Autel announces “Made in the USA” EVO II Dual Bundles

Jagerbomb52 · Sep 3, 2020

Drone manufacturer Autel announced September 3 that its EVO II Dual drone package is “Made in the USA” – meaning it will have a competitive edge over drones manufactured elsewhere – and particularly drones of Chinese origin. The Department of Interior has banned the use of Chinese-made drones or drones containing Chinese parts over data security concerns – and the Trump administration’s Anti-China sentiment seems to be growing.
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Autel announces 'Made in the USA' EVO II Dual Bundles

Autel's EVO II Enterprise drone is now Made in the USA. The company is assembling its First Responder unit in the United States in a strategic move.

dronedj.com

claudius62 · Sep 3, 2020

? It's Good. (Bis)
Body from China, electronics from China, IR Camera made in USA, Sony Camera made in Japan.
American packaging. Ah, Fortunately, So a pure Made in USA product .................

Waldo Pepper · Sep 3, 2020

Autel’s moving in the right direction, I want Autel to succeed. Even Advexure drones unmanned systems shared positive information, Advexure is a great company that’s were I purchased my Evo 2 Pro.

Definitely positive direction, something to think about. Hang in there Autel!
Paul

Quad808 · Sep 4, 2020

Waldo Pepper said:
Autel’s moving in the right direction, I want Autel to succeed. Even Advexure drones unmanned systems shared positive information, Advexure is a great company that’s were I purchased my Evo 2 Pro.

Definitely positive direction, something to think about. Hang in there Autel!
Paul

I agree...if they can prove that their parts are all good, and no issues with any data gathering like DJI....lets hope that they do well. That would be good for all of us who are rooting for Autel to succeed!! I don't know if the "made in the USA" push means no non-USA parts or not, I suspect no...they do the same thing with cars sold in the USA. Should clarify and just say assembled in the USA, but maybe that doesn't count so much...dunno.

robport · Sep 5, 2020

It's the software and firmware that they need to prove doesn't connect to any servers in China. Hardware has no risk.

Volatus Drones · Sep 11, 2020

robport said:
It's the software and firmware that they need to prove doesn't connect to any servers in China. Hardware has no risk.

Interesting bit from the FAQ sent to dealers about the Made in the USA announcement;

Data is safe with Autel products. Autel products do not rely on LTE, do not connect to servers, and may be operated either without mobile devices, connectivity, or in Airplane modes once local maps are downloaded. Autel has no servers outside of Houston, TX, where users are able to determine if their logs will be stored or not, and at no time are photos, videos, EMEI, or other data transmitted to the Houston, TX servers. Autel does not have access to user data. In other words, user data remains within user control at all times.

It also states in the FAQ that 75% of the drone is made in the US with plans to make it 100%.

robport · Sep 11, 2020

When they say plans to make it 100%, are they writing the software/internal firmware here too, especially any boot hardware/software? I can't tell you the little I do know about it, but it's critical that it can never accept or send a data-packet from outside. If so, they should contact whomever is determining what a USA made drone is and get on their list. Right now, it's a pretty short list. I'm assuming they would also have to prove that the company could never be required to turn over the Houston server contents to the Chinese Communist Party on request, which is the real question about Tik-Tok right now. I don't know much (well anything) about the company, but I'm not the one you would have to prove it to.

On another subject, that built in screen, in the controller, saved my bacon yesterday. The app kept crashing and I had a limited time to take pictures because of the rain. That's a feature that should not be overlooked when using one for business.

Waldo Pepper · Sep 11, 2020

robport said:
On another subject, that built in screen, in the controller, saved my bacon yesterday. The app kept crashing and I had a limited time to take pictures because of the rain. That's a feature that should not be overlooked when using one for business.

I agree, the built in screen should not be overlooked. I’m finding myself flying without an iPad or iPhone occasionally, flying with controller screen instead. This has helped me get very familiar with controller settings, now it’s so simple to adjust settings during flight.

Autel missed the boat with controller design, but they sure hit it out of the ball park with the controllers screen.

Paul

Peter Goldwing · Sep 12, 2020

What a joke. Reminds me of expensive designer suits made in Eastern Europe brought over and attached the buttons here to evade taxation, labeled "made in USA"
Thats the story with cars too: some people in Michigan and perhaps other location refuse to buy a Mercedes or Toyota for not being American meantime their Ford is made with lots of parts from Canada and Mexico

waltermitty · Sep 18, 2020

No big deal to me either way. I just want it to work as advertised and that they're responsive to customers in terms of software upgrades, elimination of bugs and regular improvements. Made in the USA potentially could mean higher cost, all things being equal so that remains to be seen.

rbolman · Sep 18, 2020

waltermitty said:
No big deal to me either way. I just want it to work as advertised and that they're responsive to customers in terms of software upgrades, elimination of bugs and regular improvements. Made in the USA potentially could mean higher cost, all things being equal so that remains to be seen.

Aw, c'mon. Made in the USA doesn't necessarily mean higher cost. I mean, just because the Anafi USA is $7k doesn't mean that the fancy camera on it isn't work $6000 by itself. (yeah, that's mostly sarcasm).

Meh, what's the harm of having to save for another year to buy a EVO II? I mean, besides the fact that by the time I do, it will be outdated, unsupported and no batteries will be available. (yeah, more sarcasm....sorry). I'll just start saving for the EVO IV and maybe have enough by the time it's released.

Ansia · Sep 18, 2020

rbolman said:
Aw, c'mon. Made in the USA doesn't necessarily mean higher cost. I mean, just because the Anafi USA is $7k doesn't mean that the fancy camera on it isn't work $6000 by itself. (yeah, that's mostly sarcasm).

Meh, what's the harm of having to save for another year to buy a EVO II? I mean, besides the fact that by the time I do, it will be outdated, unsupported and no batteries will be available. (yeah, more sarcasm....sorry). I'll just start saving for the EVO IV and maybe have enough by the time it's released.

Remember it's 1k per Evo version. Evo 1 = $999, Evo II = $1,999, etc.

ovrszd · Oct 4, 2020

I'm on the verge of buying an EVOII. I have really liked my XStar. I'm very disappointed that they dumped us on that one. I sort of understand. I'm open to any other brands that are comparable?

Tufargon · Oct 4, 2020

ovrszd said:
I'm on the verge of buying an EVOII. I have really liked my XStar. I'm very disappointed that they dumped us on that one. I sort of understand. I'm open to any other brands that are comparable?

I'm with you on the XSP brother. I sold mine and moved on. I went and bought the Mavic Air 2 which is a very good deal for what you get and should soon be way better once the SDK gets released (expected Nov 30). I also bought the Refresh package for 79 bux? Just in case because I know dealing with DJI seems to be a PITA. I've flown it twice and it's a dream to fly in such a tiny footprint. I always said I'd never go to the darkside but here I am. Hoping I never go through the dreds of their CS. But "SO FAR" I absolutely love this little thing.