You Can Fly the DJI Neo 2 Drone Right From Your Apple Watch Now

Seriously, this is a cool update. The DJI Neo 2 drone—which, you know, just launched globally in November—just got a massive firmware update. This new software lets you control the drone completely using just your Apple Watch. No phone, no big controller needed. That’s pretty wild.

This new wrist control works on a few specific Apple Watches. You need an Apple Watch Series 8 or anything newer. That includes the really tough models, like the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and the Ultra 3.

Getting this feature is actually really easy. Two steps:

And that’s basically it. You’re good to go.

DJI says this feature will be especially useful for, like, active stuff. Think about when you’re cycling. Or maybe running. It's totally awkward and often unsafe to try and grab your phone or that dedicated controller when you are moving fast. Now, you can just look at your wrist and tell the drone what you need.

The Neo 2 already has smart features—like its obstacle avoidance and its LiDAR system. So, you can feel safe giving it commands with your voice, and the drone handles the flying smarts.

Okay, there are a couple of little things you have to watch out for. Yes, you do get a live camera view right there on your watch. It looks great. But because of those pesky Apple power-saving rules—every watch has them—when you drop your wrist, the live view will pause briefly. It turns right back on instantly when you lift your wrist up again. It’s a minor thing, but it’s there.

Another cool part: you can use your voice to control the drone. To do this, you first need to make sure the DJI Fly app has mic access on your iPhone. Then, you turn on the "Voice Control" setting inside the app. Oh, and here’s a neat trick: your watch can also become a tiny microphone, recording sound on the go right into the drone's video footage. This update truly changes the Neo 2 into a wearable, hands-free flying tool.