Phantom 4 Range Tests - Dirty Bird

[Davphys]

I just want better range and battery life. Who gives a crap about 1080p FPV when you are using a tablet outside anyway? And believe me, no other companies will have that.
But we need increased transmitting and receiving power.

I get that same feeling as well. It's very similar to a few years ago how every TV manufacturer had to make 3D versions of their popular models just to keep pace with competitors when they all eventually found out that nobody really wanted 3D. Lots of wasted money on development costs for a feature nobody really needed.

The bottom line is that Obstacle Avoidance and Active Tracking will be used by a very small percentage of experienced Phantom pilots. DJI painted itself into a corner with this "must have all the cool stuff" mentality and it's signaling the downward slide of the company's vision. If I don't see a much improved Lightbridge with 1080p FPV and zoom on the "P4 Pro" or P5 then I will likely never buy another DJI product and seek out alternatives with their competitors.

 

[Dirty Bird]

I sure do fly the original Dirty Bird Vision+! Her camera needs some work as it developed a twitch on the yaw axis after my curious cat knocked her off the table. Just repaired the damned thing from my encounter with Night Fury too! She'll be back in the air once I get the camera squared away.

"Dirty Bird" - my original Vision+

Do you still fly the Dirty Bird?

 

[Dirty Bird]

I still think the best bang for the buck is the P3A, or a P3P if you can catch the $799 deal on one new. I had every bit as much fun today flying the P3 Advanced as I did the Phantom 4 only my heart was beating slower!

That is a good strategy if you're a noob to Phantoms and want to learn the basics of flying and BLOS flying with FPV.

Do a lot of research on the P3 Pro and P4 and make an educated decision on what to buy. Ask yourself if Tap-to-Fly and Obstacle Avoidance is really worth more than increased range that the P3P offers. Remember, there are lots of battery mods out there for the P3 that can get you 26 min. flight times.

 

[Dirty Bird]

I have A-Z Screen Recorder installed & didn't even think to run it. Wonder if the pixelation shows up on the device side videos? I check in a bit.

Not sure what you're talking about --- I get pixelation all the time on my P3P FPV feed --- just use a screen recorder so you can upload the tablet-side video to YouTube so we can see what these hiccups looks like at 10K+ ft.

 

[Dirty Bird]

I agree I don't need a 1080 FPV feed on my 7" tablet. Even if I was using goggles 720 would be fine. Give me power, give me range, or give me a sandwich!

I just want better range and battery life. Who gives a crap about 1080p FPV when you are using a tablet outside anyway? And believe me, no other companies will have that.
But we need increased transmitting and receiving power.

 

[Davphys]

I couldn't agree more on the best bang for your buck.

I still think the best bang for the buck is the P3A, or a P3P if you can catch the $799 deal on one new. I had every bit as much fun today flying the P3 Advanced as I did the Phantom 4 only my heart was beating slower!

 

[Dirty Bird]

Ok here is a breakdown on my three P4 range test flights today:

Temp 41F, Winds 12-16MPH East. Stock P4. All flights in Sport Mode. Flights commenced directly into the wind. Aside from an occasional video hiccup (pixelation) I had good video, telemetry, & control the entire way. I never lost control & returned due to flight computer battery warning. Ignored the warning on flights 2 & 3. The first Batt% is what was left upon returning to the Home Point. With the wind at my back the battery warning quickly subsided once I turned back & I farted around on return flights. I could have continued further but am unsure how far I can push the P4 batteries. There is more range in my P4.

AC Flt# MaxDistance Batt% TotalDistance Batt% Flight Time
P4 1 --------- 10,465' --- 41% -------- 23,124' --- 15% ------- 14:55
P4 2 --------- 12,665' --- 38% -------- 29,141' --- 15% ------- 15:04
P4 3 --------- 13,166' --- 33% -------- 30,507' --- 15% ------- 13:48
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avg ------------ 12,099' --- 37.3% ------ 27,651' --- 15% ------ 14.36

Another 3000' & this bird is @ 5KM. I'm confident she has it in her. I was running in Sport Mode for all three flights. Granted this will use more power. The flight time tells the tale.

