There's no shortage of high-priced tech on display this week at CES, and Sony's ultra-expensive battery charging case certainly qualifies.
At $2,899.99, the Airpeak Battery Station LBN-H1, introduced today, costs many times more than most ready-to-fly camera drones. But then again, the case is an accessory for a high-end drone. The Airpeak S1 costs $9,000 to start, and that's without a gimbal, camera, or lens.
To put it bluntly, Airpeak is for cinematographers, industries that require aerial inspections, agriculture, and other applications that are beyond the realm of pilots who take a camera drone out for sunrise videos or B-roll for a YouTube show. Sony hammered this home during our briefing on recent Airpeak feature updates as it name-dropped its use for dragon's-eye view shots used in HBO's House of the Dragon.
Feed Batteries to the Hungry, Hungry Airpeak
The Airpeak S1 is a power-hungry aircraft; it's one of the few drones out there that requires two batteries to operate. Without a payload it's good for about 22 minutes of flight, but when you add a camera and lens, flight time dips down to around 12 minutes. It's a real concern for creative teams working on location who need to budget time for battery management into a schedule, especially if you're relying on the basic Dual Battery Charger ($249.99).
The LBN-H1 is the proposed solution. Housed in a Pelican-style hard case, the Battery Station has eight powered slots for Airpeak batteries, as well as two cold slots, so you can easily carry up to 10 batteries at once. It also includes two charging cables to top off remote controls, and three 12VDC cigarette lighter ports to charge other accessories. Sony tells us it opted for these over USB for their more versatile adaptability.
The Battery Station is able to charge up to four batteries simultaneously, and takes about 55 minutes to bring an empty set up to full charge. If you're eager to get up in the air, a quick charge option goes from 20% to 90% in about a half-hour.
The Station is also able to discharge batteries, either down to 50%, recommended for long-term storage, or to the 25% required to take them onto an airplane. Discharges take longer, anywhere from 17 to 27 hours, but the Station is able to perform the task when it's closed and unplugged. To quote Ron Popeil, you'll just need to set it and forget it.
Batteries are, of course, not included. Prospective Airpeak operators will need to budget for those too, at $229.99 each. You'll need to layout a couple thousand to fill out the Battery Station's charging slots.
A Better Battery by Year's End
But you may want to hold off on going whole hog on batteries, assuming doing so won't hamper your workflow. Sony tells us it's developing an extended-life battery for the drone, and expects it to be on the market before the end of the year. It's not dishing on flight times or price, but extra air time is always a plus. It's better to land your bird safely with some room to spare.
Sony is also working on a RTK (Real-time Kinematic) Kit for Millimeter GPS Accuracy, another accessory coming this year. If you're using an Airpeak S1 for automated missions and want to ensure that it lands where it belongs, the kit makes some sense. It includes an antenna that straps onto the drone, along with a second antenna to put at the takeoff spot.
The extended battery and RTK kit are just development announcements, so we don't know any more details or pricing.
As for the Battery Station, you can get your hands on one quickly, assuming you don't mind spending the $2,899.99. Sony says it will ship to customers starting Jan. 19.
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