New Phantom 4 Pro - No camera signal, No gimbol control and No SD card recognised. Urgent help

[Jaza]

Hi Guys,

Some urgent help would be much appreciated.
Next week we are away on a trip, and bought a Phantom 4 Pro to do some filming...

This is my first quad, so please be easy with me!

I have unpacked everything and set it up, following the instructions.
The controller is plugged into my Galaxy s7 running DJI GO 4.
When it was first connected, it required a firmware update (to the controller) which I did.

There is no camera view/signal, no gimbol control (though is rotates on boot up), and the SD card is not recognised.

I have tried re-installing DJI GO 4, re-booting and updating firmware again, but to no avail.

I took it out for a short test flight, and it flew great, just no camera or control.

Do I have a dud or am I doing something stupid?

 

[msinger]

Are you running the latest version of the aircraft firmware? You can verify by checking for an update in the DJI Assistant 2 app like this:

FYI, the DJI Assistant 2 app can be downloaded from the P4P downloads page.

 

[Jaza]

Thanks for the info, I had assumed it was because during my trials, the app asked to update the aircraft firmware itself, which it seemed to do through the app/controller to aircraft link. I am not at home now, but will try the DJI Assistant 2 app tonight.
Thanks for your reply msinger

 

[msinger]

You can also update the aircraft firmware using DJI GO. If an update is available, DJI GO should prompt you to install it. To confirm you're running the current firmware, compare your current firmware version in the "General Settings" --> "About" section of DJI GO to the most recent version listed in the firmware release notes.

 

[Jaza]

Thanks for the info.
I will check the versions ASAP, which will be this evening.
The firmware was showing as being 'Latest' from DJI GO 4, but I will confirm what that means exactly tonight.

 

[GMack]

When plugged into your Samsung (Yuck!) Galaxy S7, does GO show "Disconnected" in the upper left of the screen where the camera section is all gray? Sounds like the typical "Connection Error" as seen on Samsung devices (Yuck again!). See here for a possible solution: How to Clear Defaults on an Android Device

As to the SD card, you need to format it in the drone via GO in the camera settings (At the bottom of that menu beneath the shutter button in GO.). When done in the drone, it adds other necessary files to the card once it formats. If you do it in a computer, those files aren't put there unless the drone does it.

 

[Jaza]

Thanks for the info GMack.
The SD card is how it came in the P4P, so I had assumed it was set up...
Is that a personal 'Yuck' for Samsung, or is there more to it that that for DJI?
I opted for the 'Pro' rather than 'Pro+', thinking of better flexibility, and replacement of the screen. I will be looking for a suitable tablet for the DJI once it is all proven.

 

[GMack]

Thanks for the info GMack.
The SD card is how it came in the P4P, so I had assumed it was set up...
Is that a personal 'Yuck' for Samsung, or is there more to it that that for DJI?
I opted for the 'Pro' rather than 'Pro+', thinking of better flexibility, and replacement of the screen. I will be looking for a suitable tablet for the DJI once it is all proven.

I have two Samsungs and neither work now. They were, and one still is, on their approved list but it doesn't work now either (S6). They both use to work with the older GO 3, but it grew too and now with GO 4 nothing is working. I had to buy an iPad upon reading that it seems to be the device of choice with DJI and it always connects now. However, it (An iPad Air 2 plus cellular with T-mobile.) is beginning to do the video lag thing now as with the Samsungs early on when they did work, so it might be the end of the line with it soon too.

Samsung also seems to throw out "goodies" in their updates that messes with the DJI connection. They pushed 'Link' out last week and it refused to update off the Samsung server so the Google Play Store removed it over complaints of it not working nor updating. Samsung pushed the S8 out and had issues with Bixby and Nougat, like it needs another voice-operated app over Google. Too many of the apps on mine run in the background so GO 4 just is a total mess. I get random pop ups and stuff like mapping and fitness trackers are always running and some will restart if shut down and seems to overwhelm the processor and GO has issues as it needs a lot itself to run well. Hence my "Yuck!" on Samsung devices for running DJI GO. They might work okay when new and trimmed down, but give them time, add some apps, and an ever-growing GO and it might be a struggle to keep GO running well.

