In summer 2018 DJI postponed its 18 July launch event, and the whole drone world tried to guess why. While relaxing at a spa I had a little illumination: maybe we were all missing the bigger picture.
The event that didn't happen
Everybody knew DJI's event, scheduled for the 18th of July, had been postponed. Nearly a month later I'd watched so many videos about it, and no one had really answered the question: why? Software issues? Hardware issues? Nobody knew. So I tried to go through all the possible reasons, one by one.
The usual explanations don't add up
The date. DJI had never launched a product in the middle of summer. They usually launch in April or May, to set up the season, or in October and November before Christmas. A mid-July date looked strange, and I don't think DJI makes that kind of mistake by accident.
Software. Some said there were software problems. But two weeks before an event, DJI can't fix software issues? Really unlikely.
Reviewers. Some videos suggested DJI had sent drones to YouTubers who found something wrong. Again, possible but unlikely: with the Mavic Air, Casey Neistat got his drone about a week before the launch, while this event was cancelled two weeks before.
Hardware. You plan a launch and you still haven't tested your hardware? We're talking about the owners of the drone market. I didn't find that plausible either.
My theory: it was planned
DJI said we needed to see the bigger picture. My opinion, and take it with a grain of salt, was that DJI did it on purpose: they set a date already knowing they'd cancel it, and kept the entire drone market on hold. Other drones were coming out at the time, like the Autel EVO and the Parrot Anafi (which I'd reviewed, and it's a great drone). But anyone about to buy a drone was now waiting for DJI. Without showing a single product, they created expectation, and everybody was talking about them. That's marketing, and they're very, very good at it.
The leaked new date
At the time, Ashton from Droning On said his sources inside DJI pointed to a new date, the 23rd of August, with an announcement expected on DJI's newsroom within a day or two. So, should you wait? If you need a drone, just buy one. Don't wait for DJI. If you already have one, then sure, wait and see what they come up with. These were only my thoughts as a user trying to understand the market, not an expert's.