website
- It shares the core features of the Pocket 4, but adds a 3x telephoto camera
- There's no official word on global availability or pricing yet
We knew it was coming after a soft reveal at Cannes Film Festival last month, but now DJI has fully revealed its first dual-lens compact vlogging camera, the Osmo Pocket 4P.
You'll have to dig for the details, mind you — the Pocket 4P has only been announced in China, and for now, the full specs and features can only be found on the China page of the DJI site. You'll need to select the China region (中国大陆) to learn about the camera's core features, or you can stick with me here for the highlights and how it compares to the Osmo Pocket 4 and the Insta360 Luna Ultra dual-lens rival.
There's no official word yet on global pricing and availability, but based on recent DJI launches, I would expect a two-week wait before there's wider availability. Let's see how the Pocket 4P compares to the Pocket 4 and Insta360 Luna Ultra. For now, DJI's confirmed a starting price of CNY 3,799 for the Pocket 4P, which is about $562 / £420.
1. Lenses
The Pocket 4P's core design is the same as the Pocket 4, but with one major difference: the lenses. Where the Pocket 4 has a single ultra-wide 20mm f/2.0 lens, the Pocket 4P adds a second 3x telephoto lens.
The 3x lens is a 60mm f/1.8 optic, and it records onto a separate 1/1.28-inch sensor to the ultra-wide's refined 1-inch sensor. This is truly a dual-camera device with two distinct perspectives, and it's a design approach we've seen in the recent Insta360 Luna Ultra, which I'm still testing in depth as I write this article.
At first glance, the Pocket 4P and Luna Ultra's lenses are designed differently; the Pocket 4P's twin-lens array is vertically arranged, the Luna Ultra's is horizontal. I'm not sure of the reasoning for that, or what practical advantages each array has over the other.
Both Pocket 4P and Luna Ultra offer a 'lossless' 6x zoom from their telephoto cameras, plus a 12x digital zoom. I'll compare the DJI Osmo Pocket 4P and Insta360 Luna Ultra in real-world tests soon, but the specs look pretty similar:
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Ultra-wide | 3x telephoto |
DJI Osmo Pocket 4 | 20mm f/2.0, 1-inch sensor | N/A |
DJI Osmo Pocket 4P | 20mm f/2.0, (revised) 1-inch sensor | 60mm f/1.8, 1/1.28-inch sensor |
Insta360 Luna Ultra | 20mm f/1.8, 1-inch sensor | 60mm f/2.0, 1/1.3-inch sensor |
2. Dynamic range and color
Almost all of the Osmo Pocket 4 and Pocket 4P specs are identical, but there is one area where DJI is pushing the pricier dual-lens model: dynamic range and color profiles.
The Pocket 4's dynamic range is rated up to 14 stops, whereas the Pocket 4P is billed as having a ludicrous-sounding 17 stops, which would beat the performance of high-end professional cameras. I don't have details on how the dynamic range is achieved or whether you need a specific mode to get it, but we'll find out soon enough.
One way could be DJI's new D-Log 2 color profile, which it says is an upgrade from the D-Log profile used in the Pocket 4.
And as for the Luna Ultra, it supposedly has a 14-stop dynamic range and an I-Log color profile. I-Log is Insta360's first Log profile, whereas DJI has iterated log profiles over multiple versions.
As far as which camera delivers the best-looking footage, we'll have to wait and see, but the shots on the Pocket 4P product page look stunning!
3. Design
You can think of the Pocket 4P as a Pocket 4 but with an extra camera, because otherwise the design of the two cameras is pretty much the same; they both feature a compact design, a rotating 2-inch touchscreen, which reveals two additional buttons when positioned horizontally.
They both utilize a 3-axis gimbal camera unit, which features a magnetic arm and contact points to which a neat LED light snaps onto, and is powered by the camera. I like the new slimline gimbal protector in the Pocket 4 models — it's much more compact than the hard shell case that came with the Pocket 3.
Of course, there are more design differences between the Pocket 4P and the Luna Ultra. The Pocket 4P is the slimmer and the slicker of the two, and it has additional buttons and that gimbal feature.
The Luna Ultra comes in a larger hard shell case and is overall clunkier, but it has a clever and well-implemented detachable control with 20m transmission range, which has gained much praise and is being touted as a reason to choose Insta360 over DJI. The control features the rotating 2-inch OLED touchscreen, key camera controls and a built-in mic.
I'll be returning soon with my in-depth Luna Ultra review and, no doubt, comparisons with the Pocket 4P once I've got the two cameras side by side.
Having already used the Luna Ultra for about a month, I can safely say that I'd struggle to return to a single-lens vlogging camera like the Pocket 4; these dual-lens models are so much more versatile, so stay tuned for more.
4. Pricing
- Pocket 4P Standard kit costs CNY 3,799 (about $562 / £420)
- Pocket 4P Vlog kit costs CNY 4,299 (about $636 / £475)
If those price conversions are remotely accurate to the actual price, then the Pocket 4P will be much cheaper than the Insta360 Luna Ultra. I think the actual price will be higher.
But of course, DJI is banned in the US, and so the Pocket 4P won't be available there for the foreseeable future, and so those US prices are a moot point.
The luna Ultra costs; $769.99 / £649 / AU$1,229.99 for the Standard Kit, while a Creator Bundle costs $969.99 / £829 / AU$1,549.99. The Pocket 4 starts at £429 / AU$749 or £549 / AU$959 for the Creator Combo.
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