 

[sar104]

Thanks for the info GMack.
The SD card is how it came in the P4P, so I had assumed it was set up...
Is that a personal 'Yuck' for Samsung, or is there more to it that that for DJI?
I opted for the 'Pro' rather than 'Pro+', thinking of better flexibility, and replacement of the screen. I will be looking for a suitable tablet for the DJI once it is all proven.

Samsung devices in general, and the S7 in particular, seem to have more than their share of reported problems with the GO app. On top of that the Android version of the app seems to cause more problems than the iOS version, possibly due to DJI giving priority to iOS app development, possibly due to the fragmentation in the Android ecosystem, and possibly both.

 

[GMack]

Samsung devices in general, and the S7 in particular, seem to have more than their share of reported problems with the GO app. On top of that the Android version of the app seems to cause more problems than the iOS version, possibly due to DJI giving priority to iOS app development, possibly due to the fragmentation in the Android ecosystem, and possibly both.

Agreed.

The Android GO also uses a lot of Java language too where Apple seems to refrain from much of that (Steve Jobs was anti Java and Flash as I recall.). In the DJI forum, someone posted a GO error log off their Android device and there was some 20 errors related to Java. Java seems to be always updating on my Windows computer every 2-3 months so that may be part of it too. DJI seems very slow to update their code and Java may be updating ahead of the DJI programmers.

For now, I'd say the least problematic tablet out there might be the Apple iPad Pro 9.7" model. If you end up buying two Samsungs, you might be ahead to get it instead. I went that 'cheapskate' route with spending $1,200 on the two Samsungs that now neither one works, but the 'cheaper' ipad Air 2 still is - sort of (Video lag is about 1-2% now, but likely will grow with GO 4.10.2.). Least it has never failed to connect or disconnect to the drone which is a serious Android issue with many.

 

[Jaza]

Interesting.
Thanks for that. It sounds like there is nothing wrong with the bird then.
It may be better to just go out and buy a small iPad.

 

[sar104]

Agreed.

The Android GO also uses a lot of Java language too where Apple seems to refrain from much of that (Steve Jobs was anti Java and Flash as I recall.). In the DJI forum, someone posted a GO error log off their Android device and there was some 20 errors related to Java. Java seems to be always updating on my Windows computer every 2-3 months so that may be part of it too. DJI seems very slow to update their code and Java may be updating ahead of the DJI programmers.

For now, I'd say the least problematic tablet out there might be the Apple iPad Pro 9.7" model. If you end up buying two Samsungs, you might be ahead to get it instead. I went that 'cheapskate' route with spending $1,200 on the two Samsungs that now neither one works, but the 'cheaper' ipad Air 2 still is - sort of (Video lag is about 1-2% now, but likely will grow with GO 4.10.2.). Least it has never failed to connect or disconnect to the drone which is a serious Android issue with many.

I've been using the iPad Air 2 (Phantom 4), iPhone 7 (Mavic) and I've tested my iPad Pro as well. They all appear to work virtually flawlessly with the GO 4 app.

 

[Jaza]

OK, so I have now bought and connected an iPad, but I still get the No Image Transmission Signal msg with no SD card recognised etc... Still all looks the same as before, but on a better screen.
Any other suggestions please?

 

[Jaza]

Hi just to update...
I have had assistance online from DJI, who say the aircraft seems to be faulty. They gave me an email address to return the aircraft for repair, asking for my name address and aircraft type with fault description. I sent all of this, and after several days, had a reply asking for the details again???
I sent the details again, then had another reply after a few more days, saying it was outside of their 15 day repair/refund period!
I just want it working!
Fortunately, I have kept all documentation, and recoded everything from opening the box after it arrived, for a vLog.
Very disappointed with DJI

 

[scottps]

On Saturday June 18, 2017 I had prepared my P4P for flying on Sunday by charging batteries and taking firmware updates. On Sunday when I took it out, the video was broken. It would never fully display breaking up from top to bottom on going a third of the way down the screen. I went back into the house to start searching for a solution. I was almost immediately shown a controller update was available. After taking what had to have been an emergency patch, all of the video problems were resolved. So be sure to check to see if there is an update for your controller!