DJI Osmo Pocket 4P: A cinematic tool

What better place to pull the covers off of your latest and greatest pocket camera than the Cannes Film Festival? “By unveiling the Osmo Pocket 4P at one of the most prestigious stages in global filmmaking, DJI signals a bold evolution of the Pocket series from a creator tool into a cinematic imaging device capable of professional-grade storytelling,” says the company.

That statement pretty much sums up the new Pocket 4P camera, which is aimed at professional, independent filmmakers as opposed to the Pocket 4, which is meant for everyday vlogging and mainstream content creation. “In Cannes, the Osmo Pocket 4P is already being explored by filmmakers, documentary creators, and visual storytellers seeking agile, high-quality production tools,” the company notes.

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It comes packed with powerful yet compact hardware, though details are slim at the moment, given this was more of a reveal than an official launch. What we do know is that it builds on both the Ronin and Inspire ranges of cameras, now boasting full 10-bit D-Log2 color, with a “cinematic-level dynamic range” and “rich tonal depth.”

The Pocket 4P houses at least one 1-inch-type sensor with what it calls “enhanced portrait capabilities” to better offer natural skin tones. There’s also an improved 3x zoom feature and incremental algorithm advancements that enable low-light filming while preserving crisp, detailed footage.

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There have been a good number of leaks up until now that do give us some idea about what the specs might look like. Of course, it sports dual cameras with a 1-inch main sensor, variable aperture, and a 3x telephoto lens. The camera should be capable of capturing a video up to 6K, 60 frames per second, and boasts an improved low-light performance and depth-of-field management, thanks to f/1.7–f/2.8 aperture.

It’s expected to come with Hasselblad tuning, 17 stops of dynamic range, and around 128 GB of built-in storage. DJI offering storage from the factory itself has always been a handy feature I’ve appreciated in their action cameras – that 128 gigs as standard means you wouldn’t have to run to get an SD card soon after getting the camera. On top of that, there are also leaks of a flip-out touchscreen, upgraded ActiveTrack stabilization, and a 3-axis mechanical gimbal built in.

As for expected pricing, it’s rumored to come between €749 and €799 in Europe. If that turns out to be true, that would indeed be a massive price increase over the Pocket 4’s starting price of €499. The hardware had better be good.

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This camera seems to be the clearest shift we’ve seen in DJI’s target audience yet. The company is heavily leaning into the premium end of the market this time, with words like “professional” and “filmmaker” instead of the “content creator” the Pocket line has typically catered to.

There’s no word yet on when the camera will be officially released but it doesn’t look like we’re far out. As for the camera making its way to the US, that’s not likely to happen officially owing to DJI’s ongoing issues with the FCC and the US drone ban.

The Osmo Pocket 4P almost feels like DJI looking at the creator market and realizing that “good enough for vlogging” isn’t enough anymore. A dual-camera setup, cinematic color profiles, absurd dynamic range claims, Cannes debut theatrics; it’s clear DJI wants this thing to be taken seriously by filmmakers now, not just YouTubers filming coffee runs and airport B-roll.

And honestly, it makes sense. Smartphones have become so good at casual video that pocket cameras can’t survive on convenience alone anymore. They need character, flexibility, and a reason to exist beyond “slightly better than your iPhone.”

At the same time, there’s something slightly hilarious about how cinematic this launch itself has become. DJI rolled the thing out at Cannes with dramatic language about “professional storytelling,” while simultaneously revealing almost nothing concrete about price or availability.

Source: DJI