Autel Evo Lite+ Drone Review: Ludicrous Mode Is a Boost

The low-light performance of the Evo lite+ is better. The Air 2S has a maximum ISO of 6,400 in manual video capture, or 1,600 in D-log. Thanks to a dedicated Night Mode, the Evo lite+ can shoot ISO 48,000. That number might sound like a recipe for noisy, useless video, but it is not. Autel's Dark Mode is able to manage relatively crisp video without scene-ruining levels of noise. I have never flown a Drones at night, so how useful this is will depend on how you shoot.

The Evo lite+ is capable of shooting 5472x3076pixel video, which is what it is labeled. You can shoot 20MP images for stills. The slightly cheaper Evo lite has a smaller sensor camera that can shoot 4K, but does not offer 50MP stills. If you use it for larger-resolution still images, it might save you money. I would recommend the lite+ for most people.

There are other cameras that matter on a drone. The front, rear, and bottom of the drone have obstacle-avoidance sensors. The Air 2 is mostly the same as the Air 2, though it has an upward looking sensor which can be important in some situations. I tried to run it into a lot, but the Evo lite+ did a good job of avoiding it. The Air 2S should keep you out of trouble in most situations.

One thing that surprised me was that the Evo lite+ will warn you if you are flying next to an airport, but it doesn't completely shut off the aircraft. I applaud letting the user make their own decisions, but I have noticed that new drones are showing a lack of awareness and common sense that is provoking a growing hostility toward them. The situation will get worse if people are able to fly where they shouldn't. I used the FAA's B4UFly app to make sure I was legal to fly.

Autel doesn't have the Air Sense alert that DJI offers. Air Sense, which was first introduced in DJI drones in 2020, tracks the location of nearby manned and unmanned aircraft and gives you an alert if you are near anything. I have never had Airsense alert me about anything, but it would be nice to see something similar in Autel's drones.

There is a thumb drive.

Autel's Sky app is very similar to the ones used by DJI and is easy to use. I wasn't thrilled with the controller. It looks like a controller, but it lacks the storage space for the joysticks that you get with drones. Autel doesn't provide an extra joystick like DJI does.

The controller is easy to use and I had no trouble flying. The Sky app will limit your speed and altitude when you first take off. You should stay in this mode until you are comfortable. The weight is an advantage in the wind, which I dealt with a lot when testing, and the Evo lite+ is slightly less responsive than the Air 2S, due to the extra weight.

Smooth, Standard, and Ludicrous are some of the flight modes offered by the Sky app. The latter allows a top speed of 42 miles an hour and more or less negates the obstacle-avoidance features since you don't have time to react to any warning. It is fun to fly in ludicrous mode.

The Autel Evo lite+ is the first drone I have tested that holds its own. If you want the control of a variable-aperture camera, along with the increased flight time, and don't mind the slightly higher price, the Autel Evo lite+ is the better option.