Autel EVO Lite+: full review

With the Autel EVO Lite+, Autel Robotics has launched a drone with features strikingly similar to those of the DJI Air 2S, including an impressive 1-inch sensor capable of filming in 5.4K resolution. What is the real performance of this drone? Has it managed to carve out a place for itself in a market dominated by drones from market leader DJI? Discover all the answers in this article!

Autel EVO Lite+: design

Weight	835g
Dimensions (folded, with propellers)	210 × 123 × 95 mm
Dimensions (unfolded, with propellers)	433 × 516 × 95 mm

The Autel EVO Lite+ adopts the same folding-arm design found on most drones since the release – and success – of the DJI Mavic Pro. Available in three colors (Autel orange, the brand’s emblematic color, arctic white and “deep space” gray) with carbon-colored arms.

In terms of technical specifications, the Lite+ is comparable to the DJI Air 2S, but its weight (835g) and size bring it closer to the Mavic 3. Much of this weight and volume comes from the battery, which occupies a significant part of the rear structure. The battery, which incorporates the power button, slides onto the drone for attachment.

The drone rests on small legs under the arms, which prevent the nacelle and its 1-inch sensor from touching the ground. However, care must be taken when choosing a take-off and landing site, as the distance to the ground is small.

The Lite+ is equipped with obstacle detection sensors on the front, rear and under the fuselage, as well as a microSD card slot (up to 256 GB, with 6 GB of internal memory for those who forget) under a small protective cover on the left side, and a USB-C port on the right side. The drone also features LED lights under the body and at the end of each arm, enhancing its visibility in the dark.

The drone is really well built, and the materials used give an impression of quality and robustness. With its weight, it feels like you’re holding a serious device and not just a toy. The body and arms feel tough, and the whole thing has a solid appearance that inspires confidence.

🚨 Regulatory information
As the Autel EVO Lite+ is not CE-approved, it falls into open category A3. Flying over people is forbidden, and you’ll need to keep at least 150 meters away from residential, commercial, industrial or recreational areas. Note also that its weight of over 800g requires you (at least in France) to fit it with an electronic remote identification beacon , which is not a standard feature. Regulations may vary in other countries, so be sure to check local rules if you’re elsewhere.

Autel EVO Lite+: radio control and transmission

Video transmission system	SkyLink altar
Maximum transmission distance	12 km (FCC) 6 km (CE)
Real-time transmission quality	2.7K 30ips (less than 1 km) 1080P 30ips (more than 1 km)
Autonomy	approx. 2.5 hours (connected to a telephone) approx. 3.5 hours (not connected to a telephone)

With its two elongated handles, the Autel EVO Lite+’s remote control looks like a video game console controller. On the top, a holder unfolds upwards to accommodate your smartphone. Beware, however, that the edges of this holder have the unfortunate tendency to press down on your phone’s volume and power buttons, forcing you to shift the mobile slightly from the axis of the radio control.

Lightweight, pleasant to hold and responsive, this radio control has everything to please, but it does have two major shortcomings. Firstly, there’s no place to store the joysticks when you unscrew them, which means you’ll have to be very careful not to lose them. Secondly, there’s no switch to toggle between flight modes. Fortunately, the customizable Fn key comes to the rescue: you can assign it a specific action for a single or double press, which may compensate for this absence.

The drone and its remote control communicate via the Autel SkyLink transmission system. The range is 12 km for FCC countries and 6 km for CE countries. According to available feedback, the connection proves to be reliable and stable, with no notable disconnections. As for video return, it’s impeccable: 2.7K at 30 fps up to a distance of 1 km, then 1080p at 30 fps beyond that.

Finally, the Autel Sky application offers a complete interface with all the necessary functions and flight information. If you’re used to the DJI Fly app from the famous competitor, the two applications are very similar, so you should quickly get the hang of it.

Autel EVO Lite+: in flight

Flight performance

Maximum speed	18 m/s (Ludicrous) 10 m/s (Standard) 5 m/s (Smooth)
Maximum ascent speed	5 m/s (Ludicrous) 4 m/s (Standard) 3 m/s (Smooth)
Maximum descent speed	4 m/s (Ludicrous) 3 m/s (Standard) 2 m/s (Smooth)
Maximum wind resistance	12 m/s

The Autel EVO Lite+ offers three flight modes, each with speeds to suit different needs:

• Smooth mode, for slower flights and smoother shots.
• Standard mode, for ordinary flights.
• Ludicrous mode, for the fastest speeds, to quickly cover an area or return the drone to the take-off point.

