Firmware Update - to Do or not to Do?

[Carl1770]

G'day All!
I've been a proud and largely contented P4 owner for 6 months now. Like most of you I've read some horror stories in these posts about firmware updates transforming working birds into door stops, so until now I've ignored the persistent requests to update my firmware each time I power up.
My P4 performs well apart from losing signal transmission over 1500ft, (I am in awe of pilots who talk in miles on the subject of range!) and the odd altitude drop. As I make a good income from my bird, I'm naturally hesitant in jeopardising this by risking the upgrade.
So my questions to you upgrade gurus out there are, are the upgrade catastrophies a thing of the past or have things improved? Is there really anything to be gained with an upgrade, and is it better to upgrade via the DJI assistant (Mac version) or thru the app and will my Phantom one day self destruct if I keep ignoring the upgrade prompts?
Once again I thank you all in advance!

 

[msinger]

are the upgrade catastrophies a thing of the past or have things improved?

To err is human. The catastrophes will continue until DJI is able to figure out how to completely automate the process.

Is there really anything to be gained with an upgrade

Check out the firmware release notes on the P4 downloads page for details on what was changed. It's not uncommon for DJI to add features and/or fixes that are not included in the release notes. So, it's a good idea to visit forums like this one after a new firmware version has been released to see what early adopters are saying about it.

is it better to upgrade via the DJI assistant (Mac version) or thru the app

It's easiest to upgrade via DJI GO by following these instructions.

will my Phantom one day self destruct if I keep ignoring the upgrade prompts?

Firmware updates are optional. Just keep ignoring the prompts to update if you'd rather not update.

 

[Darren Roach]

Its really up to you. I have been updating each time the updates are released with no problems yet

 

[tcope]

Best suggestion is to wait a few at least a few days or weeks to update to see if there are mass problems. If not, _I_ would recommend updating. As mentioned above, there are usually updates that DJI does not mention. This can be _very_ important but in the case of most updates, at least several small features are added that are helpful.

 

[Kevin O]

I'm pretty much in the same boat as the OP. Very happy with the p4 performance while running old FW and the old DJI GO app that uses google maps.
My primary reason for not upgrading FW is that I'd expect at some point the FW will require the latest version of the GO app that does not use google maps. I don't want to give that up.

At my day job I work extensively with software/FW packages that always at some point reach a revision that requires updating the app.

Unless there are good gains to be had I'll hold off upgrading.


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

 

[Marnat3]

I am a new P3S pilot and am seriously worried about uploading the latest FW.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Carl1770]

Thank you gentlemen. Some great suggestions and food for thought as always!

 

[jwt873]

Just a note.. If you have any problems with a firmware update on the craft, you can easily roll it back to a previous version using the 'DJI Assistant 2' program on your computer.