I quit the standard (thinking about upgrading)

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After having piss poor range stock (about 400 feet before rth) investing in ARGtek antennas for 75 bucks, and now getting out to barely a thousand feet, I am nothing but frustrated. I used to do better on my phantom 1!!! This is nowhere near the 1km advertised. (I get it, that is under ideal conditions, maybe I am not testing it in ideal conditions, although I have flown in multiple places including open fields and open lakes) It is so disheartening to barely get a 1/3 of the the advertised distance with aftermarket parts. I submitted a ticket to DJI and they offered to take in my bird and have a look at it. However I am leaving on vacation next week and there is no way I am getting it back before if I send it into DJI. Furthermore I screwed myself and voided the warranty with the ARGteks so if send it in DJI is probably going to tell me to eat it. I got all excited reading the reviews on ARGteks and I was convinced that a bum antenna was my problem, so buying aftermarket antennas would probably solve it and give me a boost taboot!

I should have just bought a P3 advance right out of the gates and not had to deal with any of this but hindsight is 20/20. But here I am and looking to buy a P3 advanced. My questions is how should I go about this to limit my loss. My phantom 3 standard is no longer returnable and out of warranty, so where can I get the most money for that? I am guessing ebay. Where should I buy the new Advanced to protect myself on that? I see it advertised on Fumfia.com for $719 with no shipping or tax.. They have a 30 day return policy, but there return policy is if it is used then they will not give you a return, so If i buy it, fly it and find out I got another inferior phantom, I am screwed with them. I can go back to Best buy, for 799 and pay tax. They give you 15 days, I don't see anything about open box. However I am sure there is some sort of restocking fee that is buried in the fine print.

DJI direct has a 7 day return policy. Not nearly enough time for me to take it on vacation and make sure it actually performs as specified. I dont need 3 miles, but if I don't get a mile easily out of lightbridge I am going to be pissed.

Basically how can I best protect my next purchase, and minimize the loss I am going to take on my p3 standard.
 
Or if someone says to look elsewhere besides DJI I am open to that as well. All I want is a stable bird with a built in gimbal/camera that can give me about a mile range or more. DJI I was so impressed with the original phanton, I know there are thousands of people happy with the p3 standards, not sure why this has been such a miserable experience for me.
 
that's sucks I get 2500 feet with my argtek in crowded neighborhood over water 5000 but turned around got scared still had strong signal you might want to ck amazon they have great return policy
 
that's sucks I get 2500 feet with my argtek in crowded neighborhood over water 5000 but turned around got scared still had strong signal you might want to ck amazon they have great return policy
Amazon's return policy is equally confusing because half the time you dont know who you are buying from and each one has their own policy.

Just an FYI, I was checking out prices on ebay. Newegg had one for $689. SWEET. Check their blurb and says return policy is easy and hassle free and conducted through the ebay interface or some crap like that. Scroll down lower to where people ask questions. "What is the return policy?" - we do not accept returns. WHAT A CROCK OF ****. We have a nice and easy return policy in that we do not accept returns is what it should say. I am suprised there note more lawsuits relating to deception on ebay
 
My exp with my P3S is when i'm out in the boonies I get great range.When i'm even close to town the range drops like a rock.Example last week.........wanted to catch the amazing AZ sunset.Took off in my front yard,went to 100' then 350' out.Lost all video feed,gps,lost everything.Shut the rc off,went in my house to grab a cig and then went out front and waited.Could see her lights coming home to daddy.Very confidence inspiring incident for me.When all else fails just grab a smoke and a beer and your baby WILL come home.
 
That's odd. Something is wrong with your set up. I'm in Vancouver a ton of interference. I get 700meters and if a go to a large park still in town I get 1.1km with a windsurfer. Good luck with finding a deal


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I get 800 feet. 1000 max with my p3s.
You guys think i should ask dji for and exange or to get it check. Had it for a good 3 months
 
Yeah that no good. Your antenna bent up ward or straight? Gotta ask


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I get 800 feet. 1000 max with my p3s.
You guys think i should ask dji for and exange or to get it check. Had it for a good 3 months
Thats whats aggravating, some people get insane distance and some do not. Its almost like there was a bad run that came of the production but that is just conjecture. Yes it is specific to ideal conditions however I have had shitty results in almost every place I go. Yesterday when I got my best distance of about 1000 feet, I climbed a small hill/ mountain and launched off the backside where it drops off rapidly in a clearing so I have no trees or houses within at least half a mile. I was literally probably +500 feet AGL where civilization is. Still maybe a 1,000 feet at best and even then the signal was fluctuating rapidly from 500-1000. I was dancing and twisting with my antenna trying to get the best signal possible, full, nothing, two red bars, back to full, momentary nothing, RTH, cancel RTH, back to full, push it out a little further, etc.....
 
Yeah that no good. Your antenna bent up ward or straight? Gotta ask


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yes, I have tried every antenna configuration possible, and then when signal cut outs I try a diferent angle, I even tried a windsurfer
 
Very odd, I get close to the .6 miles advertised with my p3s stock. I've had no problem with the range and I'm a very happy camper


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well just got back from beach got 5400 feet out little scary cant see it just look at screen p3s
 
i have had mine now for a few weeks. got into the hype like everyone else. I wanna go a mile, or whatever. So like most f us, I bought an antenna kit, eagerly installed it and was quickly disappointed. even bought a second controller from ebay, so i wouldnt run the risk of breaking the original by reinstalling the original antenna. i am currently using a home made windsurfer and stock antenna. total open area and i max out at around 2000 feet distance and can get about 1000 in altitude. NOT that i need to go that high. I have come to the conclusion that at 2000 feet out, i can not see the copter at all. and I am not comfortable with that. i purchased this setup, mainly for the new perspective i can get for photography. and the crappy distances i can get, well do ok for that. if we can control a friggin space device millions of miles away, we should be able to fly a **** toy a mile away.
 
Yeah it must be something wrong with some units. But I've had mine for a few weeks as well bought in Canada. So should be somewhat similar production time. And I get about 2000' in a highly populated area( ton of wifi interference) and 3600 in a large city park with some interference. And that's where I lose video with maybe one bar down on Rc signal. Never flew it till I lost Rc signal and forced an RTH. I would guess I could get about 5000' before Rc signal loss. Numbers are with a windsurfer


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mine has a argtek on it going back tonight when I can see it and let it go until rth and see how far I get
 
distance not up and its over the water
 
This is with my P3 Standard.
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