Finally got my first phantom!

[NoBiffBetter]

So guys my first drone was an aee ap10 pro.. I wanted to see what all this fpv was all about.. Having been doing Rc cars and trucks for many years now. So I got the ap10 and figured with Gps and fpv it was the perfect starter quad.. Well it wasn't bad , it seemed to fly pretty decent but I had nothing to compare it to, the gps was ok but the distance was horrible and the video lag was even worse.. Everytime I went over 200m it would lag and try to return home so because of this it made me want much more. Soon after maybe 3 weeks later after I masterd flying it I sold it and found a dji phantom 3 advanced brand new in the box for 470$! It was off a local guy and was never even opened! He got it thinking it was the phantom 4 with avoidance and when he realized it wasn't he didn't open it and got the p4.. So that's why it was never opened .

I'm stoked cuz when I signed up on the dji app today I found out I have a 1 year warrantee since it was never enabled or turned on until I got it.

This p3 is night and day to my aee ap10! It's like relating snap on tools to craftsman as far as I'm concerned. The bird flys so amazing and the hd live feed is so clean so fresh and so instant! I couslnt be happier for 470$!!

I have been reading about phantoms and been wanting one for a long time now, and found this forum months and months ago but now that I actually have a phantom I finally decided to join!

I have a few questions tho.. Because I am not the original buyer of this drone, does the 1 yr warrantee still apply? It says it did but I'm not sure if they will want a receipt of purchase as well if I were ever to have to use it.

Also I don't have a phone or tablet capable of running the dji go app yet I planned on buying a new or used iPad mini 2.. Lastly I used my friends iPhone 7 to log in and set the drone up for the first time.. Is this gonna screw up any of the settings on my dji account or my drone when I finally get the chance to log in and fly it with my own device? Or is everything saved onto a dji server and all I'll have to do is log in from my new/different device and be able to continue on just like nothing ever happend?

Thanks for all your responses!


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[alokbhargava]

Please find out if the drone was bought from a approved DJI vendor. If true then yes warranty will be valid for one year from the date of purchase.

You can use any phone to set it up and later on use another, no problem.


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[NoBiffBetter]

So if it wasn't Bought from a vendor than the 1yr warentee it said I had would be no good?


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[flyNfrank]

Add your location below your avatar so we know where you're from.

Welcome to the #1 Phantom website.

 

[NoBiffBetter]

What is the mini USB for on the quad? And what is the mini USB for on the camera? Is it to upload your photos and videos to a computer by bypassing the app? Also is there any way to fly the p3 with out a phone or tablet? J/q or do you always need it even after activation and calibration


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[msinger]

What is the mini USB for on the quad?

It's used to access the DAT flight logs stored on the Phantom's internal memory card.

what is the mini USB for on the camera?

You can connect a USB cable to your computer to transfer files between the removable memory card in the gimbal. It's easier and faster to remove the memory card and use a memory card reader like this one.

is there any way to fly the p3 with out a phone or tablet?

It's possible after you activate your Phantom in DJI GO, but I don't recommend it. The DJI GO app provides a lot of valuable flight information as you're flying.

 

[NoBiffBetter]

Ok cool thanks! I appericate all the info!


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[NoBiffBetter]

It says I have a few updates to do, firmware for the battery, the camera, the controller, and I think one for the drone I'm not sure.. I tired clicking the "download firmware" button on the app and the little green dot goes red and said can not download firmware.. Or error. Is this cuz I have to go online and download it onto a PC? Also it won't let me select 2.7k video recording in my camera settings but I beleive this is becusee I need the update?


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[Oso]

I sold it and found a dji phantom 3 advanced brand new in the box for 470$!

I have been reading about phantoms and been wanting one for a long time now, and found this forum months and months ago but now that I actually have a phantom I finally decided to join!

Welcome to the forum. Its good to hear that you've been reading about Phantoms for a long time and also that you found this forum several months ago. You should have a great head start.

If you are interested, the link below leads to some tips that I like to share with new P3A and P3P owners. It may not all make sense to you immediately, so maybe read it a couple of times now and then again after you've flown a bit. Good luck!

Soon to be new owner phantom 3 advanced

 

[Richard R]

I wouldn't worry about doing any update until you fly the bird and have some experience with it. If it really is new in the box, it should fly just fine. You shouldn't need to do any updates to access the 2.7k. That's a basic function of the bird.
Then before you try any updates, check out the many posts on this forum on the procedures and steps to do so. Nothing to be gained by rushing things.

 

[msinger]

It says I have a few updates to do, firmware for the battery, the camera, the controller, and I think one for the drone I'm not sure..

You can find detailed firmware installation instructions here.

 

[NoBiffBetter]

Welcome to the forum. Its good to hear that you've been reading about Phantoms for a long time and also that you found this forum several months ago. You should have a great head start.