In Ludicrous mode, the Lite+ can reach a horizontal speed of 18 m/s, or around 65 km/h. This is slightly less than the 19 m/s (68.4 km/h) of the Air 2S or the 21 m/s (75.6 km/h) of an Air 3 or Mavic 3, but it’s more than enough for most uses.

Performance-wise, there’s nothing to complain about with the Lite+. It flies like a charm and remains super-stable. Theoretically, it can withstand winds of up to 12 m/s (about 43 km/h). According to available feedback, it handles wind gusts around 30 to 35 km/h without particular difficulty. Its weight and wingspan clearly play in its favor in this task.

Obstacle detection

Obstacle detection system

Forward Backward Downward

The Autel EVO Lite+ is equipped with a three-way detection system: forward, backward and downward. Very useful when the drone is moving forwards, backwards or downwards, it has no upwards (unlike the Air 2S) or sideways sensors . So beware of flying under tree branches or making circular trajectories around a target.

Another important point: the Lite+ is not equipped with an obstacle avoidance system like DJI’s famous APAS. No automatic obstacle avoidance here. Instead, the Lite+ slows down when it detects an obstacle, giving you a little more time to manually correct the trajectory. If you don’t react, it will eventually stop on its own.

Autonomy

Battery	6175 mAh
Autonomy	40 minutes
Charging time	90 minutes

As we saw in the section dedicated to the device’s design, the Lite+’s battery is truly imposing. Once removed, it becomes clear just how much space it occupies, and how little is left of the drone without it.

This impressive battery has a capacity of 6175 mAh and offers a flight time of 40 minutes in optimal conditions. In real-world conditions, the observed flight time generally ranges from 30 to 35 minutes, which remains quite remarkable. By way of comparison, this is around 10 minutes longer than the Air 2S, its main competitor at the time of its release.

And for those wondering, it takes around 90 minutes to fully recharge.

Autel EVO Lite+: photo and video

Sensor	1-inch CMOS 20 MP
Objective	29mm equivalent format Adjustable aperture from f/2.8 to f/11 FOV 82°.
Maximum photo resolution	20 MP
Maximum video resolution	5.4K up to 30 fps 4K up to 60 fps 2.7K up to 60 fps 1080p up to 120 fps
ISO range	100 to 6400 Night mode: up to 48000
Maximum bit rate	120 Mbps
Digital zoom	1 to 16 times
Photo format	JPG(8-bit) DNG(10-bit) JPG+DNG
Video format	MP4/MOV(8-bit)
Built-in memory	6 GB
External memory	SD card up to 256 GB

Sensor and resolution

Like the DJI Air 2S, the Autel EVO Lite+ features a 1-inch sensor with 20 MP resolution. This large sensor captures more light, which is a big advantage when it comes to obtaining vivid images, especially in low-light conditions. In fact, the camera won’t need to go up in ISO, which translates into less noisy images.

Although the camera proudly displays the words “6K”, the maximum resolution is actually 5.4K. The Lite+ can take photos at a maximum resolution of 20 MP and film in 5.4K at up to 30 fps. It also offers shooting options in 4K up to 60 fps, in 2.7K up to 60 fps, and in Full HD (1080p) up to 120 fps for slow-motion enthusiasts.

One of the great advantages of the EVO Lite+ sensor over that of the Air 2S is its adjustable aperture from f/2.8 to f/11, where its rival is content with a fixed aperture (f/2.8). This feature offers more adjustment possibilities, allowing you to play with exposure and depth of field. This means you can lock in your frame rate while controlling the amount of light entering the lens, reducing the need for ND filters. A major asset for the most fastidious image enthusiasts.

Image quality

The Autel EVO Lite+’s 1-inch sensor delivers truly superb images. The rendering is high-contrast, with good dynamic range and incredible sharpness, rich in detail and virtually free of visible noise. Every relief stands out clearly, which is very pleasing to the eye.

Compared with the Air 2S, the Lite+’s image is sharper and more saturated. Autel has clearly opted for punchier image processing, a bit like today’s smartphones, offering bright, vivid images without the need for retouching. DJI, on the other hand, prefers a softer rendering.