 

[Davphys]

Great! This does make me feel a lot better. It's good to know that sport mode is a good option for windier days and non windy days might get decent battery life with it turned off.

Did you notice greater stability with the P4 in those conditions than you did with the P3?

Ok here is a breakdown on my three P4 range test flights today:

Temp 41F, Winds 12-16MPH East. Stock P4. All flights in Sport Mode. Flights commenced directly into the wind. Aside from an occasional video hiccup (pixelation) I had good video, telemetry, & control the entire way. I never lost control but returned due to flight computer battery warning. Ignored the warning on flights 2 & 3. The first Batt% is what was left upon returning to the Home Point. With the wind at my back the battery warning quickly subsided once I turned back & I farted around on return flights. I could have continued further but am unsure how far I can push the P4 batteries. There is more range in my P4.

AC Flt# MaxDistance Batt% TotalDistance Batt% Flight Time
P4 1 10,465' 41% 23,124' 15% 14:55
P4 2 12,665' 38% 29,141' 15% 15:04
P4 3 13,166' 33% 30,507' 15% 13:48
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avg 12,099' 37..% 27,651' 15% 14.36

Another 3000' & this bird is @ 5KM. I'm confident she has it in her. I was running in Sport Mode for all three flights. Granted this will use more power. The flight time tells the tale.

 

[Dirty Bird]

After the P4 flights I held over through some sleet & then took the P3 Advanced up. She flew fine. I have to be honest all of my P3 Phantoms, including the Standards, & even my old Vision+ are all pretty stable. I guess I'd say the P4 takes hover stability to a slightly higher level, but I don't have any stability complaints on any of my Phantoms.

Not doing a whole breakdown like on the P4 but the P3 Advanced missions were:

20:00 mins for 26,112'
15:34 mins for 33,760'
19:06 mins for 31,088'
18:06 mins for 33,515'

I only went for max distance on one flight. 14,424' turned around due to battery warning. The P3 had LOTS of battery left upon return. Honestly the P3 Advanced smokes my P4 on battery life.

Great! This does make me feel a lot better. It's good to know that sport mode is a good option for windier days and non windy days might get decent battery life with it turned off.

Did you notice greater stability with the P4 in those conditions than you did with the P3?

 

[Davphys]

The P3 would smoke your P4 on battery life because you were flying your P4 in sport mode. I think a better comparison would be flying the P4 in P mode with collision avoidance turned off to achieve the normal P3 speed.

I do understand that you were just testing range and it is clear from the flight times and distances covered that the P4 was smoking in speed.

After the P4 flights I held over through some sleet & then took the P3 Advanced up. She flew fine. I have to be honest all of my P3 Phantoms, including the Standards, & even my old Vision+ are all pretty stable. I guess I'd say the P4 takes hover stability to a slightly higher level, but I don't have any stability complaints on any of my Phantoms.

Not doing a whole breakdown like on the P4 but the P3 Advanced missions were:

20:00 mins for 26,112'
15:34 mins for 33,760'
19:06 mins for 31,088'
18:06 mins for 33,515'

I only went for max distance on one flight. 14,424' turned around due to battery warning. The P3 had LOTS of battery left upon return. Honestly the P3 Advanced smokes my P4 on battery life.

 

[sar104]

Not testing range, but I just did a battery test on a brand new (charged once) battery, in P mode with CA sensors enabled. Flew back and forth on a 1/2 mile track at 15 - 20 mph, little or no wind. The app seemed to initially estimate 22 minutes flight time. It went from 95% to 15% in 19 minutes. I had planned to do another test just hovering in ATTI, but ran out of light.

One additional note - this test was conducted at 7500 ft elevation. That always seemed to give me a bit less time than advertised with my P2 also.

 

[Davphys]

It just occurred to me that the most ideal test would be using a preplanned flight with Litchi on both birds. That would be extremely precise and be able to really shine a light on battery life. Just turn off CA on the P4 so it will be apples to apples.

I, for one, thank you DB for putting together all this data.

 

[Dirty Bird]

That is a fair point on the Sport Mode. No doubt it drains the power faster. I will be running some more tests as the weather improves. I like getting out at the crack of dawn when everything is calm.

