Mysterious company causing fever in America

Xtra Muse (left) and Osmo Pocket 3 models. Photo: The Verge .

The Osmo Pocket 3, a handheld stabilized camera from DJI, is very popular among creatives who shoot on a daily basis. However, to own this product in the US, users have to pay a tax of up to $ 799 , because this is a product of a Chinese company.

Konrad Iturbe, a software engineer and DJI watcher, discovered a new US startup that is launching a “camouflage” version of the Osmo Pocket 3, selling it on Amazon for just $499 . The company, called Xtra Technology, is selling identical hardware copies of the DJI Osmo Pocket 3, DJI Osmo Action 4, and DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro.

According to the teardowns published by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC), these cameras use the same internal components, including circuit boards and chips, as DJI products. Security expert Jon Sawyer scanned the Xtra application and discovered countless code segments that were copied and pasted from DJI's software, only the brand name was changed.

Disassembled version of Xtra Muse (blue background) and Osmo Pocket 3. Photo: FCC.

However, the person who did this still left behind 7,552 references to the LightCut video editing app, and one reference to DJI’s Avinox electric bike drive system. When asked by TechCrunch , DJI did not deny any involvement with Xtra, but simply declined to comment.

On its website, Xtra describes itself as “a dynamic and independent startup company, registered in the state of Delaware, USA.” Xtra’s mailing address matches that of a business that specializes in providing low-cost company formation services in Delaware.

Iturbe pointed out that several lines of code in Xtra’s app reference data servers and APIs located in China. Kevin Finisterre, a cybersecurity expert who has analyzed DJI many times, said that Xtra’s app is using the same Chinese tool Bangcle/SecNeo as DJI to obfuscate and hide the source code.

Xtra removed the camera's nameplate before submitting it for review. Photo: FCC.

Xtra isn’t the first company to be suspected of being a DJI “front” or regulatory loophole, but it is the first to be found selling consumer camera equipment instead of drones. In July, Techcrunch reported on SkyRover, a company that appears to be reselling the DJI Mini 4 Pro.

Other names that have also made similar moves include Cogito, Anzu Robotics, Knowact, Skyhigh, Lyno, Talos, and Wavego. Iturbe maintains a list of these suspected companies on GitHub, and has just added Fikaxo, Spatial Hover, and Jovistar.

Among them is Jovistar, a company that doesn’t even have a website yet, which appears to be preparing to sell the DJI Mini 5 Pro, one of the most high-end drones DJI has decided not to sell directly in the US under its own brand name, after US Customs began intercepting shipments of its drones.

Most of the companies suspected of being DJI clones have focused on commercial and industrial drones, not consumer products. That’s changing with a full ban on new DJI products in the US set to take effect in December.

Companies like this can be created quickly because the product already exists. Public records show that Xtra was founded in March, registered its trademarks in May and July, received FCC certification in July and early August, and began selling its first camera models on Amazon in late September.

Going forward, DJI will have a hard time selling products under its own name. Without intervention, any new DJI products that use radio waves will be blocked from the FCC certification process come December.

Source: https://znews.vn/cong-ty-bi-an-gay-sot-tai-my-post1592526.html