DJI Neo 2 Review: The Best First Drone for Kids, Creators, and Wannabe Jedi

May 8

*The DJI Neo 2 is small, tough, guarded, and simple enough for a kid to enjoy — which is exactly why I barely get to use it.*

I keep trying to explain the DJI Neo 2 without sounding like I’ve joined a tiny flying robot cult, but honestly, DJI is making that difficult.

This thing is ridiculous.

And I don’t mean ridiculous in the usual “tech reviewer read a spec sheet and now needs a cold shower” way. I mean ridiculous in the real-world, pull-it-out-of-your-pocket, press-a-button, and suddenly-you-have-a-personal-videographer way.

No controller required.

No connecting to a remote.

No waiting around for the whole “please stand by while I speak to satellites” routine.

You press a button, it launches from your hand, hovers in front of you, and waits for instructions like a tiny obedient camera Labrador retriever.

And somehow, that is now a thing we can just buy.

Good, good DJI.

This Thing Makes Me Feel Like I’m Using the Force

The part that still gets me is how little friction there is.

With a regular drone, even a small one, there is usually a process. Take it out. Unfold it. Turn on the controller. Connect everything. Wait for satellites. Check your settings. Make sure you’re not about to do something stupid. Then maybe you fly.

With the Neo 2, it’s more like:

Take it out.

Press a button.

There it is.

It launches from your hand, hovers in front of you, and waits.

Then you hold up your palm and start moving your hand, and the drone responds.

You can adjust the angle it films you from. You can change the distance. You can reframe the shot with your hand. You can basically stand there directing this tiny flying camera with your palm like you’re manipulating it with the Force.

And I’m sorry, but that is outstanding.

I have wanted to be a Jedi and use the Force since I was a little boy. I did not expect that dream to be fulfilled by a tiny grey DJI drone my son got for Christmas, but here we are.

Life is strange.

Tiny drone in the air. Dad on the beach, holding his hand out like he’s about to move an X-wing out of a swamp.

I’ll take it.

It Might Be the Best Drone for Kids

I bought the Neo 2 for my son for Christmas.

And to be clear, it is his drone.

That was the deal. It was his present. I’m not trying to rewrite history here like some greasy dad trying to repossess a toy because he suddenly realized it’s awesome.

But I did think I’d get to play with it more.

That was my mistake.

Apparently, when you buy your kid an awesome drone, they develop this strange attitude where they believe it belongs to them because it was “their Christmas present” and “Dad, you said it was mine.”

Hard to argue with that kind of airtight legal case.

But honestly, I can’t think of a better first drone for a kid.

The prop guards matter. The size matters. The durability matters. The fact that it can launch and land from your hand matters. The low-stress flying matters. The price matters. This is not like handing a kid a bigger camera drone and hoping they don’t turn your Christmas present into a warranty claim with propellers.

The Neo 2 feels like it was built for exactly this kind of use.

Fun. Tough. Simple. Cheap enough that you’re not sweating bullets every time it lifts off.

That is a big deal.

It’s Not Just a Toy

This is the part people might miss.

Yes, it is fun.

Yes, it is easy.

Yes, it is great for kids.

But it is not just a toy.

The footage is genuinely useful. The tracking is genuinely useful. The hands-free operation is genuinely useful. For family clips, behind-the-scenes stuff, walking shots, biking shots, quick social media videos, casual travel moments, and “I don’t want to set up a whole drone operation right now” situations, it makes a ton of sense.

That’s what makes it so good.

It fills a completely different role than my Air 3S.

The Air 3S is my serious drone. That’s the one I bring when the shot matters, the wind matters, the client matters, or I want dual cameras and proper confidence in the air.

The Neo 2 is the one you bring because it is easy.

It’s the drone that actually gets used because there is almost no barrier between thinking “this would be a cool shot” and getting the shot.

That is probably its greatest trick.

It removes the boring parts.

Your Own Personal Videographer

The tracking is where this little thing really starts making sense.

Walking? It follows.

Running? It follows.

Biking? That’s basically the whole point.

Trying to look more adventurous than you actually are while walking down a beach five minutes from home? Also covered.

You can set it up, let it track you, and suddenly you’ve got movement, framing, and a shot that looks like someone else is there filming.

Add a microphone, and now you’ve basically got a tiny personal videographer.

A tiny personal videographer that doesn’t need coffee, doesn’t roll its eyes, and doesn’t tell you the shot would look better if you sucked in your gut a little.

Which is rude, because it probably would.