The P3 would smoke your P4 on battery life because you were flying your P4 in sport mode. I think a better comparison would be flying the P4 in P mode with collision avoidance turned off to achieve the normal P3 speed.

I do understand that you were just testing range and it is clear from the flight times and distances covered that the P4 was smoking in speed.

 

[Davphys]

I would never be able to motivate myself to get up that early in the morning

That is a fair point on the Sport Mode. No doubt it drains the power faster. I will be running some more tests as the weather improves. I like getting out at the crack of dawn when everything is calm.

 

[Bocephus-73]

I agree I don't need a 1080 FPV feed on my 7" tablet. Even if I was using goggles 720 would be fine. Give me power, give me range, or give me a sandwich!

There is a lot of commercial need for 1080p FPV --- esp. search and rescue teams and pretty much anyone doing surveillance work. For example, I was hired by a few hunters in August 2015 to scout a few square miles of fields in Ohio for turkey and deer seasons. I can tell you from experience that wild animals are spooked by a loud buzzing P3P and I needed to stay above 150 ft. to have any chance of flying above them without having them scatter into the woods. Unfortunately at that altitude I was unable to see fine detail like antlers and discerning gobblers from hens in the turkey flocks. 1080p would make a huge difference in this type of application, as well as a 10X or 20X zoom on the camera. These are the kind of vital features we need to see in a P4 Pro or P5.

 

[Dirty Bird]

About six weeks ago I went out early on a Sunday morning to maiden one of my P3 Standards. Caught the Carnival Pride returning to port. It was dead calm. Check out the water!

P3 Standard "Darth Videous"

I would never be able to motivate myself to get up that early in the morning

 

[Bocephus-73]

I just want better range and battery life. Who gives a crap about 1080p FPV when you are using a tablet outside anyway? And believe me, no other companies will have that.
But we need increased transmitting and receiving power.

MANY people would love to have 1080p FPV --- and MANY people are using tablets outside with no problems

 

[Davphys]

No. You are wrong. Those are features that should be in the more expensive drones that are actually used for commercial purposes like an Inspire 2/3.
The phantom series is more for enthusiast and recreational use and should not have these more expensive features on it, allowing the price to be capped lower.

There is a lot of commercial need for 1080p FPV --- esp. search and rescue teams and pretty much anyone doing surveillance work. For example, I was hired by a few hunters in August 2015 to scout a few square miles of fields in Ohio for turkey and deer seasons. I can tell you from experience that wild animals are spooked by a loud buzzing P3P and I needed to stay above 150 ft. to have any chance of flying above them without having them scatter into the woods. Unfortunately at that altitude I was unable to see fine detail like antlers and discerning gobblers from hens in the turkey flocks. 1080p would make a huge difference in this type of application, as well as a 10X or 20X zoom on the camera. These are the kind of vital features we need to see in a P4 Pro or P5.

 

[sar104]

There is a lot of commercial need for 1080p FPV --- esp. search and rescue teams and pretty much anyone doing surveillance work. For example, I was hired by a few hunters in August 2015 to scout a few square miles of fields in Ohio for turkey and deer seasons. I can tell you from experience that wild animals are spooked by a loud buzzing P3P and I needed to stay above 150 ft. to have any chance of flying above them without having them scatter into the woods. Unfortunately at that altitude I was unable to see fine detail like antlers and discerning gobblers from hens in the turkey flocks. 1080p would make a huge difference in this type of application, as well as a 10X or 20X zoom on the camera. These are the kind of vital features we need to see in a P4 Pro or P5.

I'm sure the 1080P will arrive sooner or later - just a bandwidth problem. A 10 or 20 X zoom lens is another matter though - that would put serious demands on the gimbal to keep it steady enough, even with image stabilization.

For search and rescue work we just review the 4k video afterwards. That has an appropriate resolution for the task at around 200 ft AGL.

 

[Davphys]

Great video! I wonder if you can use active track on the P4 for a cruise ship?

About six weeks ago I went out early on a Sunday morning to maiden one of my P3 Standards. Caught the Carnival Pride returning to port. It was dead calm. Check out the water!

P3 Standard "Darth Videous"