This gives magnificent results, especially at the beginning and end of the day, when contrasts between light and shadow areas are more pronounced, and sometimes less so, as in full sunlight, where the level of detail can sometimes seem a little exaggerated. It all depends on the situation, but above all on individual tastes and colors.

If you find the rendering of Normal mode a little too pronounced, don’t worry: the Lite+ also features a Log profile offering plenty of scope for retouching in post-production. Although the drone shoots in 8-bit, offering less color depth than 10-bit, this very flat profile (even more so than that of the Air 2S) will enable you to rework your images and obtain the desired rendering.

The Lite+ also excels in low light, once again thanks to its large sensor. It even features a night mode that allows ISO sensitivity to be increased up to 64,000, while avoiding excessive graininess that could render footage unusable.

Photo and video features

The Lite+ offers a pretty impressive range of modes and features to stimulate your creativity:

• Hyperlapse mode: the famous function for creating accelerated, moving videos, to add dynamism to your footage.
• Panorama mode: to capture wide-angle images with different options: Horizontal, Vertical, Wide-angle and Sphere.
• Cinematic Shots: similar to DJI’s QuickShots, these automated modes let you create short moving videos at the touch of a button. The four available options are Rocket, Fade Away, Orbit and Flick.
• MovieMaster : this feature offers pre-designed templates for quick editing of personalized video clips, ready for instant sharing on social networks.
• SkyPortrait: after selecting one or more subjects for a photo, the drone automatically positions itself to include all the people in the frame and blurs the background.
• Dynamic Track: allows you to follow a person (or a person on a bike or horse, as long as a person is recognized by the drone). This mode offers two options: Follow, which simply rotates the drone to keep the person in frame, and Track, where the drone follows the person (mainly from behind). Although limited compared with the latest technologies, the drone keeps the target well centered and doesn’t lose it.
• SoundRecord: this function lets you record the sound of your voice or surrounding noises from the microphone of the smartphone connected to the remote control.

The drone is also equipped with a digital zoom capable of magnifying the image up to 16 times. Of course, at this level of magnification, the image will be very pixelated and difficult to use, but it can be useful for spotting. The Lite+ can, however, zoom losslessly up to 1.3x in 4K resolution.

Finally, like DJI’s QuickTransfer function, the Lite+ features a SuperDownload function that lets you upload photos and videos from the drone to your smartphone, cable-free and in no time at all.

Autel EVO Lite+: price

Standard Pack	1149 (official store)	See on Amazon
Premium Pack	1199 (official store)	See on Amazon

The Autel EVO Lite+ is available in two separate packages :

• Standard Pack: Includes drone, radio control system, battery, two spare propellers, nacelle cover and various charging and data transfer cables.
• Premium Pack: This more complete pack includes the drone, radio control, three batteries, six spare propellers, a protective cover for the nacelle, a charging hub, a set of ND filters, and of course, various charging and data transfer cables.

On the manufacturer’s official store, prices are in US dollars. At present, the Standard pack is available at $1149, while the Premium pack is offered at $1199.

And if you prefer, you can also buy the Lite+ from other retailers, such as Amazon.

🚨 The Lite+ has a little brother
The Autel EVO Lite+ is also available in a more economical version: theAutel EVO Lite (for short). Less expensive, this model is distinguished mainly by its camera. Indeed, the EVO Lite is equipped with the same sensor as the EVO Nano+: a 1/1.28-inch sensor with an f/1.9 aperture. It is capable of recording 4K video at up to 30 frames per second and capturing photos with a resolution of 50 MP.

Conclusion Autel EVO Lite+: the drone for you?

With the Autel EVO Lite+, Autel Robotics offers a more than decent alternative to drones from market leader DJI. Originally released to compete with one of its competitor’s bestsellers, the DJI Air 2S, the Lite+ has nothing to be ashamed of. It offers superior autonomy and a variable-aperture sensor, ideal for the most demanding image enthusiasts.

Although DJI has since launched more advanced models, such as the dual-sensor DJI Air 3, the EVO Lite+ remains a robust drone that’s great fun to fly, and delivers high-quality images. Its image processing, different from that of its competitor, will certainly appeal more to some, and particularly shines in low-light conditions. With a price largely revised downwards since its release, this is an option to consider for anyone looking for a breath of fresh air and wishing to explore beyond DJI’s offerings.

See also our full review of the Autel EVO Nano+:
➡️ Autel EVO Nano+: full review