P4P versions

[Anokadrone]

Hi all, I am looking at a used P4 Pro that was purchased on Amazon through a authorized reseller. It was originally purchased in Jan. 2017. My question, were there any hardware upgrades or version revisions on the P4 Pro model from the time of its release until now? (added features, fixes,etc.) Just wondering if they are all the same or....?? Thanks all...

Steve

 

[msinger]

They are all the same.

 

[awinn17]

Check reviews... You can't identify the problems with them with pictures very often. It could be bricked, have bad internals, been subject to water, stolen... It may be legit or it may be a scam and the seller might have juuuuust enough plausible deniability to be forced to refund you later. Just be thorough and careful.

 

[Anokadrone]

awinn17 Thanks for your input. Greatly appreciated for sure. The young lady seems quite proud of her drone and can't wait to show me how to operate it so I am thinking that part will be okay. One thing does have me concerned and that is she has not flown/updated the system in several months. There is a reported issue on the DJI forum about vibrating and buzzing in the camera gimbal after doing the latest FW update. Users are special requesting access to a beta FW to correct the problem. Brings up 2 questions, is this happening to all the P4P owners? And is this going to happen to her when she wants to proudly demonstrate her drone for me? There is a 200 mile round trip involved so I am concerned.

 

[awinn17]

awinn17 Thanks for your input. Greatly appreciated for sure. The young lady seems quite proud of her drone and can't wait to show me how to operate it so I am thinking that part will be okay. One thing does have me concerned and that is she has not flown/updated the system in several months. There is a reported issue on the DJI forum about vibrating and buzzing in the camera gimbal after doing the latest FW update. Users are special requesting access to a beta FW to correct the problem. Brings up 2 questions, is this happening to all the P4P owners? And is this going to happen to her when she wants to proudly demonstrate her drone for me? There is a 200 mile round trip involved so I am concerned.

Very good that you can see it operate in person.

One way to mitigate your risk is to get insurance on it- I just posted a topic that I got a State Farm policy for $30 and $1500 coverage for my store bought drone. If you call State Farm and talk to a PAP agent, see if they will allow private sales and if so how do you document price paid? If a written receipt is acceptable, then do what you may at the DMV but backwards and write the receipt for $1500 to get that much coverage. That way in addition to cheap insurance that covers any future loss or damage you're covered for the full cost of a new one if this one bricks itself or goes berserk after a software update. Not sure what your agreed price is, but that should stay the same. Pay her in cash, have her write a receipt for $1500 however much. That's not really cheating since that is the actual replacement cost.

Edit: State Farm did the whole thing by email, and a phone call in the end. I'd just call them to ask your questions. To cover, they needed Serial Number, Receipt (photo), and Make/Model. Then basic stuff about me and employment and whatnot. That's what I emphasized the importance of them accepting a written receipt. Took like 10 minutes once I texted her the receipt photo.

 

[Meta4]

One thing does have me concerned and that is she has not flown/updated the system in several months. There is a reported issue on the DJI forum about vibrating and buzzing in the camera gimbal after doing the latest FW update. Users are special requesting access to a beta FW to correct the problem. Brings up 2 questions, is this happening to all the P4P owners? And is this going to happen to her when she wants to proudly demonstrate her drone for me?

No ... that's not affecting most users.
And it probably won't affect the one you are wanting to look at, whether or not the firmware is updated.

 

[Anokadrone]

Thanks Meta, she did mention a buzzing that her drone has apparently done since day 1. Is that normal for a P4P when you power up? (not flying I am assuming). Going to look at it tomorrow afternoon.

 

[Meta4]

Thanks Meta, she did mention a buzzing that her drone has apparently done since day 1. Is that normal for a P4P when you power up? (not flying I am assuming). Going to look at it tomorrow afternoon.

Perhaps it's just the internal fan that air cools the battery and the internals of the Phantom?

 

[awinn17]

Might be gimbal. Not sure if it's fatal or not. First drone P3SE did it sounded like a grind/buzz. I didn't keep it long enough to know if it was fatal or not. New P4P is internal fan noise only, minimal gimbal noise when I move the craft.

 

[Anokadrone]

Hi all, Well I took possession of the P4P. (Thats an entertaining story for later). Anyway, the aircraft is in beautiful condition but not at the latest FW version. It seems to behave fine and is not making any strange sounds. I am guessing the noise that the lady was referring to was just a cooling fan operating normally. So after getting it home on the bench and power things up, it is asking (demanding) to update the FW on the bird. Showing a diagram of my mobile device (iPad mini 4) connected directly to the aircraft. To do this I will apparently need a Micro-USB B to Lightning cable. I am trying to find such a cable on Amazon and not really seeing it. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated for sure.

btw, one of the 4 batteries is bricked....mmmm I want to dissect it

 

[awinn17]

Lol be careful if you do get into it. That could end poorly. But Im guessing you know that.