If you are interested, the link below leads to some tips that I like to share with new P3A and P3P owners. It may not all make sense to you immediately, so maybe read it a couple of times now and then again after you've flown a bit. Good luck!

Soon to be new owner phantom 3 advanced

Man your the best! Lots of great info In there!! Thanks so much!! I really appericate it


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[NoBiffBetter]

Thanks guys.. I'll find out which exact updates it wants me to do and let you know. The bird flys amazing as it is and I just wanted to make sure it was nothing that was needed as far as the updates.. And I certainly don't wanna make it worse by updating firmware when it doesn't need it. Iv heard and read a lot of horror story's.. If I post the updates it is "requiring me to do" would you guys be able to tell me if any of them are a good one? I know one is for the batt one is for the drone and one is for the camera and gimble..


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[NoBiffBetter]

Also is there a way to set how high it will fly up when I auto take off the drone ? Or is it just perminently set to what it is and that's that. J/w also what's a good rth height? I moved it to 50m just to be safe but I have no big hills or mountains around me. So I feel that 50m for rth is plenty.. Also.. If I take off on top of a hill.. Then fly down the hill, and engage rth function, will the drone only come up 50m from where is was at? Or will it fly up to 50m from where it was launched? Just wanna be sure of this so that I don't run into anything on rth function .. Lastly are those carbon fiber props worth it? I see they sell them on eBay and was curious if there are any benifits besides looks.

I also see they sell a range extender kit on eBay for the phantom 3 advanced pro and phantom 4.. It wasn't too expensive.. Is this worth getting if I want a stronger signal and fly around a lot of interference? I think it was only like 50-60$ for the kit.

Oh and as far as the camera. It comes with a protective sticky clear film on the lens.. I would really like to keep it on to protect the lens but am not sure if it will impact how well the footage turns out.. Is it wise to just pull it off anyways?


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[Steve7777]

Also.. If I take off on top of a hill.. Then fly down the hill, and engage rth function, will the drone only come up 50m from where is was at? Or will it fly up to 50m from where it was launched?

It'll fly up to 50 m from where it was launched from, assuming home point is updated, as it should be on a new start-up.. Just make sure that it's not under some nasty overhangs/tree canopies when RTH switches in... and, of course, that 50m above launch height RTH keeps you clear of anything else in the way... It's also probably better to take manual control once it comes back into view and do a manual land/hand catch...( Just my opinion).

Take the sticky film off too... It's a veritable cinematic disaster for pics/video...

 

[NoBiffBetter]

Yah I took it off, much better video now.. Also yes I agree I always take back control when it's back in sight.. I flew 1800m today away and 200m high, was an awesome first run, but I had a few issues Before the run.. My first issue was, I decided to better calibrate the compass even tho I had no compass issues I just didn't like the spot I chose the first time I did the calibration.. So I went out in a way more open area and did it, and after putting the nose down and doing a 360 it still didn't take so I spun it another time and it finally took.. I went to go fly it and it said "warning compass" and said "take out of gps-p mode" somethjng or another and said recalibrate compass making sure there is no electromagnetic feild aroind.. So the second time I did it, I turned it from "p mode" to "f" mode, and did it in a doffernt location.. This time the compass took right away soon as I completled the 360 nose down it took.. After that I had no compass issues again and no alerts or warnings..like I said I flew like 1800m with no issues and gps lock seemed really good and strong lock with no stick inputs..


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[NoBiffBetter]

The second issue I had was after the first bad calibration I had that I just told you about, I already had the app up and I beleive I was already inside the "camera" screen.. And when I moved the location I wanted I booted the quad back up and the video feed was there but I had zero camera function, the camera was stuck facing down and I couldn't get it to move up.. So I shut it off and powerd it back up again and exited the app totally and went back in, and it never happend again. So I'm not sure if there was just no communication with the remote to the drone or if the camera was just not responding to the stick inputs.. I didn't realize whether or not the light on the remote was red or green, I forgot to look as I just turned the drone off immediately once the camera didn't move and booted it back up.. I'm assuming either the slightly longer grass I was in was either holding the camera back.. Or that maybe the remote hadn't yet established a connection with the drone at that time. Either that or maybe it's cuz I was already in the app and into the camera screen when I booted the drone up.. From now on I think I'll just make sure I'm on the main app screen and wait till the drone boots up until I click the camera button ..

Lastly , if it was the long grass holding back my camera as I was trying to pan up with it, do you think I caused any harm to it? It works perfectly fine still but I worry about hurting any of the camera servos by over stressing or over working them when it got held up by the grass..

I found a "gimbal protector" on eBay it goes from each side of the landing gear and covers the gimble from the bottom so that this can't happen. I'm thinking about getting one cuz I def don't wanna hurt my camera or gimbal


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