For family stuff, kid videos, quick adventures, bike rides, walks, or just messing around outside, that is huge. It makes creating video feel less like setting up gear and more like just doing the thing.

That’s where the Neo 2 shines.

The Wind Is the Catch

Now, before we all start holding hands and singing to the tiny drone, there is one obvious drawback.

Wind.

It is still a small, lightweight drone.

I live on Vancouver Island, so wind is not some rare special event. Wind is just part of the scenery. Beach wind, ocean wind, hill wind, weird sideways parking lot wind. We have the full menu.

And that is where the Neo 2 has limits.

This is not the drone I’m taking out for a proper coastal shoot when the breeze is coming off the ocean and the gulls are flying backward. That’s Air 3S territory.

The Neo 2 can handle more than you might expect, but it is still not a heavy, planted, serious work drone. It is light. That’s part of why it’s so fun and easy, but physics remains annoyingly undefeated.

So no, I don’t look at the Neo 2 as the drone for everything.

It is not.

But for what it is meant to do, it is shockingly good.

I Still Haven’t Really Flown It With the Controller

Here’s the embarrassing part.

I still haven’t properly flown it with a controller.

Not because I don’t want to.

Because, as previously mentioned, my son seems to think his drone belongs to him.

Very inconvenient.

But I do think the Neo 2 would be a lot of fun with the controller. It feels like it has enough punch and personality to be zippy without being terrifying. Add in the FPV option, and suddenly this little thing has more room to grow than most entry-level drones.

That matters.

A lot of beginner drones are fun for about twelve minutes. Then you realize you’ve basically bought a hovering potato with a camera and the excitement wears off.

The Neo 2 feels different.

It has enough modes, enough personality, and enough different ways to use it that I don’t think people will get bored of it right away. Especially kids. Especially families. Especially anyone who wants something fun and capable without turning every flight into a full pre-flight ritual.

Why I Like It More Than a Typical Beginner Drone

A lot of beginner drones feel like stepping stones.

You buy one, you fly it a bit, you learn the basics, and then pretty quickly you start thinking about the next one.

That happened to me with the Mini 3 in a way. It was my gateway drug into DJI, no question. The first beer. The one that started the whole terrible spiral into batteries, controllers, cameras, microphones, and me pretending I don’t have a problem.

But the Mini 3 was still a traditional drone.

Great drone, but traditional.

The Neo 2 is different because it does more than just teach you how to fly. It teaches you how much fun drone footage can be when the setup doesn’t get in the way.

That’s why I think it has more staying power.

You can use it as a kid’s drone.

You can use it as a follow camera.

You can use it for family clips.

You can use it for biking.

You can fly it with gestures.

You can fly it with your voice.

You can connect a controller.

You can go down the FPV rabbit hole if you really want to make poor financial decisions with confidence.

It’s not just “baby’s first drone.”

It’s a tiny flying camera system with enough flexibility to keep being fun after the novelty wears off.

This Is the Entry-Level Drone I’d Recommend

At this point, I think the Neo 2 is probably the best entry-level drone there is.

Not because it has the biggest camera.

Not because it is the best in wind.

Not because it replaces a proper camera drone.

It doesn’t.

It’s the best entry-level drone because it removes the boring parts.

It lets people fly, film, experiment, chase themselves around, make mistakes, laugh, learn, and actually enjoy the thing without needing to become a full-time drone nerd first.

That’s huge.

For kids, I think it’s brilliant.

For adults who want something easy, it’s brilliant.

For families, travel, quick clips, behind-the-scenes videos, bike rides, walks, and general messing around, it’s brilliant.

And for the price, I still think it is kind of insane.

No Regrets

I do not regret buying the DJI Neo 2 for my son.

Not even a little.

I just regret that I apparently bought myself almost zero access to it.

That was poor planning on my part.

But watching a kid use this thing and seeing how quickly the technology disappears into the fun of it — that’s the part that really sells me. He is not thinking about specs. He is not thinking about sensors or transmission systems or camera modes.

He is just flying.

And honestly, that might be the best compliment I can give the Neo 2.

It makes drone flying feel simple again.

Pull it out.

Press the button.

Wave your hand around like a Jedi using the Force.

Then when you’re done, hold out your palm and it comes back and lands in your hand like a well-trained Yellow Lab that just happens to have propellers and a camera.

I don’t care how old you are — that’s cool.

And if you’re thinking about getting one, I’d check DJI directly for the latest price, specs, and bundle options — because with DJI, there’s always another combo, controller, battery, or tiny financial trap waiting around the corner.

That’s the good good DJI.