The software is interesting. Do the remote first then reboot both then do the aircraft then rebooth both again. Remote before bird is mandatory for this update I believe.

 

[Anokadrone]

Sorry for the delay, been out deer hunting. I did take the bad battery apart, not an easy task (I mauled the case a little). I disconnected the wiring harness and left it for a few hours. Reconnected and it did show some life but no joy. Died again. So I unsoldered the mains and connected to a power supply. Slowly tuned up the voltage until it began drawing a little current. Over the course of an hour or two, I kept sneaking up the voltage until I got to the nominal 15.2 VDC. Went a little higher and a little longer. Then disconnected. Left is sit a couple hours and the mains were showing 15. 2 VDC. So I re-soldered the mains back on and reconnected the wire harness. Everything looks normal and its showing about 50% charge on the LED's. I have yet to reassemble and test ...more to come. (btw, the weather here has been horrible so I cant test fly my new acquisition But it all seems to be acting nicely)

 

[awinn17]

That's awesome I'm impressed. I wonder if it's just a surface charge or has actual capacity. Maybe you'd know- I've adopted a system where I only discharge my batteries down to about 25% or so and then charge them to about 50% until I want to go fly, at which point I'll charge them 90-100%. For longevity, is this a good strategy or no different than going 100% to 20% every time?

 

[John Locke]

Hi all, Well I took possession of the P4P. (Thats an entertaining story for later).

Make sure you get a copy of your sellers Amazon receipt showing date of purchase. You may need that if you need warranty work done. The warranty is good for a year, even to 2nd owners, but you'll need the receipt that shows the authorized DJI dealer name and purchase date.

 

[Anokadrone]

That's awesome I'm impressed. I wonder if it's just a surface charge or has actual capacity. Maybe you'd know- I've adopted a system where I only discharge my batteries down to about 25% or so and then charge them to about 50% until I want to go fly, at which point I'll charge them 90-100%. For longevity, is this a good strategy or no different than going 100% to 20% every time?

I am going to reassemble the battery tonight and put in on the charging hub. I can fully charge it (if all goes well) and then try to power up the bird with it. I can play around on the bench with it and see if it seems viable. I will update you....(fun stuff, I love reviving a lost cause

 

[Anokadrone]

Make sure you get a copy of your sellers Amazon receipt showing date of purchase. You may need that if you need warranty work done. The warranty is good for a year, even to 2nd owners, but you'll need the receipt that shows the authorized DJI dealer name and purchase date.

Thanks John, thats a good idea. I dont know if its possible however I will give it a shot. I had pretty much written off the warranty being a Craigslist affair. but seeing it fly and operate was the saving grace there. I still have to tell the story of the actual sale. Its a bit entertaining....have to run for now though.

 

[John Locke]

Thanks John, thats a good idea. I dont know if its possible however I will give it a shot. I had pretty much written off the warranty being a Craigslist affair. but seeing it fly and operate was the saving grace there. I still have to tell the story of the actual sale. Its a bit entertaining....have to run for now though.

Being an Amazon sale, it's easy for her to go to her purchase history and get a copy of the transaction, if she's cooperative and willing.

 

[Anokadrone]

Battery update....well it registers as charged but will not discharge in the battery dock. Also, in my "precision" disassembly I must have tweaked the plastics just enough so it wont seat in the drone slot. May have damaged the board or it was already damaged causing the intial failure. The button cover also has tabs that break off when you remove it. The best I was hoping for was as test battery for bench top things but now its looking pretty grim. On the lighter side, the seller seems to be cooperative about the receipt from Amazon but I have yet to see it.....
Bottom line, the batteries are not repairable because there is no way to take off the plastics without damaging them. (those tabs are glued) Even if I do get the receipt, I wont be able to return the battery since I mangled it....

 

[John Locke]

Even if I do get the receipt, I wont be able to return the battery since I mangled it..

Batteries only have a 6 month warranty anyway.

 

[Anokadrone]

Finally got my new acquisition in the air yesterday. What a treat to fly. Yeah!!!! Solid as a rock. Temp was 38F so the fingers got a little cold. Wind was SE at 9. Gone are the days of manually fighting the wind and controlling altitude. Granted it stayed in beginner mode for the session but now its time to graduate to P-Mode. I had reduced my battery alert level to 20% and I did notice that the time of the first alert to critical level (10%) happened pretty fast maybe 2 or 3 minutes. I did push it to that point once and it started the auto-land sequence. It was coming down where it was, right above my split-rail fence. I was able to control the descent with the sticks and put her down at my feet. What fun!!! Looks like we might be socked in for today...... Below VFR miinimums)