My HDMI Board Installation Was Easy !

dedstik · Aug 3, 2015

Despite FedEx telling me that my board was going to arrive tomorrow it actually
arrived today...about 2 hours ago

Installation was easy. Really easy !

What you might not notice from Blades excellent installation pics is the fact that the two small ribbon cables have small stiff little "tabs" on them which make guiding the cables in and out pretty easy.

Pro Tip: I removed the three screws that held the "old" board in place and found that it made removal and replacement of the large ribbon cable a snap. Remove the small ribbon cables first with the old board held in place.

Regarding the need for a special version of the DJI Pilot app to use the HDMI board - the board runs fine using either app version 1.1.2 or 1.2.0. I tested bot app versions. The only difference I could find is that the software switch to toggle the OSD on / of and some other settings is not available using 1.1.2 (or I could not find them), however the video feed is fine and the OSD is active. Hopefully this lays to rest the question about the need for a specific app to use the HDMI board.

You may find, as I did and as others on RCG have reported, that your HDMI board is shipped in a much larger box with no additional packing material. (The actual HDMI board is nicely boxed.) Some have freaked out about this and are obsessing about possible shipping damage. I could not tell that the little box that the HDMI board and it's box suffered any signs of wear and tear rattling around lose in the larger shipping box on it's trip to me.

Total installation time including finding my magnifying jeweler's lenses was about 20 minutes.
I had all sorts of fancy tools ready to use but found that an old pair of generic tweezers worked just fine.

ps...Yes, the new HDMI board requires a cable with a "Mini" size HDMI fitting. Now we can put that one to bed once and for all !!

:harry

ianwood · Aug 3, 2015

Good write up. So, who is selling these States-side? Not on B&H or Amazon yet.

dedstik · Aug 3, 2015

ianwood said:
Good write up. So, who is selling these States-side? Not on B&H or Amazon yet.

No reports yet of US dealers with stock.

Oakley17 · Aug 3, 2015

Does anyone know where I can find a hdmi type c to hdmi type c cable in the UK.

I want to connect the controller to some Head Play goggles that arrive in a few days.

Cannot find the cable anywhere

Thanks guys if you can help

John Locke · Aug 3, 2015

dedstik said:
Regarding the need for a special version of the DJI Pilot app to use the HDMI board - the board runs fine using either app version 1.1.2 or 1.2.0. I tested bot app versions. The only difference I could find is that the software switch to toggle the OSD on / of and some other settings is not available using 1.1.2 (or I could not find them), however the video feed is fine and the OSD is active. Hopefully this lays to rest the question about the need for a specific app to use the HDMI board.

I have 1.2.0 pilot app and cannot find the option anywhere to turn the OSD on and off, however I don't have my HDMI kit installed yet, arrives tomorrow. Can you explain where to find the on/off toggle for the OSD?

The Mini HDMI cable connector needed for the controller kit is called Type C, not to be confused with the even smaller Type D sized HDMI connector. The Headplay goggle (which is my target goggle to use) also uses the Type C. It's not common to find cables with Type C connectors on both ends, however they are available at B&H, as well as Computer Cable Store for less than $4/ea

dedstik · Aug 3, 2015

John Locke said:
I have 1.2.0 pilot app and cannot find the option anywhere to turn the OSD on and off, however I don't have my HDMI kit installed yet, arrives tomorrow. Can you explain where to find the on/off toggle for the OSD?

The Mini HDMI cable connector needed for the controller kit is called Type C, not to be confused with the even smaller Type D sized HDMI connector. The Headplay goggle (which is my target goggle to use) also uses the Type C. It's not common to find cables with Type C connectors on both ends, however they are available at B&H, as well as Computer Cable Store for less than $4/ea

The OSD control will not be visible until the HDMI board is installed.

I was able to find several HDMI C to C cables by searching Amazon and google.

Now that I have been trying a regular HDMI consumer cable they seem a little stiff and heavy so I have a micro lite cable on order.

:harry

John Locke · Aug 3, 2015

dedstik said:
Now that I have been trying a regular HDMI consumer cable they seem a little stiff and heavy so I have a micro lite cable on order.

:harry

Where can we buy a "micro lite" type C to type C HDMI cable?

dedstik · Aug 3, 2015

I'm using this cable with a micro to mini adapter so it can be used with my HeadPlays (mini to mini) and my Dominator HD's (micro to mini):

http://www.usbfirewire.com/parts/rr-7s-5s-xxg.html#RR-7S-5S-72G

:harry

Jase · Aug 22, 2015

Hi Harry

Thanks for the great write up. Can you or someone who is already using it tell me if the latency using a HDMI to a screen is any better than the DJI app? Is it real time like analogue, better than, same as or worse than the DJI pilot app lag/latency.

Thanks for any help

xave · Aug 22, 2015

Got an email that mine just shipped. The order was place 7/19 so the wait time is long

outlaw704 · Aug 22, 2015

Jase said:
Hi Harry

Thanks for the great write up. Can you or someone who is already using it tell me if the latency using a HDMI to a screen is any better than the DJI app? Is it real time like analogue, better than, same as or worse than the DJI pilot app lag/latency.

Thanks for any help

I would say the latency is equal to the app. I tried a few different cables, lengths, adapters and it doesn't seem to make a difference on my Black Pearl monitor. If I had to guess, it's .25 to .50 sec behind "real time" in my experience.

Jase · Aug 22, 2015

Thanks outlaw. I love my P3P but am disappointed with the latency. Its hurting my service that I can normally give to my clients. I wish I could fit an analogue vtx to this unit as I would do anything for real time video

dedstik · Aug 22, 2015

Jase said:
Hi Harry

Thanks for the great write up. Can you or someone who is already using it tell me if the latency using a HDMI to a screen is any better than the DJI app? Is it real time like analogue, better than, same as or worse than the DJI pilot app lag/latency.

Thanks for any help

I'm going to say that the HDMI output latency is a little better, but just a little.

Aside from the elimination of sun light glare, the HDMI feed does not suffer from any stuttering caused by thermal issues such as I get occasionally with my Mini 3. That's important when I'm flying well outside of visual range.

:harry

Jase · Aug 22, 2015

Thanks Harry

When you power on your P3 again please do a test for me. Put your hand in front of the camera so you can view it on the HDMI screen or goggles. Open or close your hand and please let me know how long it takes before you see the hand action on the screen change in comparison to real time.

Thanks Jase

dedstik · Aug 22, 2015

Jase said:
Thanks Harry

When you power on your P3 again please do a test for me. Put your hand in front of the camera so you can view it on the HDMI screen or goggles. Open or close your hand and please let me know how long it takes before you see the hand action on the screen change in comparison to real time.

Thanks Jase

Hi Jase,

I had the opportunity this afternoon to do a quick test as you suggested.

Using my best almost scientific "guesstamit" I would put the HDMI video latency at somewhere near .3 sec. I

t is a not at all noticeable during long range FPV flight, but would probably be a problem if I were flying through some trees like I might with a 250mm class FPV racer.

Hope this helps.

:harry

Jase · Aug 23, 2015

Thanks Harry that helps me a lot. I basically do need real time video for my clients. I have asked in another thread I started to try some other options.

http://www.phantompilots.com/threads/would-this-be-possible.51630/#post-492620