Lost video connection at 500 meters line of sight

ibxnc · Dec 10, 2016

Hi guys. New to the forum so apologies if this question is redundant. I bought a new p4 3 days ago. Have flown 12 flights. Love it!! However, on last two flights I've lost video feed at 500 to 600 meters, line of sight. Still have rc control. Brought it down the first time and it reestablished about 1/2 way down. Last time I had to restart the rc and p4 to get video feed back. Ideas??

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

Aotearoa Kiwi · Dec 10, 2016

What sort of dislpay are you using - if you still had control there was still a data connection, total loss of connection would start a RTH, some Android devices dont seem to have enough beans to keep the video going. Never had a problem with iPhones and iPad

ibxnc · Dec 10, 2016

Aotearoa Kiwi said:
What sort of dislpay are you using - if you still had control there was still a data connection, total loss of connection would start a RTH, some Android devices dont seem to have enough beans to keep the video going. Never had a problem with iPhones and iPad

I'm using an iPad Air II. I'm still learning and may not have had the antenna set at the proper angle but no problem with losing rc link, RTH, etc. But, my storage is running low on the iPad as I have a 16 gb model.

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

Brockrock · Dec 11, 2016

I use an iPad Air 2 16GB version as well, and it's been rock solid. Mine is dedicated to my P4 though, and I have very little on it to avoid conflict. Also, I make sure nothing else is running in the background when droning. I cache the map with a hotspot on my phone and then go into airplane mode for flight.

There are so many factors that affect reception. Antenna positioning is one. Keep um up and even angled back a bit unless the copter is directly above you. Also, try a different and 'clean' spot regarding wifi interference and such.

ibxnc · Dec 11, 2016

Brockrock said:
I use an iPad Air 2 16GB version as well, and it's been rock solid. Mine is dedicated to my P4 though, and I have very little on it to avoid conflict. Also, I make sure nothing else is running in the background when droning. I cache the map with a hotspot on my phone and then go into airplane mode for flight.

There are so many factors that affect reception. Antenna positioning is one. Keep um up and even angled back a bit unless the copter is directly above you. Also, try a different and 'clean' spot regarding wifi interference and such.

Thanks my friend. I'll try your suggestions tomorrow. I'm sure many things were probably running in the background. Didn't think of clearing that out. Is your iPad in airplane mode for flight?

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

Aotearoa Kiwi · Dec 11, 2016

ibxnc said:
Didn't think of clearing that out. Is your iPad in airplane mode for flight?

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots

I use an iPad air (first version), never had a problem, WRT airplane mode, I also use my iPhone in my pocket with hotspot on so ipad can use the cell data to update the map data - no problem. I never clear out my ipad from running programs either - and it has a lot of other programs. Other people have commented that you ensure litchi isnt running else it interferes so i make sure that is ended before starting dji go 3.1 - there are a couple of threads here about dji go 4 losing video.

I think maybe the suggestion above is probable cause - wifi interference, try manually setting the wifi channel - when you do that, Dji Go shows you the interference levels and you manually chose a quiet channel.

alokbhargava · Dec 11, 2016

Try to fly in airplane mode and see if there is any improvement.

Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots

ibxnc · Dec 12, 2016

Thanks everyone! Working much better now. I believe it was more operator error than anything as I wasn't correctly orienting the antenna to the P4. Once I began doing this all was well. What a blast it has been! Wish I had one of these for Recon missions while serving as an NCO with the 82nd ABN DIV years ago!

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots