DJI Matrice 5T compact drone launches with first LiDAR and 1K thermal imaging

DJI has launched the Matrice 5T, a compact enterprise drone that combines LiDAR, mmWave radar, and an omnidirectional vision system in one airframe. Granted, DJI already sold LiDAR through Zenmuse payloads for the Matrice 300 and 350 RTK, but those were mapping add-ons. Here the LiDAR is an integral part of the drone's sensing suite.

DJI Matrice 5T specs and features

The sensor stack targets night and bad-weather work. The LiDAR can pick out thin obstacles such as power lines up to 32 m away in the dark, while the mmWave radar keeps working in fog, rain, and dust. Fisheye cameras hold visual positioning down to 0.5 lux, and the drone fuses visual and radar data to build a map when GNSS is weak. For power line inspections, the top-mounted LiDAR can lock onto the wires and fly sideways along them.

The camera set of the new DJI Matrice 5T is quite generous, too, as the 1K thermal sensor is a native 1280 x 1024, four times the pixels of the usual 640 x 512 chips, and a UHR mode pushes output to 2560 x 2048. The main camera has a 1/0.98-inch sensor, an f/1.8 lens, and an ISO of up to 1,600,000. Finally, a 50 MP zoom camera handles close inspections, and the telephoto offers 11x optical and 176x hybrid zoom, enough to read license plates from 400m distance, for instance.

DJI quotes up to an hour of flight time, an IP55 rating for flying in rain and dust situations, and an operating range of -20° to 50°C. O4 Enterprise transmission reaches 40 km, up from 25 km on the previous generation, with dual cellular dongles and relay modes as backup. The onboard AI recognizes more than 20 target types and accepts third-party models, too. Paired with DJI Terra, it offers centimeter-level surveying without ground control points. A flight termination module supports C6 compliance with the EU Regulation 2019/945 that allows specialized drone operations in a crowded airspace.

Against the previous Matrice drones, the M5T is an upgrade in thermal resolution, range on a battery charge, and obstacle sensing. Lightweight industrial drone rivals such as the Autel EVO Max 4T, which is cheaper than the M5T on Amazon, and a US-made alternative like the Skydio X10 generally offer 640 x 512-class thermal and camera-based avoidance, without LiDAR in this role.

DJI Mavice 5T price and availability

DJI's first lightweight industrial drone with LiDAR is available for purchase immediately through authorized enterprise dealers. The Mavice 5T price is set at 57,488 yuan, or the equivalent of $8,620 for what DJI bills as "one drone for search, inspection, and mapping."